Some Quick Tips to Help You Quit Smoking
Webmaster
the most difficult things you have done in your life and realize that
you have the guts and determination to quit smoking. It's up to you.
2. After reading this list, sit down and write your own list,
customized to your personality and way of doing things. Create you own
plan for quitting.
3. Write down why you want to quit (the benefits of quitting): live
longer, feel better, for your family, save money, smell better, find a
mate more easily, etc. You know what's bad about smoking and you know
what you'll get by quitting. Put it on paper and read it daily.
4. Ask your family and friends to support your decision to quit. Ask
them to be completely supportive and non-judgmental. Let them know
ahead of time that you will probably be irritable and even irrational
while you withdraw from your smoking habit.
5. Set a quit date. Decide what day you will extinguish your
cigarettes forever. Write it down. Plan for it. Prepare your mind for
the "first day of the rest of your life". You might even hold a small
ceremony when you smoke you last cigarette, or on the morning of the
quit date.
6. Talk with your doctor about quitting. Support and guidance from a
physician is a proven way to better your chances to quit.
7. Begin an exercise program. Exercise is simply incompatible with
smoking. Exercise relieves stress and helps your body recover from
years of damage from cigarettes. If necessary, start slow, with a
short walk once or twice per day. Build up to 30 to 40 minutes of
rigorous activity, 3 or 4 times per week. Consult your physician
before beginning any exercise program.
8. Do some deep breathing each day for 3 to 5 minutes. Breathe in
through your nose very slowly, hold the breath for a few seconds, and
exhale very slowly through your mouth. Try doing your breathing with
your eyes closed and go to step 9.
9. Visualize your way to becoming a non-smoker. While doing your deep
breathing in step 8, you can close your eyes and begin to imagine
yourself as a non-smoker. See yourself enjoying your exercise in step
7. See yourself turning down a cigarette that someone offers you. See
yourself throwing all your cigarettes away, and winning a gold medal
for doing so. Develop your own creative visualizations. Visualization
works.
10. Cut back on cigarettes gradually (if you cut back gradually, be
sure to set a quit date on which you WILL quit). Ways to cut back
gradually include: plan how many cigarettes you will smoke each day
until your quit date, making the number you smoke smaller each day;
buy only one pack at a time; change brands so you don't enjoy smoking
as much; give your cigarettes to someone else, so that you have to ask
for them each time you want to smoke.
11. Quit smoking "cold turkey". Many smokers find that the only way
they can truly quit once and for all is to just quit abruptly without
trying to slowly taper off. Find the method that works best for you:
gradually quitting or cold turkey. If one way doesn't work do the
other.
12. Find another smoker who is trying to quit, and help each other
with positive words and by lending an ear when quitting becomes
difficult. Visit this Bulletin Board and this Chat Room to find a
"quit buddy."
13. Have your teeth cleaned. Enjoy the way your teeth look and feel
and plan to keep them that way.
14. After you quit, plan to celebrate the milestones in your journey
to becoming a non-smoker. After two weeks of being smoke-free, see a
movie. After a month, go to a fancy restaurant (be sure to sit in the
non-smoking section). After three months, go for a long weekend to a
favorite get-away. After six months, buy yourself something frivolous.
After a year, have a party for yourself. Invite your family and
friends to your "birthday" party and celebrate your new chance at a
long, healthy life.
15. Drink lots of water. Water is good for you anyway, and most people
don't get enough. It will help flush the nicotine and other chemicals
out of your body, plus it can help reduce cravings by fulfilling the
"oral desires" that you may have.
16. Learn what triggers your desire for a cigarette, such as stress,
the end of a meal, arrival at work, entering a bar, etc. Avoid these
triggers or if that's impossible, plan alternative ways to deal with
the triggers.
iluv my kitties and family
"Webmaster" <fistful...@googlemail.com> wrote in message
news:8fcf8a06-549f-4d46...@o28g2000yqh.googlegroups.com...