Hi Everyone
I recently gave up smoking and for the first 10 days I was able to use my reasons for wanting to stop very successfully but after that time period I found that my original intent was slipping further and further away and the yearning to have just one roll up was getting stronger until I gave in and lit one up - Grrrrr!
How is it possible to resist when that craving is calling like a friend in distress and every bone in your body is telling you to run to it???
In the next couple of days I will embark on my next non-smoking campaign but confidence is very low at the moment because I know after those 1st couple of days this dreadful craving will start missing me and yet again the yearning will start.
How did you fight this addiction and win?
Alex
Hi A_son_unique
Can you see yourself undermining your intent already. Can you wonder at it if it does come back. Most of it is mental chat. Determination is the wrong way to curb cravings as the reasons for cravings are usually deep feelings of lack- of love, attention, approval, security, company etc.
In the week moments it can help immensely to relax into that desire to grab a ciggie, feel it allow it. Normally we are fighting with things they kick back harder. When you allow something it liberates you. The fight is over. Make this urge your friend instead and follow its lead to feel what you need to feel in that moment, it will go. Don't fuss over it, loose and natural. intention is powerful.
Good luck
Before you start, do the following:
1) list all the reasons why you smoke, list as many as you can, and all the reasons why these are not good reasons. Write them down - don't be lazy, you have to participate in your own success.
2) list all the reasons why you want to give up.
3) list all the things your inner addict is likely to tell you to give you excuses, and all the answers you will reply.
4) list all the things you hope to achieve by stopping.
5) decide how you are going to feel about giving up. Is it something to dread? Or look forward to? Will friends say 'you look terrible, you must have given up'? Or will it be 'you look fantastic - you must have given up'? The choice is yours, decide.
6) make a WRITTEN contract with yourself, stating clearly when your last cigarette will be. Choose that day and time carefully.
7) notice how ROTTEN smoking makes you feel.
Keep your last day's cigarette butts in a jar of water with the lid on, so you have a reminder of what your lungs look like.
Once you have given up:
1) Avoid situations where you know you will be likely to feel like smoking.
2) keep your lists with you and go back to them. Suddenly all the reasons you gave up smoking will seem less important - keep reminding yourself.
3) feel the benefits you are getting.
4) indulge yourself with life-giving experiences and rediscover how good it is to feel healthy.
If the urge hits you;
1) distract yourself with other activity:
-leave the room, go wash your hands and come back
-drink a glass of water
-eat a piece of fruit
-phone a friend
After ten minutes the urge WILL have passed.
2) take the lid of the jar and have a good sniff.
If you develop a cough, remind yourself that this is your body - finally - getting a chance to repair the damage and expel the waste.
After 2-5 days there is no physical addiction. The rest is in your head. Remind yourself this. You do not need to smoke.
You may now never smoke again, and you must mourn the loss of your best friend. Say bye-bye - it's gone, it can never come back, and you must move on to the rest of your - smoke-free - life.
You've made a great escape. You are now richer. A cynical industry that kills millions horribly is now poorer. The world is a better place - well done!
Do not miss any of these steps. To do so is to build in reasons to fail. You are not going to TRY to give-up, that's another way to build in failure. Your internal addict will try to trip you up like this. You're just going to do it - when you have contracted with yourself, and you are not going to put it off.
Your internal addict will find ways to sabotage you, and you must put it 100% firmly in its place. However solid your intentions the internal addict will try to build-in wriggle-room - do not let it. Learn to recognise its tactics. Edit your post and take out the words that were put there by your internal addict. Go on!
Remember that giving up is not as hard as it sounds, providing you want to it's remarkably easy - you have the power over this thing, don't let anybody or anything convince you otherwise. You want to do this, otherwise you would not have read this far - you're already nearly there. Bet you can't wait. So pick your day, make your contract, and get ready.
In case you're wondering, yes, I have walked the walk - 20 years ago next spring. Come and join the club!
I was told this to help combat cravings, when you feel it coming on use a kiddies coloring book and color in, just lose yourself in it. after 20 Min's it should start to go. don't know if this will work with cigarettes but it is worth a try.
hubby was going to pack in smoking at the end of June he promised us all he would, then he started to make excuses to smoke for longer, I told him it was no good packing in for us he has to want to do for himself.
Hi A_son_unique
Well, you know it's going to happen :D.
If you can't stop thinking about it, then have some people on standby you can talk to.
Use up their free minutes on the phone :D.
Only talk to peeps who are good at distracting :hidesbehindsofa: .
x
Amazing replies from all of you and I'll take something from all of them including getting a colouring book because that is something I could see working.
Kvdp that was one hell of a post and I will no doubt print it off onto paper and stick it in my kitchen as well as follow the instructions, you've given me lots of ammo
Thank you to everyone for your contributions
You're welcome. Please remember to come back in a year and add your own advice to this column.
That is certainly wonderful advice kvdp! (and everyone else too). If you don't mind kvdp, I've copied your post to my files for future reference for anyone who might be helped by it - not just for smoking either - and added other people's suggestions at the end. Excellent advice all round!
Thanks but it's not my own work - credit where it's due. It's what I remember of the book I used - 'Kick it - stop smoking in five days' by Judy Perlmutter. Worked for me completely. Unfortunately it's out of print, but second-hand copies are still available.
I have referred several people to this book - some have succeeded and others have failed. The ones who followed it TO THE LETTER succeeded. The others all thought they could improve upon it, could take the bits they liked and mix them with other theories, or thought they were cool enough to miss out some steps - and they were wrong.:rolleyes:
opened new thread
Hiya
i quit about 5 yrs ago no patches no nothing it was hard but like you was ok for the first few days then increasingly difficult so i knitted scarf's loads of en it gave me something to do at night when i was watching tv, scarves becasuse i didnt have to 'think' about it but i kept me occupied and not craving now i make my own jewellery and just expanded into cardmarking to i love the 'new' create me and smell soooo much better :)xxx
I`m just sorry for finding your posts now instead 1 year ago when I decided to quit, I had really hard times but I did it, I started eating more but I also started to exercise so I have no problems with weight, that was my biggest concern...