The main reason why people can not quit Smoking is fear. The fear that the craving for tobacco will continue indefinitely. It's like holding a dumbbell at arm's length. If you need to hold it for a few minutes, it's okay, but if we imagine that we have to hold it all my life, it seems that it is better to give up, because no one wants to experience such agony.
Fortunately, every day that a person does not smoke, to refrain from this bad habit becomes easier and easier.
Let's look at the main reasons why a person can not quit Smoking, and lights up again. I see 3 reasons:
The fear that the discomfort of quitting Smoking will last a lifetime.
Linking Smoking to certain life situations
The decline of critical thinking
We will analyze each cause separately, and at the end of the article I will present you a working program to get rid of nicotine addiction.
Fear that the discomfort of quitting Smoking will last a lifetime
Fear is directly related to the feeling of uncertainty. In relation to Smoking, this means that when a person experiences discomfort when quitting Smoking, he feels anxiety, because it is not known when this mess will end.
To allay this fear, I will tell you the real time frame. These terms are typical for the vast majority of people who personally compiled statistics based on the experience of their clients.
So, suppose you decide to quit Smoking from tomorrow. I will describe to you all the difficulties that you will encounter in chronological order. Unpleasant sensations will have the form of approximately the following curve.
I made a list of critical points when quitting Smoking:
Day 1. If you do not forget about your decision, then right in the morning you will face the first little test. Refusal from the first cigarettes. It is quite easy and almost no one has any difficulty. What does the first cigarette mean? The fact is that in our lives we act on a fairly rigid algorithm. Smoking occurs in accordance with the bindings to certain events. Each binding is individual. First such a peg I call time the first cigarettes.
During the first day, with each cigarette, from which a person refuses, he begins to grow discomfort, which reaches a critical point in the evening. This is the second critical point. At this point, the person is often ready to give up or postpone the throw to a “better time”, that is, to “never”.
Day 2. In fact, it repeats day 1. But there is a difference: a person already has the knowledge that he can not smoke. For this reason, the negative feelings a little less. About 10%, which is almost imperceptible, but still. Therefore, on this day there is only one critical point, when a person just needs to confirm his intention to continue.
Day 3, 4 and 5. People in fact already left. Each subsequent day is easier than the previous one. But there is still quite a serious craving for cigarettes. This is the fourth critical point when a person begins to doubt that the discomfort will ever end.
From 5 to 14 days. People are already pretty easy, but there are strong bouts of desire to smoke. Such an attack of desire can cause a relapse. However, at this time, people are already beginning to separate themselves from smokers, distancing themselves from them.
From 2 weeks to a month. A person begins to feel that he has succeeded. By this time, almost no bouts of desire to smoke, but they still feel fine. In this time human can force to smoke any a strong incentive. For example, it may be some kind of stress or a situation where a person is disposed to rest. Quite a dangerous period, when a person already feels the power, but not yet completely got rid of the habit.
A month to two. At this time a very rare urge to smoke. The body begins to recover. At this time, a person becomes confident that he has completely given up and can make some mistake, for example, start drinking in the company of smokers. It's dangerous.
The fact is that alcohol reduces our critical thinking and cognitive functions in General. Therefore, the person rolls back a few points back and it is again difficult to resist.
From two months to a year. Two months later, we can already say that people got rid of nicotine addiction. He no longer feels absolutely no craving for cigarettes. But would still occur rare and weak impulses(not longer several minutes.
From year to infinity. The man had forgotten, like a nightmare, that he had smoked. He is happy and easy that he got rid of a bad habit. And here a person may have the illusion of security. A person may think that he is so advanced that he can afford to smoke occasionally on some special occasion. Here on this moment very many break.
As you can see, the discomfort is strongest the first five days with a downward trend. The hardest thing is to make a decision and start. After 5 days it will be 50% easier. Through 2 weeks on 95% percent easier. Two months later, 99.9% of people have already quit. A year later, a person is considered to be completely rid of nicotine addiction. But we must continue to be cautious. Why? And here is about this in next section.
Linking Smoking to specific situations.
How do people remember it's time to smoke? When do they feel the urge to smoke? They feel it when a person notices a ritual situation. For example, morning coffee, leaving home, approach to the subway (or to the car), exit the subway, approach to work or study, breaks, exit from work, to the subway, from the subway, after dinner, before bedtime. Some have more, some have less.
What happens when a person throws? Each such ritual point begins to test him(her). However, over time, the power of ritual points disappears and they become regular events. However, there are other points that are not daily, but still they are tied to Smoking.
Like a birthday. Or rest on the sea. Hundred of them. A person does not face them every day and thinks that the craving for Smoking will not bother him. Suddenly, he is faced with the ritual point and again feels the desire to smoke.
It may happen that 5 years later you meet the person used to smoke and then re-emerge the urge to smoke. It is important to know so as not to be frightened when this happens. Such points are worked out very quickly.
The decline of critical thinking
It is important to remember that in some situations we have reduced critical thinking and then we become somewhat primitive. In relation to quitting Smoking, this means that the person rolls back a little. He might be stirred up again.
Critical thinking is reduced by two things(psychoactive substances, including alcohol), as well as strong emotional States. Therefore, the first time you should avoid both.
Way to quit Smoking. 7 steps
In this section I give the program of throwing. It corresponds to the key critical points through which the smoker passes. In them I say the words that will help you pass them. In the next 2 weeks, you should refrain from alcohol. This is not such a mandatory item, but observing it, you will be five times easier.
Let's begin. There's one thing we need to decide first.