Several experts believe
smoking is only about 10% physical addiction and a huge 90% psychological
addiction. Your body will recover fairly quickly from nicotine withdrawals (the
worst symptoms usually subside in three days or less), but your psychological
dependence on cigarettes can be a lot harder to overcome.
One way to
fight this dependency is to do a little self-analysis before giving up
cigarettes.
Make a list and call it
"Why I Started Smoking". Next to it make another list and call it "Why I Want to
Quit Smoking".
In the first list,
put down all the reasons you can remember why you started smoking in the first
place. Was it peer pressure? Was it Rebellion? Did it make you look cool?
Did it make you feel like an adult? Truly try to remember the exact reasons why
you started smoking and write them all down.
Look over your
list. Do any of those reasons still relate to your life today? Highly
unlikely.
If you're like most
people, you will see that your reasons for smoking no longer apply. In fact,
they are seem to be just silly, and are, without doubt, outweighed by the risks
to your health and your family's well-being.
So let's move on to
your second list ... Why do you want to quit smoking?
This may seem a little
obvious, but is really more difficult than you may think. You really need to
take some time to think about this one. Don't just list the obvious health
reasons. You've been reading the Surgeon General's warnings for years and it’s
had not affect, so you need to come up with reasons that truly are important to
you.
What most people
write down will NOT help you quit smoking
...
-
I don't want to get lung cancer.
- I don't want to have a heart attack or a stroke.
- I'd like to live long enough to see my grandchildren grow up.
Although those are all
good reasons, they are only “possibilities”, not specific reasons.
Sure you MIGHT get
lung cancer, you MIGHT have a heart attack or a stroke, you MIGHT
die young and miss out on seeing your grandchildren grow up...
...or you MIGHT NOT!
The chances of you breaking a strong psychological addiction based on what MIGHT
happen, is not going to make you quit. Your mind will work hard to talk you
into it won't happen to you! So rather than probabilities, list any health
problems that you are experiencing right now.
Your list should consist of
things in your life that you are truly unhappy about and are STRONGLY MOTIVATED
to change. To break your psychological dependence, you need an arsenal of new
thoughts and desires that are stronger than your desire to smoke!
Some of the reasons you might
want to put on this list could be …
Why Do I Want To Quit Smoking?
-
Health
- I get so out of breath
when I exert myself even a little bit. Just
vacuuming the house knocks the breath out of me.
-
My feet are always cold.
This could be a
result of high blood
pressure and poor circulation related to smoking
-
I have a nasty wet cough and I have to blow my nose way too
often. Mucus build-up is the body's reaction to all the toxins and
chemicals in cigarette smoke and could be a forerunner to serious
respiratory disease. Even if I don't get cancer, I don't want to
be one of those people who has to carry oxygen bottles around
everywhere.
-
I'm always tired.
My body could be using up all its energy trying
to eliminate the toxins and chemicals from cigarettes?
2. Vanity
-
Smoking causes premature aging and drying of the skin. I don't
want to look like a wrinkled up old prune!
-
My fingers, fingernails and teeth are all tobacco stained.
Disgusting! Embarrassing.
- When I get on the
elevator after a smoke break at work, everyone
wrinkles their nose and edges away from me because I stink of
cigarette smoke. I feel like an outcast. It's embarrassing!
-
My breath is awful. Kissing me must be like kissing an ashtray. I
spend a fortune on breath mints.
3. Financial
- If I save all the
money I use to buy cigarettes, I'll have enough
to take a vacation in some warm tropical place every winter!
-
I could use the money to pay off my credit cards!
-
I could donate money to my favorite charity or sponsor a child.
My cigarette money could make the world a better place!
4. Family
-
My family can stop worrying about me.
-
My spouse will have to find something new to nag me about.
Just kidding, honey!
-
My children will be proud of me and (hopefully) they'll never
start smoking themselves, having seen firsthand what a nasty
destructive habit it is.
5. Cleanliness
-
The walls used to be white. Now they're a nasty dirty-looking brown.
I need to repaint... again!
-
I stink,
my car stinks, my house stinks, and everything I own stinks
of cigarette smoke. I can't even lend a book to a friend who doesn’t
smoke because they can't stand the smell of smoke that saturate
the pages!
Do you see yourself in any
of the items listed; can you relate to any of them? You probably have many more
reasons of your own, but these may help you get started. You should find as
many compelling and emotional reasons to quit smoking as you can think of and
write them all down.
If you can re-train your
mind to think of smoking as stupid and self-destructive, you're almost sure to
succeed. And if you need something to do with your hands ... try knitting!
Are you ready now to quit smoking once and for all?
You can start today! Begin right now by filling in the form below and start receiving my free series about quitting smoking immediately!
