Learning how to quit smoking is a habit that many people want to do but they just can’t seem to. If you are one of the many people that wants to learn how to quit smoking for health reasons or any other, then go through this article and see what you can learn that can help you.
If you’re trying to quit smoking, stopping “cold turkey” is a bad idea. Quitting without a means of support for nicotine withdrawal is an uphill battle. Because nicotine is addictive, it’s very easy to relapse without some form of support when quitting. It’s best to use smoking cessation medicine, or some type of therapy when you’re ready to quit.
Treat smoking cessation like kicking any other addiction: as a series of days of sobriety. Quitting is a process. Try not to fret about the next week, the next month, or the next year. Approach your plan to stop smoking one day at a time, and as you are successful short term, you can think in terms of the future.
Try not to eat too much to fill the void left from quitting cigarettes. Nicotine is an appetite suppressant, so do not be surprised when you start to feel hungrier after quitting. Eat healthier when you quit smoking cigarettes. This will give you more room for calories you will consume by snacking.
Write down why you’re quitting ahead of time and keep that list handy. When that craving hits you, refer to your list for motivation. Understanding ahead of time why quitting is important to you will help to keep you focused in those moments of weakness, and it might even help to get you back on track if you should slip up.
To stay motivated to quit cigarettes for good, use the money you save to reward yourself. Figure out how much money you will save by quitting in advance, and put the money you would spend on cigarettes into a special place. Every time you reach a minor goal, use that money to reward yourself with something nice.
Have true faith in the fact that you can quit smoking. You must believe it in order truly quit. You can’t go into it half-heartedly. Consider all the tough things you have accomplished in other aspects of your life, and use those memories to fuel your full commitment to stopping smoking.
Make sure you tell yourself that you are not going to smoke each and every day. As you get up in the morning, you should try telling yourself that you are not going to smoke a single cigarette. Reaffirming this goal in your mind each morning will keep you on track to successful smoking cessation.
Enlist your friends and family to support you with your decision to stop smoking. Those closest to you can be a real help in keeping you on track and smoke-free. Inform everyone of your intentions to quit smoking before your quit date, and let them know specifically how they can be of best help to you.
You should make sure you have an appropriate reward system in place for such a difficult task. You will want to reward yourself for at least the first three days of quitting and the first two weeks. After that, monthly milestones are worth a celebration until you hit the annual mark. You can choose your reward based on the time elapsed as well, making success that much sweeter.
Use visualization in order to assist you in quitting your smoking habit. When doing deep breathing exercises, shut your eyes, and imagine yourself being a non-smoker. Imagine yourself not giving in to temptation. Imagine winning a medal for not smoking. These types of programs, referred to as “quit smoking hypnosis,” are extremely effective.
The first seven days are the hardest when quitting smoking. In the first two days you’ll be expelling the toxins that smoking put into your body. Once your body sheds the nicotine, the hard part will be mental addiction. While still difficult, this will make resisting them considerably less traumatic.
Don’t worry if you have a relapse. It’s not uncommon for a smoker to try multiple times to quit before they succeed. Always think about what made you relapse, and try to avoid that situation in the future. Decide on a new day to quit, prepare yourself, and stick with it.
Avoid carrying your cigarettes around with you. This makes them harder to get to and you will be able to cut back on smoking by doing this. When they are an inconvenience to get to, you won’t smoke them as often. This will eventually help you quit smoking for good.
Avoid dieting when trying to quit smoking. A lot of aspiring quitters try to diet while quitting so they can avoid the supposedly inevitable weight gain. However, in doing so, they’re depriving their bodies of too much at once and they wind up relapsing. This just means gaining weight, while they’re still smoking.
Add exercise to your regular routine if you are trying to smoke. Physical activity can help you to deal with the nicotine cravings you will experience. Exercise can help to lessen these withdrawal symptoms. Get out and walk the dog or dig in your garden, and you will have an easier time quitting smoking.
Abstain from alcohol when you first quit smoking. Many people associate smoking and drinking, so the temptation to smoke will be higher if you drink. If you don’t want to stop drinking altogether, limit yourself to drinking in restaurants or bars so that you’ll have to go outside if you want to smoke. You might decide it’s not worth the effort if you have to leave the table to smoke.
Just as you’ve read from the tips in this article, you can learn how to get rid of the bad habit of smoking which can help your health and keep you healthy for many years in the future.
So make sure you truly apply all that you learned today to quit smoking.
Read more: How You Can Give Up Smoking For Good