Personal Development for Smart People Forums - View Single Post - How to quit smoking (and the trick to willpower)...

dalante · 11-07-2006, 04:27 PM

First of all congratulations to all of you who are trying to quit smoking. Wanting to quit is the first step to be smoke free.

I am replying to this post because I successfully quit smoking about 2 years ago. I took the habit to smoke when I was 16 years old and it took me 9 years to break free. In those 9 years, I think I attempted many times to quit... but it's fair to say that I made 5 serious attempts (more than one month). So it took me a while to succeed. So I would say first: keep trying!

For me, getting rid of the physical craving was always the easiest: it lasts 2 to 3 days MAX, and if you quit in a relaxing setting (like holidays) it's easy to hold for that short period of time.

The most difficult part is the mental addiction. Once the physical crave is out of the way, you still have to struggle with your demons that tell you: you need to light a cigarette. One book in particular helped me quit and enabled me to do it cold turkey. The book is called Easyway to Stop Smoking, by a guy named Allen Carr. I have no shame advertising for it, because I saved so much money and also so many years of my life that it's one of the best non-fiction readings I've ever had.

In a nutshell, Allen Carr explains to you the process of smoking. Why do you smoke? Why are you addicted? Why do you go back to it? the first answer is: because you are addicted. Addictions are really tricky: they trigger real physical cravings, but they also play on your mind. Your mind will make up powerful excuses to justify your addiction... and these excuses are so strong that they hold into your brain, even when the addiction is gone from your body.

Those excuses include:
I smoke because I am hungry
I smoke because I am bored
I smoke because I like it
I smoke because I am tired
I smoke because I am stressed
I smoke because it's cool

Then Allen Carr destroys these excuses, by showing your brain how they are wrong, how they are falsehoods. This book freed my mind and I never missed it after I quit.

Good luck to you everyone!

11-07-2006, 04:27 PM	#2 (permalink)
dalante Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Paris, France Posts: 121	First of all congratulations to all of you who are trying to quit smoking. Wanting to quit is the first step to be smoke free. I am replying to this post because I successfully quit smoking about 2 years ago. I took the habit to smoke when I was 16 years old and it took me 9 years to break free. In those 9 years, I think I attempted many times to quit... but it's fair to say that I made 5 serious attempts (more than one month). So it took me a while to succeed. So I would say first: keep trying! For me, getting rid of the physical craving was always the easiest: it lasts 2 to 3 days MAX, and if you quit in a relaxing setting (like holidays) it's easy to hold for that short period of time. The most difficult part is the mental addiction. Once the physical crave is out of the way, you still have to struggle with your demons that tell you: you need to light a cigarette. One book in particular helped me quit and enabled me to do it cold turkey. The book is called Easyway to Stop Smoking, by a guy named Allen Carr. I have no shame advertising for it, because I saved so much money and also so many years of my life that it's one of the best non-fiction readings I've ever had. In a nutshell, Allen Carr explains to you the process of smoking. Why do you smoke? Why are you addicted? Why do you go back to it? the first answer is: because you are addicted. Addictions are really tricky: they trigger real physical cravings, but they also play on your mind. Your mind will make up powerful excuses to justify your addiction... and these excuses are so strong that they hold into your brain, even when the addiction is gone from your body. Those excuses include: I smoke because I am hungry I smoke because I am bored I smoke because I like it I smoke because I am tired I smoke because I am stressed I smoke because it's cool Then Allen Carr destroys these excuses, by showing your brain how they are wrong, how they are falsehoods. This book freed my mind and I never missed it after I quit. Good luck to you everyone!