Many people who stop smoking do so ‘cold turkey.’ As is the case
with most addictive habits, this approach to change is not
suitable for everyone and often leads to frustration and
feelings of defeat.
Heavy smoking is different from other addictive habits in
that the behavior often becomes strongly associated with a
variety of situations. Certain times of the day, certain mood
states, certain places, even certain people become associated
with smoking. Therefore, stopping all at once often times leads
to an onslaught of urges and cravings which occur throughout the
day. This can be quite overwhelming, if not intolerable, leading
to relapse and self-statements like, ‘This habit is stronger
than me. What’s the use?’
Below are some basic guidelines
for smoking reduction:
Monitor your smoking for a week.
Do not attempt to cut back during this time. Monitor the
situations in which smoking occurs (for example, on break at
work after meeting). Also monitor the mood you experienced prior
to use (for example, anxiety, boredom, happiness). Rate how
strong the urge was (e.g. 0= little or no urge -- 5= extremely
strong urge).
Determine which situations tend to have the
least intense urges and occur in response to the least intense
emotions. Decide to cut back by one cigarette for two or three
days. The following techniques can be useful for decreasing the
potency of urges:
De-catastrophize. Urges can be
overwhelming. Remind yourself of the following: ‘No one ever
died from an urge.’ ‘With success in avoiding urges, they will
occur less frequently and less intensely.’ ‘I’ve coped with
worse, I’ll get through this for sure.’
Dispute
expectancies. Learn to recognize what you expect tobacco to do
for you when you experience an urge. you might be thinking,
‘I’ll feel much better if I light up.’ Put those expectancies in
perspective by responding with statements that highlight the
negative consequences of lighting up and the benefits of
avoiding giving in.
Distraction. Practice shifting your
attention during strong urges. In and of itself, distraction is
often unhelpful, but after de-catastrophizing and disputing
expectancies effectively the urges often decrease to a level
where distraction is possible.
Monitor consequences of
smoking avoidance. People often notice some negative changes
when giving up a habit. Some feel like they have lost a passion
and wonder how they will cope without it. These feelings are not
irrational. Smoking, like any addictive habit, endures because
of the positive consequences. It will be important for you to
develop other passions, or you will be left with an unbalanced
lifestyle.
Manage lapses. A slip does not have to lead to a full blown
relapse. If you backslide in an area you previously mastered,
tell yourself that it is ‘no big deal.’ Try to ‘nip a slip’ in
the bud. Don’t allow yourself to entertain such thoughts as
‘Well, I failed. what’s the use, I might as well have another
smoke.’ Alternative self-statements include: ‘Well, I slipped
this morning. It was a stressful day and I just lost control. I
feel less stressed now and can get back on track. I need to put
my efforts into stress reduction. If I can keep myself from
smoking heavily for the rest of the day this will have been a
tremendous success.’ Detailed monitoring of the lapse can
provide you with useful information as to areas in which you
need to put more effort.
About the Author:
Before you change your ways, you have to be aware of your nasty
habits. Learn More About Why Bad Habit is So Hard to Break at
http://BadHabit.smartreviewguide.com