Best Health And Wellness Info

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Of all the lifestyle-related health risk factors, smoking probably produces more overall damage to more organs and body systems than any other “bad habit”.  You probably know that smoking is bad for the lungs and heart, but you may not be aware of how damaging it is to muscles (besides the heart), bones and joints, spinal discs, your liver and kidneys, your reproductive organs (forget Viagra, just quit smoking!), your immune system, and even your brain (of course the brain must be damaged if you’re still smoking after that list of adverse health effects!).

 I am sympathetic to smokers who just can’t seem to quit.  Smoking is a very powerful addiction and it takes pretty strong motivation to take the necessary steps to quit once and for all.  It has been observed by many experts that the main part of the addiction is psychological, as the chemical addiction to nicotine is pretty much gone after abstaining for smoking for a week or so.  But the mental part of the addiction can last for many years - long after a person has quit.

If you are reading this blog, you know doubt are aware that you should quit smoking, and you may have even tried many times to do so.  So my intention with this post is not to make you feel bad that you haven’t been able to quit, but to provide you with some suggestions on how to get the job done. 

One popular “quit smoking” method is to use some type of nicotine replacement such as patches or gum.  From what I have observed, this method is usually not very successful.  As stated earlier, the majority of the problem with quitting smoking is the psychological addiction, not the physical nicotine withdrawl.  If you go “cold turkey” and don’t cheat, you’ll be past the physical addiction in less than a week.  If you feel like nicotie replacement will help, definitely use it, but remember that the bigger challenge is probably going to be getting your brain on your side.

For handling psychological addiction, there are a number of different approaches.  You can simply get pigheaded and decide that you will never smoke again.  In my experience, people who can find a good enough reason why they’ll never smoke again usually are the most successful at quitting.  For most people though, they need something to help them through. 

Hypnosis works well for some people, either working one on one with a skilled hypnotherapist.  To find a hypnotherapist in your area (in the U.S.) I suggest checking with the American Hypnosis Association.  There are also many resources for “do it yourself” hypnosis to quit smoking.  One good resource for self-hypnosis audios (both downloads and CD’s), including a stop smoking program is Better Living With Hypnosis.

In addition to hypnosis, I have seen great results in my practice for a variety of emotional/psychological/addiction issues using a technique called Emotional Freedom Technique.  On their website, you can download a free step by step manual that tells you what you need to know to start using the technique right away. 

Getting support from friends, family, and co-workers is always a big help.  Make yourself accountable - let people know your intention to quit and enlist their help to keep you on track through encouragement when you need it, and through pressure when you need that.  If you don’t have anyone you can rely on to help you, you might want to try the National Cancer Institute Smoking Quitline - their toll-free number is 1-877-44U-QUIT.

 Good luck!

Share This