First of all, a smoker must have the will to stop. He needs strong motivation. Many smokers fail to quit because of doubt-they doubt their ability to succeed. Can the various quit smoking programs and chemical preparations aid in quitting? Evidently they have helped some. There's nothing magical about it. If you don't want to stop, nothing is going to work. The Will To Stop Success depends almost completely on the smoker's strength and will to stop. Without this determination, no quit smoking remedy will succeed. But with it, a person can quit without paying for some expensive stop smoking remedy. For many, continuously reminding themselves that smoking is deadly has provided them with the will. Some antismoking programs cultivate this fear, emphasizing the terrible damage smoking does to the body. Aids in Stopping Smoking Don't forget all the reasons for giving up smoking. Write them down and refer to them often. Is it your health that you are most concerned about? The health of your family who are breathing in your secondary smoke? The high cost of smoking? The fact that it is a dirty habit, and your breath and body smell of nicotine? Supportive friends, especially ones who themselves have conquered the smoking habit and can therefore affirm that it can be done, are valuable aids. So seek out such friends. Let them know of your decision to stop smoking, and ask for their support. Or, stop smoking with a friend or relative. That way you can support each other to stay smoke free. What is the best way to quit? Is it by reducing the number of cigarettes smoked each day, thereby gradually quitting? Or is it by scheduling a day and stopping abruptly on that day? Contrary to what many think, a comprehensive study of ex-smokers showed that smokers are more capable of to overcome withdrawal symptoms by stopping abruptly. Researchers have found that cutting down slowly may actually prolong smokers' agony by intermittently reinforcing their symptoms and smoking behavior. This will often lead to relapse and a return to smoking. Some suggest picking a date to stop and sticking to it. It doesn't matter which date, but choosing a date will help you to prepare yourself. The first few days after giving up smoking may be the most difficult. So, as an aid, think about the benefits of not smoking. One is the money saved. It can amount to quite a lot! Try putting the money spent each day in a pot or box and see how much it amounts to after a week. Write down something you want to spend that money on. Set it aside and buy it for yourself when you've achieved your goal. With strong determination, many smokers have stopped for a week or so, enduring the initial agony of withdrawal. But, a difficult phase begins, usually starting between the first and the third week. So the battle needs to continue! Whenever you feel a need for a cigarette, breathe deeply two or three times. Keep oral substitutes handy. Pop into your mouth things like raisins, nuts and sunflower seeds, or eat carrot and celery sticks, or chew gum. Drink more fluids-wholesome drinks such as fruit or vegetable juices or just plain water. Also, arrange for a more balanced diet. Getting more exercise can be a real aid. Perhaps try activities such as jogging, tennis, cycling or swimming. Find something you enjoy and stick to it, especially when you're feeling vulnerable. If you enjoy gardening, get out and work on the garden. If you enjoy decorating go do some work on the house; take a bath; do something to take your mind away from smoking. Get plenty of rest. Go to bed early so as to avoid nervous fatigue. Concentrate on learning to relax. Avoid past triggers to smoking, like being in the same room with certain friends, being in a smoky environment. Even for a while after quitting try to avoid temptations if your friends or colleagues smoke. Alcohol is a common gateway so you may need to restrict your alcohol consumption. Each day you don't smoke is another day closer to quitting the habit for good, and you are nearer victory. If you really want to, you can quit smoking!
If you have ever had the idea that you wanted to stop smoking, chances are you had all kinds of people tell you how hard it is. But the simple fact of the matter is that giving up smoking is not nearly as difficult as living with a cigarette constantly thrust between your lips. By smoking, you alienate yourself from others, you cost yourself and your family thousands of dollars a year on a useless product, and you constantly damage your health with every puff. Quitting the habit is not easy, but it is not very difficult either--especially when you have friends, family, and various natural anti-smoking products at your side to help you along.
A few decades ago, the only way to quit was to go cold turkey. One day, you tell yourself you're not going to smoke anymore, and so you don't. Now that was a hard way to give up a highly addictive habit like smoking. But it worked for many people. Mind over matter as they say.
The problem is that nobody is willing to endure any amount of discomfort that people even thirty years ago had no issues with. Quitting cold turkey was effective for many people, but it came with a variety of problems. Some people were more susceptible to returning to smoking somewhere down the road--but yet more people had problems where they could never get through a couple of days without their nicotine fix. For that simple reason, quitting cold turkey is rarely advised anymore. People these days just aren't willing to do anything that may make them feel uncomfortable.
However, the best thing about cold turkey is that it is really the only way to stop smoking where there is any amount of discomfort involved. There are lots of better ways to stop smoking now where you don't have to worry about any headaches, weight gain, or other side effects that usually come from getting off of nicotine packed cigarettes.
But if there aren't any major side effects to giving up the habit, why do people still claim that it is really tough to quit smoking? Part of the reason is that they like smoking--but the people they are with don't. After all, smoking tends to come along with a type of oral fixation where you always have to have an object in your mouth. Like sucking your thumb when you were a child, you grow accustomed to having a cigarette hanging out from your lips. And breaking that habit is more difficult for some people than actually getting down off the nicotine.
Furthermore, because most people quit at the whim of their spouse, girlfriend, boyfriend, parents, or other person who holds some significance in their life, quitting becomes difficult because the smoker didn't really want to quit at all. They were just fine with their smoking habit. They enjoyed it. And by trying to quit when you don't really want to, it creates a whole world of problems because you end up not channeling as much energy into it as you should.
So what is the secret to successfully stop smoking without having to deal with any of the negative side effects? First, you have to want to quit yourself. Second, you have to have the support of those around you. It can be extremely difficult to quit when many other people are still smoking near you. And third, you need to use some kind of natural anti-smoking assistant that can help you deal with your addiction as though it was never there to begin with.
Copyright (c) 2008 Mike Row
Article Source :
About Author
Both Bill Achey & Mike Row are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Bill Achey has sinced written about articles on various topics from Adsense. There is a lot of reasons to check the quality of someone, especially if you need to trust said person with your health, money or life (such as a business colleague). Perhaps you're looking for. Bill Achey's top article generates over 3600 views. to your Favourites.
Mike Row has sinced written about articles on various topics from Multi Level Marketing, Online Business and Fitness. If you have tried to in the past but failed there is still hope. Thousands of people all over world have successfully quit smoking with the #1 qu. Mike Row's top article generates over 110000 views. to your Favourites.