Every time you inhale smoke from a cigarette, your body is getting bombarded with so many toxic chemicals. Did you know that nicotine is one of the most addictive drugs known to man? Addiction to nicotine is what makes it so hard to stop smoking.
Millions of people have tried quitting at some point or another and have failed. Failing is very common so you shouldn’t feel too disappointed. You have probably only tried several ways of quitting but there are others that you haven’t yet tried.
Currently, you might feel as if quitting tobacco smoking seems like an unreachable goal, but I am here to tell you that there is more than one way to kick the habit. Currently, there are already so many ways of quitting being advertised all over the place. Some of these are worth attempting, whilst some are not. Here are the most well-known methods:
Attempting to go cold turkey. Without lowering the dosage of nicotine you get, this method requires you to cut off smoking immediately. If you look at the national statistics, you’ll see that only a small percentage of people are actually successful with this method. I’ve tried doing this and my success only lasted for 24 hours at best. It was very very difficult. The cravings for a cigarette became absolutely unbearable. I have also tried eating snacks to curb the cravings and it has helped a little bit but there’s only so much I could snack on in a day without feeling sick.
This really requires you to have a very strong will-power. I know some people can do it and have stopped smoking overnight after being a smoker of over 20 years, but most people just can’t. It sounds really tough to do because in actual fact, it is.
The second most common way is to use nicotine replacement therapy, or “NRT” for short. It inovlves the use of quit smoking aids such as nicotine flavored chewing gum, and patches. These NRT’s have a much higher rate of success compared to method number one. The truth of the matter is, NRT’s might work for a short period of time. But eventually, the cigarette cravings are too much to bear.
Why is this so? It’s simple. There’s more to the addiction factor than just nicotine intake alone. Behaviors such as putting a cigarette into your mouth, along with the taste and smell has a lot to do with it. These are what a lot of smokers miss when they try to quit.
Name it and I’ve tried it. I have used just about every known quit smoking technique and aid available. I have tried hypnosis, NLP, gum, patches, subliminal messaging, Asian herbal medicines, the list goes on. I’ve purchased lots of books and none of them have helped.
Things are looking up though. 6 weeks ago, I’ve managed to quit smoking without any withdrawal symptoms. I did this with the help of electronic cigarettes which do not produce all the harmful chemicals unlike an analogue cigarette. You see, when you light up a cigarette, the smoke that is produced contains all the deadly chemcials and one of the worst is carbon monoxide, which causes lung cancer and emphysema. Giving up smoking tobacco cigarettes was a piece of cake for me, and many others alike. You have got to try it to believe it.
I’d like to share my story with you about how I started with electronic cigarettes, but unfortunately there is just not enough room here for me to give you my full story.
Please drop by my E-cig Addict website to see the list of extensive articles about e-cigarettes which I have written up. I’m sure you’ll like what you see. Have a great day and all the best in your attempts to quit smoking!
Quit Smoking Today Without Gaining Weight
Through the simple conditioning system revealed in the book and on the accompanying hypnosis CD, Paul McKenna retrains your mind and body so that you no longer crave cigarettes. Stress-busting exercises, visualizations, helpful questions and answers, and a handful of easy-to-follow rules get to the root of cigarette addiction.
Filed under Quit Smoking by on Sep 2nd, 2011. Comment. 
One of the most common excuses smokers use to avoid quitting is the fear of gaining weight. This is a valid fear, because it does seem like many people who quit smoking put on a few pounds (and some put on a lot more than a few!). Why is that? And does it have to happen to everyone who quits smoking?
First, understand that nicotine is a stimulant, and as such it does increase your metabolism a wee bit. Naturally, when you quit smoking and no longer ingest nicotine on a regular basis, your metabolism will slow down slightly. However, when I say “slightly,” I really mean SLIGHTLY. Not enough to make you balloon up to the size of a blimp.
Even better, the effect is temporary and there are simple steps you can take to help keep your weight in balance.
- Drink plenty of water.
Smokers are often dehydrated as it is, which makes your body hold tighter to the water it does have. One good way to get your body to release excess water is to drink plenty of water! As contradictory as it may sound, your body will easily let go of retained water when you keep yourself well-hydrated. The general recommendation is 64 ounces per day, and more if you are overweight already.
- Clean up your diet.
The temptation to snack on sweet and salty foods when you quit smoking may be strong, but try to avoid doing so. Instead lean more toward plenty of fruit and vegetables, lean protein and healthy fats. Instead of chips, try snacking on small amounts of nuts and seeds (because they are so packed with protein and fat, you don’t need more than an ounce or two at a time – way less than the entire bag of chips you would have gobbled). Rather than candy, try some fresh or dried fruit. Also avoid caffeine, alcohol and sugary soda pops.
- Start an exercise regimen.
Check with your doctor first to be sure you can safely withstand physical activity, and then get moving! You’ll probably want to keep it moderate to begin with, like brisk walking or swimming. Don’t be surprised if your lung capacity has greatly diminished if you’ve been smoking for a long time – but it will usually come back the longer you remain a non-smoker and continue to exercise regularly. As you get stronger, gravitate toward more strenuous forms of exercise, like weight training, dancing, or running. The better you feel physically, the less tempted you’ll be to abuse your body with junk food or cigarettes.
- Don’t replace one addiction with another.
Sometimes when people quit smoking they pick up another bad habit to replace it, like eating pounds of chocolate or gulping down those mega-double-whipped-chocolate-caramel-1000-calorie lattes. Your primary objective in quitting smoking is to look and feel better while adopting more healthful habits. Replace cigarettes with carrot or celery sticks, salads, fresh water, and deep breathing. You’ll feel much better than you would by giving in to the temporary buzz lattes and chocolate provide.
- Don’t sweat a few pounds.
If you DO see the scale go up a few notches, don’t let it get you down! Remember that it’s temporary. The more you focus on getting your body healthy and strong, the more quickly those pounds are going to drop back off again. Better yet, don’t even step on the scale while you’re working through the withdrawal from quitting smoking. Who needs the pressure? Instead, keep affirming that you are doing something wonderful for yourself, and you’ll be in much better health in the long run.
Filed under Quit Smoking by on Feb 1st, 2010. Comment.
Hi, my name is Karen and I am a non-smoker. Having kicked my addiction to nicotine and cigarettes I am living a healthier no smoking lifestyle. If you would like to be a non-smoker, too, join me on your quest to find the best solution to help you stop smoking.
