stop smoking

Some of these symptoms are due to the emotional and psychological separation from smoking, but more often than not the body’s dependence on nicotine sets the newly reformed smoker up for serious discomfort that can last for weeks.  Yes, quitting smoking can be difficult.

The good news is that there are several ways to minimize withdrawal symptoms so they become more bearable.

This two-part article is going to share many helpful tips for making your quit easier.

- Deep breathing

Smokers tend to breathe very shallowly, so expanding your lungs each day can help you feel better and reduce stress and anxiety – not to mention the benefits of fully oxygenating your body.

How to do it:  Whenever you feel a craving coming on (or you’re ready to scream because of the emotional tension), simply close your eyes for a few moments and begin inhaling slowly through your nose.  Allow your abdomen to expand first, then as your lungs fill, your chest will expand also.  When your lungs are full, pause for a second or two, then exhale slowly through your mouth.  Repeat a few times slowly so you don’t hyperventilate.

- Meditation

Meditation is most often considered to be a spiritual pursuit, but it has amazing benefits for anyone – especially people who are dealing with the stress of quitting smoking!

How to do it:  Meditating can be as simple as closing your eyes and quieting your thoughts for a few minutes a day.  Sit or lie in a comfortable position, close your eyes, and consciously release all stressful thoughts from your mind.  Focus on the darkness behind your eyelids, or call up a mental scene of something calming, like the last time you were at the beach or a fun camping trip with your family.

Try to hold your attention steady for as long as possible.  When random thoughts try to intrude into your mind, gently push them aside and take control of your focus again.  Meditation does take practice to master, but you’ll probably find that the benefits far outweigh the effort you have to put into it.

For information on quit smoking products click here.

Here are a few more ideas:

- Exercise

Since most people don’t smoke while they exercise, getting active is a great way to distract yourself from your desire to smoke.

How to do it:  First speak to your doctor to be sure physical activity is safe for you.  Once you’ve gotten the green light, consider the types of exercise that would be most appealing to you.  For the first few weeks of being a non-smoker, you may want to avoid very intense exercise unless you are already in great shape, because overdoing it will only make you more miserable.  Instead, consider lighter forms of exercise that will get you moving but not tax your body too much, like walking, swimming, golfing, or dancing.

Exercise helps in several ways.  First, it helps you burn off feelings of irritability and tension through physical movement, plus induces feelings of peacefulness and well-being when those endorphins start to flow.  Plus it helps you expand your lung capacity again, which is likely diminished if you have been smoking for a long time.

- Rest

Quitting smoking is draining to say the least, on physical, emotional and mental levels.  One of the best ways to help yourself get through it is to allow plenty of time to rest.  Avoid quitting smoking during an extremely hectic or stressful time in your life.  If you can, set your quit date for a time when you’ll be on vacation, or at least have a lighter schedule than normal.

Don’t be surprised if during the first several days of your quit, you feel very tired and have trouble concentrating.  Nicotine is a stimulant that your body has become dependent upon and when you stop ingesting it, you’ll probably feel like someone has “pulled the plug” and most of your energy has drained away.  If this happens, simply allow yourself to rest as much as possible.  Treat your fatigue just like you would the flu or a bad cold.  Drink plenty of fluids and take it easy until it passes.

- Distraction

Another helpful technique is to keep your mind focused on other things while you’re in the early stages of quitting.  It’s best to choose activities that would make it difficult to smoke while you do them, like spending time in public places that do not allow smoking, or cleaning out and organizing your attic.  It may also help if you keep something similar in size or shape to a cigarette in your hands during idle moments, like a pen or straw.

More than any other coping method, however, your own attitude and determination will have a lot to do with your success or failure in becoming a non-smoker.  If you want it badly enough, you’ll be willing to deal with unpleasant side effects as they come up.  Just keep reminding yourself that the symptoms are temporary.  In as little as a few weeks, you’ll be feeling much stronger physically, mentally and emotionally.

First, understand that nicotine is a stimulant, and as such it does increase your metabolism a wee bit.  Naturally, when you quit smoking nicotine and no longer ingest nicotine on a regular basis, your metabolism will slow down slightly.  However, when I say “slightly,” I really mean SLIGHTLY.  Not enough to make you balloon up to the size of a blimp.

