As a society, we have slowly started to become much more aware of the dangers and risks associated with smoking. In the past, pretty much everyone smoked and you were generally questioned if you didn’t smoke. Attitudes have changed and people are now very cautious of smoking and it is rare that you will find someone picking up the habit. If you are someone that smokes and you have been wanting to stop, but you do not know how, here are some techniques that have been used by ex-smokers to quit.
Vaping
One of the most popular methods that is used by people that are looking to quit smoking is using vapes. Vaping of course comes with its own risks that you should be aware of, but these risks in no way compare to the risks associated with smoking. Vaping has also become incredibly accessible, as there are now many forms of vapes, such as disposable vapes. These vapes can be picked up for less than ten dollars at any general store and if you are someone that wants to try vaping, but you are not willing to make a big commitment, then they will be perfect for you.
Nicotine Gum
Nicotine gum is an old school method, but it is a method that is still being used today, which means that it definitely works very well. Nicotine gum usually comes in prescribed packs and the gum that you get in the packs have trace amounts of nicotine. Nicotine is the main element of a cigarette that you can become addicted to and if you are having very small doses of the nicotine in the nicotine patch, you are able to fight off any cravings that you have which may persuade you to smoke a cigarette.
Hypnosis
Some people out there have really addictive personalities and so it is not easy for them to just give up and their cravings for cigarettes can take over their every waking thought and it can be hard to break free from. Though there is no confirmation that hypnosis works, if you want to try something radical to try and escape your smoking addiction, you could always book in for a hypnosis session to see if that makes any difference to how you feel about smoking. Some people have reported that it has made a lot of difference to their addiction and so it could do the same for you.
Nicotine Patch
If you are someone that is always forgetting your nicotine gum, or you just want a solution that you do not have to think about throughout the day, something that you could consider is using nicotine patches. These are super simple to use and you often forget that you are even wearing them when you use them. These work by slowly releasing nicotine that is then absorbed into the skin and into your bloodstream. This means that you are still getting your small doses of nicotine, you just aren’t consuming it in an unhealthy way.
Going Cold Turkey
If you are someone that wants to make a radical change to your lifestyle and you do not want to wait around to quit smoking, something that I would certainly suggest is trying to go cold turkey. Now, something that you are going to have to consider is the impact of going cold turkey on your body. You will experience some intense withdrawal symptoms, such as shakes and even illness. However, it has been proven to have a lot of success and it could work well for you.
Finding Distractions
One of the main reasons our brain seems to wander back to smoking is because it is not occupied. When you have nothing else to focus on, it can just be very easy for you to reach back for cigarettes and so it becomes very hard for you to be able to quit. You need to have something to occupy your mind and your hands. For a lot of people, fidget devices or hand puzzles work well as a form of distraction and so it is something that you should perhaps consider.
Slowly Cutting Down
For a lot of people, going cold turkey doesn’t work and it is not an effective way to quit an addiction to smoking. This is because for a lot of people it is a lot all at once and some people are just unable to quit this way. If this is the case, why rush? As long as you are making the steps to quit, you don’t have to quit entirely and all at once. Start off gradually by cutting down by one cigarette a day, this is a much more effective way to quit smoking and you will not feel any extreme withdrawal symptoms if you use this method.
Therapy
If you are finding it really impossible to quit and you can’t seem to understand why, perhaps the reasons for your addiction are more deep rooted than you may have first thought and you need to discuss it with someone. For example, you may have a dependency on cigarettes due to constantly dealing with extreme stress. If you go and see a therapists, you will be able to work together to think about effective ways that you can work through your stress, so you do not have to become dependent on cigarettes to work through your stress issues.
