Stop Smoking Tips - Overcoming the Psychological Dependency on Cigarettes

Even though the addiction of cigarettes has a certain chemical basis, this basis is not likely to be particularly strong, unless you smoke a pack a day or more. When people feel uncomfortable or annoyed at the times when they cannot light up a cigarette, such as on an airplane or when in attendance of a certain social occasion, it is mostly psychological. So how to you overcome this psychological dependence and stop smoking?



Chemical Dependency



It is always recommended to seek advice from a physician regarding nicotine replacement therapy if you are a person that smokes one packet or more on a daily basis. Recent research that has been undertaken states that nicotine replacement may not in actual fact lead to higher success rates in remaining a non-smoker for a year or two. However it may prove to be a crucial factor in passing the first few days after quitting smoking with ease.



The extent and intensity of withdrawal symptoms can be significantly reduced with nicotine replacement. As well as this, it can compensate as much as 50% for the reduction in metabolic rate and any other physiological changes that can result in gaining weight when you quit smoking.



Mental Boredom



Boredom plays a big part when it comes to smoking. Even though boredom may not be the primary reason for smoking, lighting and holding a cigarette can become a habit in certain situations for many people. A cigarette is automatically reached for by many people when arriving at a party, having a drink in a bar, when making a telephone call, or when it is necessary for them to wait for something or someone without anything else to occupy themselves with.



Smoking is chosen by many people to simply pass the time when they think that there is nothing else to do. If you fit into this description, then it is imperative that you find different ways to replace the automatic act of smoking.



Adopting a particular behavior rather than smoking can make people feel positive about themselves. This is because they are being successful in resisting a cigarette. Rather than smoking a cigarette, many people choose to sip water, or use a toothpick or cocktail straw in order to do something with their hands and mouth. Certain people choose to complete the daily crossword puzzle in the newspaper, knit, or even pain in order to prove that they have the determination not to smoke.



If a large issue for you personally is boredom, then taking up a hobby will help you to quit smoking. Of course, it would be advised to ensure that you select a hobby that smoking does not go well with. Perhaps playing a computer game, writing, painting, or knitting would be a relaxing and interesting way to pass the time and prevent you from wanting a cigarette.

The Psychological Effects of Smoking: The True Barrier to Quitting Cigarettes

I tell you, it never ceases to amaze me how inept the anti-smoking lobby is when it comes to its smoking cessation tactics. There is virtually no emphasis on the psychological effects of smoking, which is actually the main culprit. Instead, these "experts" zero in on emphysema, heart disease, lung cancer, and any other bodily nasty they can think of.



I'm a former smoker, and I can tell you that the scare tactics don't work. Heck, if they did work then wouldn't the entire world be rid of smoking by now? Bizarrely, the failure of these campaigns isn't attributed to their general defectiveness, but rather the "stupidity" of smokers. It is amazing pig-headedness.



The fact is that smoking withdrawal produces very little in the way of real physical symptoms. You'd be hard-pressed to find many ex-smokers who vomited, suffered from severe cramps or had fainting spells after packing in the cigarettes. What does drive people back to smoking is the psychological effects of smoking, and as long as these are ingrained on the psyche, then the battle with smoking will be an unpleasant and lifelong one.



The great news is that all these psychological "reasons" are myths. They can be easily debunked. And like anything in life, once you have no reason to do an act, then you simply won't do it. There are millions of smokers who can testify to stopping smoking easily, and it is almost certain that they did precisely because they conquered the psychological effects of smoking with ease.



What precisely do I mean when I say the "psychological effects" of smoking? Well, any smoker will believe that the cigarette is an all-purpose fix. If they need to concentrate, they light up. If they need to relax, they light up. If they need to relieve boredom, they light up. If they need to talk on the phone, they light up. If they are going to drink, they light up. If they need to cope with stress, they light up.



So the notion of throwing away this miraculous all-purpose fix is simply unbearable. It is no wonder that ex-smokers are most likely to light up again in a classic "cigarette moment", such as a funeral (high stress). Once smokers realise that the psychological effects of smoking are all illusions, then it simply won't be a problem to quit. Do not underestimate or unappreciate the depth of the smoker's brainwashing; the tobacco industry has spent billions for over a century in order to promote its product and its myths.

A Psychological Approach To Quit Smoking

Smoking habits in most cases have to do with psychological addiction. It is not the lack of nicotine that represents the hardest obstacle to quit smoking. Though overcoming the physical cravings for nicotine can be difficult, overcoming psychological addiction to smoking can be even more challenging. A couple of weeks after you have stopped smoking, your body doesn't crave nicotine anymore, which means that the physical addiction is over. What remains is the physical manifestation of tobacco addiction, and this often seems so challenging that it sets aside the power of your own mind.



Which characteristics does psychological smoking addictions have? You'll feel an overwhelming desire to light up a cigarette. Some people may even lie to their friends and family regarding their smoking cut, or even beg and steal to get their hands on a cigarette. You'll feel that you no longer have a choice and every minute of the day is governed by your inner urges for cigarets. The addiction can be so strong that you are willing to relieve them even if they hurt your family, career, and financial security.



