6 Psychological Techniques To Quit Smoking
Smoking can have a serious impact on our health. We poison our bodies, knowing that it has an enormous ability to harm our health, which crashes directly with the image we want to have of ourselves. But why do we not quit?
The person responsible for this brainwashing is and has always been the tobacco industry. With direct advertising or through literature or film, they have managed to associate tobacco with glamor, beauty or self-confidence. In short, qualities that most of us want to have.
Who doesn’t remember the lovely Marilyn Monroe holding a cigarette between her fingers in an extremely sensual way? Who would not be like her?
But smoking is anything but sensual. The enormous consequences it has for our health are well known. Wrinkles, bad breath, yellowing teeth, greater risk of heart attack, lung cancer… But still people are still addicted to this drug, one of the most difficult to wean people off. It is so common that we do not even realize that there are as many drugs as other types.
I like to smoke
Liar. No one likes to smoke, although many smokers tend to say they do so because they are simply addicted. Inside them is an “insect” that asks to be fed every time it feels hungry. The truth is that the first time they tried a cigarette, they did not like it at all. Nobody likes it, really.
It does not have a good taste or scent, but its addictive powers confuse you and make you think you really love it to get hooked.
It is good for you to accept this reality and thus begin to convince yourself that it would be very beneficial for you to quit smoking once and for all. Admit it , you do not like it, it is not good for you, it kills you slowly, your quality of life is worse, you disturb non-smokers, it is no longer glamorous…
What can I do to quit smoking?
Psychology has developed various cognitive behavioral techniques to help smokers quit the habit. However, these techniques will only work if the person is ready to act. That is, it only works if you are completely determined to quit smoking and are motivated to do so.
Therefore, the first step is to want change, and it depends entirely on you. Ready to quit? Here are some techniques to help.
- Stimulation control: This involves the elimination of all stimuli that induce smoking behavior. That is, everything that makes you want to smoke. It can include coffee, alcohol, seeing ashtrays in the house, going to a smoking club…
- In some cases, it is recommended that you get some distance from some relationships for a while. But if this is too difficult for you, you can at least tell your friends that you want to quit smoking. Ask them to stop offering you cigarettes or smoking near you.
3. Replace your regular cigarette brand. You should gradually change brands, from what you normally smoke to the brand that has the lowest level of nicotine and tar. In this way, your body begins to adapt to the reduction of these substances slowly but surely over time.
4. Progressive reduction: You need to reduce the amount of daily cigarettes you smoke 20% each week, until you have quit completely. You need to write down the amount of cigarettes you smoke daily to see if you have met your goal. Furthermore, you can also reduce the amount of each cigarette you smoke. For example , if you have a tendency to smoke down to the filter, you can stop smoking the last 1/3 of the cigarette. The week after, you can avoid smoking half of it, and so on and so forth…
5. Postponement of smoking and tolerating anxiety: If you tend to smoke as soon as you wake up, you should set a goal of delaying it for at least half an hour. By delaying the action, you learn to live with the annoying anxiety. You will notice that it is not as bad as you first thought. And you also smoked less at the end of the day. Including relaxation techniques in your routine is also highly recommended.
6. Cognitive exercises: Be aware that tobacco is a substance that controls, harms and steals from us, it takes money from your pocket and gives it to the tobacco industry… What is good about it? It is very important that you maintain an inner dialogue every time you feel the overwhelming urge to smoke. Remind yourself how harmful tobacco is to you. Also, do not hide the truth from yourself: you do not need tobacco. Your life will be better without it. You really want to quit, etc.
