Perhaps there is no smoker who has not at least once tried to quit smoking. Unfortunately, few people manage to do it on the first try. What can help once and for all to part with a bad habit?
Psychological addiction
Smoking forms not only physiological, but also psychological dependence. It is believed that the craving for nicotine itself disappears within a month after the last cigarette is smoked. However, many return to smoking after a longer period of time, feeling that the body requires a dose of nicotine.
This is because the brain tricks the body into buying a pack of cigarettes again and taking a puff. Smoking is a kind of conditioned reflex. A person gets used to smoking while relaxing or to relieve tension, and a cup of coffee with a cigarette becomes a familiar morning ritual.
How to help yourself get rid of psychological addiction? The first thing you can try to do is to replace one ritual with another. For example, instead of smoking during a break from work, drink a cup of green tea.
If the smoker works at home rather than in the office, the urge to smoke can be relieved by exercise, such as doing a few sit-ups. In addition, when there is a craving to inhale, you can make it a habit to brush your teeth. Of course, at first you will have to do this quite often, but this trick helps a lot to "deceive" the brain, replacing one ritual with another.
It helps very well to quit smoking not alone, but with like-minded people. For example, there are forums on the Internet where people inspire each other to give up bad habits. There you can start a special counter that shows how long a person has not smoked and how much money he has saved.
This creates a visible motivation to quit smoking, because in a month it will become noticeable that quitting smoking has saved a significant amount that can be spent on something pleasant.
Sometimes people who quit smoking are "tempted" by others, for example, colleagues at work who claim that it is impossible to quit smoking because they themselves did not succeed, or remind the person of his past unsuccessful attempts.
It is advisable not to laugh it off, but to ask others not to say such words. They can really lead to the fact that a person’s motivation decreases and there is a lack of self-confidence. In addition, any unnecessary reminder of smoking leads to the desire to take at least one puff.
Helps to quit smoking the absence in the visibility zone of objects reminiscent of cigarettes. It is better to throw ashtrays and lighters out of the house and wash clothes that smell of tobacco smoke.
Physiological addiction
Getting rid of physiological dependence can be quite difficult, some people in the early days may even experience a state resembling withdrawal. In order to ease the withdrawal from nicotine, you should consult a doctor who will give you a prescription for special pills that help relieve the symptoms of smoking cessation. In addition, chewing gum or patches can be purchased at any pharmacy, which contain a small amount of nicotine and make it easier to survive withdrawal symptoms.
If a person is not feeling well after deciding to quit smoking, hot baths can help relieve stress.
You can get a massage or even start taking mild sedatives. It is especially important to find a way to relieve tension in the early days, when the cravings for smoking will be felt most strongly.