5 Best Tips to Quit Smoking Cigarettes
You may have seen pictures of cancerous people because of smoking cigarettes. And still, even by knowing the dangers, you smoke cigarettes. According to the American Lung Association, more than 480,000 deaths every year in the USA are due to tobacco use and second-hand smoke.
You may have tried to quit smoking cigarettes but failed. It’s because it’s not a one-day event. It’s a journey. Here are the 5 best tips for you to quit smoking:
Find your why
In every journey, the first step is to identify your why. According to Simon Sinek,
finding your why is the crucial and first step to everything. Whether you are an entrepreneur, an employee, or finding clarity in your life, it’s essential to find your purpose.
To start on your journey, you need a powerful reason to start. It could be to live more to protect your family. This reason will help you to stay on your journey in difficult times.
Set up a goal and reward
After identifying the reason, set up a goal and reward for it. Keeping your eyes on the goal in mind, devise short-term and long-term goals. It will help if you incorporate rewards for accomplishing these goals. This will trick your brain into remaining on the journey to get the prize.
It’s just like smoking a cigarette without tobacco. Your body releases feel-good hormones when you smoke. And this also happens to your brain when you get a prize for accomplishing a goal.
Avoid your smoking triggers
To quit smoking, you must identify which specific things, places, people, and activities trigger you to smoke. Once you know what your triggers are, you can try and learn different ways to avoid them. This will help you in your journey.
Have a craving journal
Hold fast to a craving journal with yourself all the time. Notice triggers for a week or two before your quit date. Ask questions like:
- What time was it?
- How intense was craving?
- What was the trigger?
After you’ve identified the triggers, try to avoid them.
Try nicotine replacement therapy
When you stop smoking, you may have withdrawal symptoms. You may have headaches, low energy, and a bad mood. For some people, it’s hard to battle them, and they often relapse.
You can try nicotine replacement therapy by using nicotine gums, tablets, patches, and vaping. It will help you to relieve your nicotine urges.
Keep in mind that it’s a solution for the short term only. According to research conducted by the Ontario Institute of Cancer Research, In pre and post-cessation, people who opt to vape nicotine to quit smoking cigarettes are more likely to smoke cigarettes again than are non-vapers.
Try relaxing
You may have started smoking to relieve stress, anxiety, and depression. Now you have quit smoking, and you can’t reduce stress from it. It would be best if you relax now. Going for walk, giving a treat to yourself of massage, or do some exciting activities can make you feel relaxed. Have fun and try to avoid stress.
Conclusion
According to American Lung Association, cigarettes create more than 7000 chemicals on burning, out of which 69 are cancerous. This means by not quitting smoking, you’re putting yourself and your loved ones in danger.
Devise a proper plan and follow it through to leave smoking forever. You may relapse, but it’s always better to give it one more try. Quit smoking and live a healthy life!
