You may find yourself making excuses when your loved ones ask you about your smoking habit. You think you are too old to quit, or you have been smoking for too long to make a difference. Excuses do nothing but demotivate you, and are often based on myths. Check your excuses at the door and quit smoking today by following the advice below.
Find a way to quit smoking that works for you, but try to do it little by little. Avoid going cold turkey. This method enjoys only a 5 percent success rate. Nicotine is very, very addictive, try using some medication, therapy, or the nicotine patch. These aids will help you through the first stages of withdrawal and make your plan to quit smoking easier.
To aid in smoking cessation, remove yourself from your circle of friends who smoke. Don’t worry; this is just a temporary measure, but you really do need to do this. Constant exposure to cigarette smoke, plus the social aspect of smoking together, will automatically squash your hopes for success.
If you’re trying to quit smoking, try chewing gum instead. Often times when you try to leave a bad habit behind, you must replace it with a more positive one. Chewing gum allows you to use your mouth and jaw in some of the same ways that smoking does. It is a healthy way to keep yourself busy while you’re working toward quitting.
Try to distract yourself when you are planning on smoking a cigarette. Take a long walk, do the dishes or put away the laundry before permitting yourself to smoke. Sometimes, delaying smoking actually is enough to prevent you from taking that puff. Even if you do succumb to the cigarette in the end, you will at least have smoked one or two less than you normally would have that day.
To keep your hands and mouth busy while trying to quit smoking, keep crunchy vegetables like carrots or celery on hand. These low-calorie snacks will not only keep your hands busy, but they will steady your blood sugar and keep you from reaching for higher-calorie foods that could lead to weight gain.
Write down the reasons why you want to quit smoking. Post the list someplace where you’ll see it every day, to help keep you motivated. Include not only the reasons that directly benefit you, but also the reasons that quitting will benefit your friends and family. Being able to read your list every day will remind you of why you stopped smoking in the first place.
Creating a workout plan or an exercise program to help fill the void left by cigarettes. Furthermore, exercise relieves stress and anxiety. Go for a long walk every day, or play a sport. Always go to your physician before you start exercising.
It does not matter how long it has been since you gave up smoking, you can never have “just one”. You are a nicotine addict. While just one does not mean you will be smoking a packet a day again by morning, it will mean that you have “just one more” a lot sooner than you would like.
Rally the support of everyone that you love. Make it clear that you need support but that it won’t help if they are judgmental. Let them know that in the beginning of the process, you will probably not be in the best of moods and that your thought processes may be off. It is not simple to stop smoking, you should always develop a support system.
To quit smoking for good, you’ll get better results by gradually weaning yourself than you would if you tried to quit cold turkey. Nearly all people that try to quit cold turkey fail as a result of nicotine withdrawal. Cut back slowly and steadily, and if the cravings are still too powerful then subsidize your efforts with medication or other tools.
Make a commitment to quitting smoking before you begin figuring out how to do so. A lot of people aren’t successful because they aren’t in the correct mindset or they easily give up. You can strengthen your resolve by reminding yourself constantly of the many reasons that make it important for you to quit.
Stay away from alcohol or other things that trigger an urge to smoke. Alcohol and coffee are a known trigger for smoking, so stay away from them if possible. Also, smokers tend to light up after eating, so find something else to do, such as washing the dishes or cleaning your teeth.
As you can see, quitting smoking can be a feasible goal for you. You will simply need to tailor a plan to quit smoking that accounts for your unique situation. Keeping track of triggers and other habits centered around smoking will help you gain more control over your life. The above tips will help you create this plan today.
