Prepare Yourself?

Making the decision to quit smoking and being ready is one thing but to increase your chances of kicking this disgusting but strong habit, you must prepare yourself mentally as well as physically.

When you smoke you feel good...

Remember when you first started to smoke? Your brain said "what the heck is that?" and made you cough, feel dizzy, nauseous, even ill. Your brain didn't like what you were giving it and caused these negative reactions to let you know. Now that you are addicted to smoking, your brain sends your body different signals when you smoke. It is saying thank you for giving me what I want. It may even lower your stress level but keep in mind that i may have artificially increased it before hand to make you think you needed to smoke. You are stronger and smarter than that. Now that you know about what your sub-conscious is doing, there are things you can do to counter act that.

Prepare yourself mentally. You are in control!

As mentioned before, prepare yourself that your brain is going to trick you into thinking that it would be ok to smoke. When it happens, notice it. Tell yourself that what your brain is making you think and feel is nothing more than a trick or an illusion so you light up another smoke. Your brain loves to have a regular dose of cigarettes and has pretty much trained you like a monkey to give it what it wants by now. Before you quit smoking you have to be in control of your smoking. The easiest way to do that is to not have your cigarettes so accessible that you can pick up your pack, light it and not realize what you have done until after your first drag. Keep your cigarettes in another room! When you want one you will have to get up and walk to go and get one. You will realize what you are doing and it will be your conscious decision whether you light up or not. You are in control.

When your brain wants a dose and wants you to smoke it will send signals that will make you crave it. If your cigarettes are in another room, you will realize this. Try and not give in right away. Just like you would do with a child who wants a cookie and has a fit... even if you know you will give them the cookie, you will do it on your terms. The more you mess up the scheduled intervals that you smoke at, the more you mess up the habit, the easier it will be to break the habit. This next suggestion may be controversial but here goes anyway: Smoke when you don't want to! Every smoker has certain times or conditions that they don't want to smoke. For me it's after eating without drinking to remove the food or crumbs from my mouth. I didn't like the feeling or taste of smoke in my mouth at that time. But I made it a point to so that my body (taste buds) would send my brain crossed signals. On one hand it got a dose of nicotine and I'm sure it was happy about that, but on the other hand it may be overwhelmed with the disgusting feeling or taste. Find out what makes you not enjoy smoking and make it a point to. Also before you quit, make as many changes to your smoking routine as possible. If you find you smoke an average 1 cigarette every 20 minutes, have one at 15, then 25, then 10... Take control of your schedule and keep your brain guessing as when the next dose is coming. If you always smoke with your right hand, try smoking with your left. If you always smoke while drinking coffee, try smoking before or after. In other words, mess up your smoking routine as much as possible so that your brain or anyone else around you could guess as to when your going to have your next cigarette. Another way to mess up the habit is to buy different brands. Preferably, buy the ones that you don't enjoy as much.

Prepare yourself Physically

You know its going to be hard to quit. In most cases, no matter which method you choose, it is going to cause some discomfort. Be aware of that and be prepared for it. In a lot of cases, people who quit smoking will gain some weight as they substitute a cigarette for food. If overeating or obesity or any health condition that would be inflamed by eating a little more is not an issue then I would be in the opinion that a few pounds is the lesser of the two evils and can be worked on separately. Did you know that exercise can increase your chances of quitting for good? Not only will it help you burn off the extra cookie or snack, but a short cardio vascular workout everyday will increase your oxygen intake and speed up your metabolism so that you can get rid of the residual chemicals left in your system cause from tobacco smoke. It will also make you feel better. At first your brain may try to trick you and make you think it makes you feel worse but don't give up as that will be short lived. Your body will love the input of extra oxygen and will thank you for it. Of course, common sense dictates that you don't over do it. If you have any condition what so ever, you should check with your doctor first before starting any kind of exercise program. There are also physical parts to the habit of the smoker. Having something in your hand or mouth are some of them. Try substituting with a pen or toy in your hand. Try putting a toothpick or straw in your mouth. Chewing gum can also help curb that feeling that something should be in your mouth right now. (Sugar-less would probably be a good idea.)

Are you prepared?

Ok! So you've messed up your habit as much as possible. You've started a mild but regular exercise program. You substituted some of the physical habits involved in smoking. You are now in control of your smoking and making a conscious decision every time you light up. You've done as much preparation as possible and you are now ready to quit. It's now time to pick a method.

ARE YOU READY TO QUIT NOW?