Even better, the effect is temporary and there are simple steps you can take to help keep your weight in balance.

- Drink plenty of water.

Smokers are often dehydrated as it is, which makes your body hold tighter to the water it does have.  One good way to get your body to release excess water is to drink plenty of water!  As contradictory as it may sound, your body will easily let go of retained water when you keep yourself well-hydrated.  The general recommendation is 64 ounces per day, and more if you are overweight already.  For more tips click here.

One of the reasons why smoking is seductive and pleasurable for many people is because they keep telling themselves that they enjoy it!  Think about that for a moment.  They tell themselves constantly that they love smoking, they need to smoke, they want to smoke.  So they smoke.

This same concept can be used in reverse – to get yourself thinking and feeling that you DON’T want to smoke.  However, you don’t want to insert references to smoking in your affirmations, simply because you already have a belief that smoking is pleasurable.  Once that connection has been made in your subconscious mind, any thought of smoking is going to trigger a strong desire to smoke.

Instead, you can use affirmations to emphasize the benefits of not smoking – without mentioning smoking at all.

Here are some examples:

I love being able to breathe freely.

I love taking good care of my body.

I nourish my body with healthy habits.

I deserve a clean, healthy body.

My teeth are white, my skin is glowing and I feel great!

I can change my habits by changing my mind.

I honor and respect myself always.

I am strong enough to overcome any challenge.

I feel so free.

I take one step at a time to where I want to be.

I trust my inner guidance to lead me to a state of perfect well-being.

I believe in my ability to do anything I desire.

How to Use Affirmations

Affirmations work best when they are recited repeatedly and while giving your full focus to them.  Not only should you say the words, but you should also do your best to call up the corresponding FEELING associated with the words.  For example, if you say, “I feel so strong and empowered” you should actually make an effort to feel that way.  This does take practice if you are not used to controlling your emotional state, but it gets easier the more you do it.

Constant repetition many times a day is important also, because you are attempting to override existing beliefs in your subconscious mind.  A belief is nothing more than a thought you have thought many, many times before, until eventually it becomes your “truth”.

For example, the belief that smoking calms you down.  Physiologically, smoking does not have relaxation benefits but many smokers have convinced themselves that it does.  Because they believe this, they seem to feel more relaxed after smoking.  To override this belief, you need to replace it with an opposing belief – like affirming that you feel calm and relaxed already, so there is no need to smoke in order to relax.

The example affirmations above will help get you started, but feel free to write your own too!  Think about the aspects of smoking you enjoy, and come up with a phrase that affirms you already feel that way (again, not mentioning smoking!).  Likewise, think about how you feel as a non-smoker and emphasize those positive qualities too.

Affirmations do take time to fully sink in to your subconscious mind, but just like your old beliefs were formed, consistent repetition and reinforcement will help them become permanent.  This is a great way to help you quit smoking nicotine.

One of the reasons may be that smoking is for the most part a socially acceptable habit (though this is acceptance level is declining steadily), but there are also other reasons why smoking is such a powerfully addictive habit.

1)  Physical addiction.

Nicotine is a powerful drug that acts directly upon receptors in your brain.  These receptors are stimulated by nicotine, resulting in several different physiological responses such as elevated heart rate, blood pressure and respiration, and increased mental alertness, among others.  The longer you ingest nicotine, the more of these receptors you develop.  Over time, these receptors become less sensitive to nicotine and begin to require increased doses to achieve the same level of stimulation.  When you try to stop smoking, feelings of intense discomfort (known as withdrawal) will occur.

People have described nicotine withdrawal symptoms as “demons” or “torture” because they are so strong.  Most people report feelings of intense restlessness, irritability, fatigue, dizziness, and even flu-like symptoms or chest pain.

Physical withdrawal symptoms can often be eased with the use of nicotine replacement products like gum, patches and lozenges, but many people feel that these products only delay the inevitable by keeping the ex-smoker hooked on nicotine.  Still other people claim that using nicotine replacement products helped them conquer one aspect of quitting at a time – for example, the psychological or emotional repercussions, before tackling the physical addiction.

2)  Emotional addiction.

The emotional connection to smoking can easily be as strong as physical dependence upon nicotine.  There are a variety of reasons why people smoke, but one of the most common reasons that develops over time is an emotional “crutch” or “cover”.

