Every smoker is aware of the effects of smoking but find it hard to quit mainly due to nicotine dependence. But there’s really no need to delve into the myriad of complications and adverse effects of smoking to your health and even everyday life. Instead, we’ll be focusing more on how to help you quit — that’s why you’re reading this, after all. As such, we’ll be taking a look at tips and methods to help you quit the habit and be one step closer towards better health and wellness:
#1 Make (or Choose) A Plan
Before we begin, it’s important to note that there’s no single approach for quitting. Everyone reacts differently to quitting, and each has their own coping mechanisms to deal with withdrawal and on how to prevent themselves from relapsing. That said, you should make a quitting plan based on what you think would work for you. There are many organizations, apps, books, and guides that can help you build your quitting plan, or choose from a number of quitting programs that fits you. You can mix and match different quitting methods and tips, the bottom line is that you should have a basic framework on what to do to help you quit the habit.
#2 Keep Yourself Busy
People often smoke when they’re idle or feel like they have too much work on their hands that they need to step out and light a cigarette. However, it’s important to keep yourself busy to distract you from cravings and choose a different activity during your work break such as playing a game on your phone, meditate, do breathing exercises, or grab a healthy snack.
#3 Avoid the Triggers
You have to be aware of what makes you smoke or gives you the urge to smoke. As such, you’d want to avoid these triggers, or at least learn to ignore them or devise a coping mechanism. You may also want to get rid of everything related to smoking — lighters, ashtrays, and your hidden pack of cigarettes “for emergencies” as they’ll end up being constant reminders and temptations. Try to stay away from smokers and hang out with non-smokers, instead, or at least go somewhere where smoking isn’t allowed.
#4 Do Away With Substitutes
If you can, try to avoid using substitutes such as nicotine patches, sprays, and e-cigarettes as they only prolong the process and basically still keep the addiction alive to some extent. You have to remember that nicotine replacement therapy may work for some but not all, and you’d still be introducing nicotine to your bloodstream. If you do have to go for nicotine patches (and other nicotine replacement therapy), you may want to pair it with other quitting methods such as hypnosis.
#5 Consider Hypnosis
There is still a lot of debate with regards to the effectiveness of hypnosis in smoking cessation, but a 2008 study on the use of hypnosis for smoking cessation showed promise. Two separate groups were provided with nicotine patches and one group underwent hypnosis, and the other group underwent behavioral counselling. The results showed that there was a higher point-prevalence quit rate in a group that underwent hypnosis (29% and 24% quit rate at the 6th and 12th month), as compared to a group that underwent behavioral counselling (23% and 16% quit rate at the 6th and 12th month). As such, it would be a good idea to visit your local clinical hypnotherapy establishment in Birthmingham, MI in order to help you kick the habit.
Conclusion
Quitting smoking is a difficult endeavor, but with these tips, it can be a little bit easier. As said earlier, there are many ways for one to quit smoking, and there are more methods available beyond this list. Whichever method you choose, it’s important that you stick to it, and never hesitate to ask help from friends, family, or professionals to help you out with your quitting process.
