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Wednesday, March
10, 2010
Why not quit the habit on
National Non-smoking Day?
Monica Dobbie
Wednesday, March 10,
2010
It's never too late to gain control over smoking
and live a longer, healthier and happier life.
But why is it so
difficult to quit? The answer is because smoking is an addiction and
habit.
Although smokers consciously understand the risks of
smoking, they have emotional connections to smoking. They often associate
smoking with pleasure, perceptions of being social or sophisticated, but
they also have a fear of being too weak and failing to
stop.
Stopping smoking means breaking the addiction to nicotine,
which is a deadly poison. Today is National Non-Smoking Day and what
better time to try to quit? One way to address this addiction is by
breaking the habit of lighting up. Like any habit, it can be changed if
the smoker is committed to making the change.
Some people find
that they can wean themselves off smoking using nicotine substitutes, and
there are medications available as well. However, the medications can have
unpleasant side effects, and many people prefer to stop smoking
without putting alternative toxins into their body.
Withdrawal
symptoms
Many smokers start by trying to quit on their own, but
they may need several methods and several attempts before they kick
the habit. Quitting "cold turkey" is difficult for most people and gives
them withdrawal symptoms such as irritability.
One method to
quit on your own is to identify the times that you smoke (e.g. with a cup
of coffee, after a meal, with a drink) and pick one of those times to stop
smoking. Then pick another time.
Another way is to switch brands.
Smokers often dislike the taste of anything but their "own brand".
Besides these and other self-help fixes, the best way to maximize
your chance of success, is to use professional support.
Smokers
often have an internal conflict. "Part" of the smoker wants to stop -
the health conscious part (adult), but another part still enjoys smoking
(child). Logically it makes no sense to feel pleasure as you inhale poison
into your body, but then smoking is not logical.
If you do
something often enough (e.g. smoke after a meal) the behaviour shifts from
a conscious behaviour to an automatic response. Then, no matter how much
you try to consciously change this behaviour, your subconscious mind
reminds you to have a cigarette. The only way to make a permanent
change in your behaviour is to change your programmed subconscious mind.
An effective way of doing so is with hypnotherapy.
Hypnosis
is the natural ability that we all have to focus our attention and
thoughts on what we choose to create in our lives, instead of being at the
mercy of old programming. It is similar to daydreaming and when you are in
hypnosis, the conscious mind is bypassed and beneficial suggestions can be
made directly to the subconscious. Hypnosis is a rapid change technique in
which you are guided to believe that you are a non-smoker - and a
non-smoker doesn't smoke. It's as simple as that. It's a fast, effective
and pleasant way to overcome nicotine withdrawal symptoms without gaining
weight or taking up any other negative habit.
A hypnotherapist is
someone who kick-starts the change process and acts as a coach to keep you
on track. Some people stop smoking for good, after just two sessions.
Others need a little more reinforcement. So, clients are usually given a
smoking cessation CD to be played every few days and are also taught
self-hypnosis.
Monica Dobbie, Certified Hypnotherapist, can be
reached at 505 7531 or email change@hypnosisbermuda.com
For more information go to our hypnotherapy page
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