Many smokers report using smoking as a coping mechanism for feelings like anger, frustration, boredom, stress and sadness that they don’t know how to deal with otherwise.  Rather than processing their emotions, they reach for a cigarette (or cigar, pipe, etc.) and distract themselves from it.

Of course, this doesn’t really help them deal with unpleasant feelings, but they believe it does.  When the smoker tries to quit smoking, they suddenly find themselves overwhelmed with difficult emotions and no way to handle them.

One of the most effective ways to handle these errant emotions is to find alternative ways to process them when they come up.  Journaling, venting to a friend, exercise, meditation and affirmations are often helpful.  The important thing is not to bottle up your emotions and avoid them, because they just keep coming back until they are fully processed and released.

3)  Psychological addiction.

Still another powerful connection to smoking results from the physical act itself: psychological dependence.  Since most smokers smoke many times in a day for years at a time, they get very comfortable with the act of smoking, always having a cigarette, cigar or pipe in their hand and mouth.  Even if a person is successful in reducing physical cravings and dealing with their emotions, they still may struggle with a sense of loss or aimlessness.  The activity that used to occupy so much of their time and attention every day is now gone and they don’t quite know what to do with themselves.

One good way to conquer this type of dependence is to change your smoking routine in the weeks leading up to your quit date.  For example, if you tend to smoke while driving, talking on the phone or watching television, gradually reduce your smoking habit during those activities.  Smoke in locations where you normally wouldn’t, like standing outside.  When you finally do quit for good, you’ll have an easier time engaging in your normal activities without missing the act of smoking so much.

Below you’ll find information on some of the most common natural methods to quit smoking:

- Herbal supplements

Unfortunately, there are no definitive studies that confirm the effectiveness of herbal supplements in reducing the effects of nicotine withdrawal.  Personal feedback also varies; some people say it helps, others say not.  But if you’re interested in exploring the possibilities, start with these herbs commonly used for smoking cessation:  St. John’s Wort, lobelia, ginseng, valerian, skullcap.

Some of these herbs are actually smoked in a pipe or hand-rolled cigarette, while others are taken orally as supplements.  Note also that herbal supplements can be dangerous for some individuals.  They are not regulated by like prescription drugs, so knowing the proper dosage and safe usage guidelines can often be hit and miss.  Another concern is that some herbal supplements can interfere with prescription medications or aggravate existing medical conditions.  If you are unsure whether herbal supplements are right for you, consult your healthcare practitioner.

- Alternative treatments

Many people report success in quitting smoking with the use of alternative treatments like acupuncture, acupressure, hypnotherapy, EFT (emotional freedom techniques), meditation and visualization, massage and reiki.  Some of these treatments focus on clearing the thoughts and beliefs that lead you to be a smoker, while others claim to clear the human energy field (aura) and promote healing on an energetic level.

It’s interesting to note that these modalities are most often effective when people believe they will be.  If you are not open to these types of treatments, it’s doubtful that they would be effective in reducing your urge to smoke.  Of course, the same could be said for any type of treatment: if you believe it is helping, you will be successful in abstaining from smoking.

- “Cold turkey”

Probably the best known natural method to quit smoking is simply stopping, commonly referred to as “cold turkey.”  There’s no doubt that it’s the most final way to become a non-smoker, but it’s definitely not easy for some people to do.

It is possible to combine the cold turkey method with less intense natural methods, like cutting back gradually for a few weeks or having one or more hypnotherapy sessions before making the final leap.

Are natural methods better than traditional methods to quit smoking?

It depends who you ask.  Manufacturers of nicotine replacement products not surprisingly claim that using gum, patches, lozenges or nicotine inhalers work the best.  Drug manufacturers claim that prescription medications work the best.  Individuals who have successfully quit smoking report that different methods worked best for them – some natural, and some traditional.

In the end, you are the best person to decide which method will work for you.  There’s no shame in using any method, provided it’s safe and helps you meet your ultimate objective: to be a non-smoker.

Write down as many reasons as you can, and try to make them reasons that really matter to YOU – not just what other people have said to you or you’ve heard others say before.

That’s a good first step to quit smoking nicotine.  More to follow…

This blog is going to share some easy steps to help you come up with your own powerful, compelling reason(s) to quit smoking nicotine once and for all.