How is it possible to get motivation to get off of this very destructive path?



You can get help from a professional to break your smoking habits and get rid of your addiction now and for the rest of your life. You may feel that this is too expensive or you don't have time and so on. Well, now that the internet has come you have no excuses anymore. More and more companies establish themselves on the web and those also include professional addiction help companies. They can offer programs to help you stop smoking and release you from your tobacco addictions with nicotine patches, anti-smoking pills, nicotine gums or psychological programs.



In most of these programs you will be encouraged to take some certain actions every day, both as exercises and in your daily life. The purpose with most of these programs is to motivate people addicted to cigarets to increase their willpower incrementally, by taking these daily moments as the program prescribes.



The first thing I will recommend is that you sit down, relax and seriously take a look at your life and realize how important it is to keep yourself out of the tobacco addictive loop. When you feel you are starting to get motivated, go online and search for stop smoking products. I wish you good luck.

Top 10 Psychological and Emotional Reasons to Quit Smoking

To stop smoking, smokers need strong motivation to drive them to kick the nicotine habit. Indeed, there can be strong personal reasons, pressure from peers and family members or due to social stigma attached with smoking to give up the habit.



The following list tries to address the psychological and emotional side of benefits smokers can derive when they take the arduous journey of quitting smoking.



1. Smoking is no more 'cool'



Cigarette smoking no more considered cool compared to 70s and 80s when everyone smoked. The smoking habit considered unhealthy. Cigarette companies generated the 'cool' image due to cleverly designed commercials. For someone intelligent, the appeal of coolness is diminishing given the health hazard the smoking habit carries. There are mandatory ghastly looking images on cigarette packs in some countries not only horrifying, but also a revelation.



2. Stop buying packs of cigarette saves you lot of money



For a moment, imagine how many cigarettes a smoker smokes in a year on an average 20 cigarettes a day. Cool 7000 cigarettes a year! Astounding, right? No! Try the numbers if one smoked for the last 10 years. That totals to 70,000 cigarettes. Now, that is worrying. We have not considered special occasions, weekends; jaunts to nightclubs where one tend to smoke more than usual, sometimes two times the average. This puts the numbers even higher.



Just do the math and see how much cigarette one has burnt in her life. Interestingly, the amount of money one spends just to satisfy addiction is staggering. It is fraction of a dollar, no doubt, for each cigarette. However, how much money one spends on buying cough medicine, breath fresheners, throat fresheners, teeth whiteners, and visiting dentists just because one wanted to be normal?



3. Increased Confidence levels once one stop smoking.



You look like a rock star to others who are trying to quit smoking. Apparently, almost every other smoker wishes to stop smoking one day. However, how many honestly stop smoking and never become a smoker again in their lives? You will be surprised to find out how people expression can change when one mention that she quit smoking. It is shocking for most of smokers and pleasant surprise for many of her not smoking friends. Just imagine how tall she can walk!



4. Worry no more about how bad your breath smell in front of clients or customers



The cigarette smoke smells nasty. Smoking creates bad odor in your mouth and few feet around you. The smell lingers longer if you smoke in an air-conditioned room. You make every other not smoking person to suffer because of your habit. Does it sound selfish? Perhaps, yes. Stop smoking and never worry about the stink again.



5. Save astounding amounts of time



Can you imagine how much time one save by stop smoking? If you are a busy person and a smoker, you can gain lot by stop smoking. It is a simple arithmetic.



One may argue that he or she is smoking the cigarette while working. The smoker while smoking unknowingly idle away productive minutes. How much time you end up wasting just for smoking every year? You be the judge.



6. No embarrassing stares at you



Nowadays, many public places are out of bounds for smoking. However, when smokers lit a cigarette in places with children, senior citizens, pregnant women, and sick persons, for example, invite cold stare from others. It is embarrassing for both the guilty smoker and others. You can walk guilt free when you quit.



7. Feel healthier and fresh day after day



We know there are nearly 2000 types of chemicals produced while smoking and some are hazardous and carcinogen! Smoking can cause irreparable damage to mouth, gums, teeth, and lungs. We are wise enough to stay away from death inviting sticks.



8. Help your society to become smoke free and earn good karma



Leading by example, you can help others to quit smoking. You can motivate others who are trying to quit smoking. You will earn good karma by doing this.



9. Make your family members happy and healthy



Do you know how happy your friends, family members and others feel for you when you stop smoking? It is certainly a feel good factor for you. You help them to eliminate passive effects of smoking. The whole environment becomes healthy. You will love it.



10. Develop cleaner and healthier living environment



Imagine the cigarette butts, empty boxes that thrown around on the street by un-mindful smokers. By quitting smoking, you are helping to keep the clean environment and smoke free. Our world beset with global pollution. By quitting, you can contribute positively to the global cause.