Quit Smoking Yoga and Tips

Why is it Difficult to Stop?

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 19:19:00 +0000

I got interested in this subject because of my own addiction. When I finally stopped it was like magic. When I had previously tried to stop there were weeks of black depression.There would be odd days when I was comparatively cheerful but the next day back with the depression. It was like clawing your way out of a slippery pit, you feel you are near the top, you se the sunshine and then find yourself sliding down again. Eventually you light that cigarette, it tastes awful and you try to work out why you have to do it.One of the questions I always ask smokers prior to my consultations is 'Do you want to stop smoking?' In a way it is a stupid question. All smokers (including members of FOREST) would love to stop smoking. If you say to the most confirmed smoker, 'If yo u could go back to the time before you became hooked, with the knowledge you have now, would you have started smoking?', 'NO WAY'is the reply.Say to the most confirmed smoker - someone who doesn't think that it injures his health, who is not worried about the social stigma and who can afford it (there are not many about these days) - 'Do youencourage your children to smoke?', 'NO WAY' is the reply.All smokers feel that something evil has got possession of them. In the early days it is a questionof 'I am going to stop, not today but tomorrow.' Eventually we get to the stage where we think either that we haven't got the willpower or that there is something inherent in the cigarette that wu must have in order to enjoy life.As I said previously, the proble m is not explaining why it is easy to stop; it is explaining why it isdifficult. In fact, the real problem is explaining why anybody does it in the first place or why, at one tune, over 70 per cent of the population were smoking.The whole business of smoking is an extraordinary enigma. The only reason we get on to it isbecause of the thousands of people already doing it. Yet every one of them wishes he or she had not started in the first place, telling us that it is a waste of time and money. We cannot quite believe they are not enjoying it. We associate it with being grown up and work hard to become hooked ourselves. We then spend the rest of our lives telling our own children not to do it and trying to kickthe habit ourselves.We also spend the rest of our lives paying through the nose. The average twenty-a-day smokerspends $50.000 in his or her lifetime on cigarettes. What do we do with that money? (It wouldn't be so bad if we threw it down the drain.) We actually use it systematically to congest our lungs with cancerous tars, progressively to clutter up and poison our blood vessels. Each day we are increasingly starving every muscle and organ of our bodies of oxygen, so that each day we become more lethargic.We sentence ourselves to a lifetime of filth, bad breath, stained teeth, burnt clothes, filthy ashtrays and the foul smell of stale tobacco. It is a lifetime of slavery. We spend half our lives in situations in which society forbids us to smoke (churches, hospitals, schools, tube trains, theatres, etc.) or, whenwe are trying to cut down or stop, feeling deprived. The rest of our smoking lives is spent insituations where we are allowed to smoke but wish we didn't have to. What sort of hobby is it that when you are doing it you wish you weren't, and when you are not doing it you crave a cigarette? It's a lifetime of being treated by half of society like some sort of leper and, worst of all, a lifetime of anotherwise intelligent, rational human being going through life in contempt. The smoker despises himself, every Budget Day. every National Non-Smoking Day, every time he inadvertently reads the government health warning or there is a cancer scare or a bad-breath campaign, every time he gets congested or has a pain in the chest, every time he is the lone smoker in company with non-smokers.Having to go through life with these awful black shadows at the back of his mind, what does he get 20 out of it? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! Pleasure? Enjoyment? Relaxation? A prop? A boost? All illusions, unless you consider th[...]

Some cancer cure

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:21:00 +0000

Cancer is a medical condition wherein cells begin to grow out of control, anywhere in the body. The disease affects not just sufferers but loved ones and friends too.

However, many cancers are completely treatable if detected at an early stage. However, the important thing is to ‘listen in’ to early signs of abnormalities in the body. One must pay heed to signs indicating that something may not right in the body.

DO NOT IGNORE THESE WARNING SIGNS:

A swelling or sore that does not heal.
Recent change in colour or size of mole or wart.
Lump or hard areas in any part of the body.
Abnormal bleeding from any normal orifice of the body.
A persistent change in digestive and bowel habits.
Difficulty in swallowing.
A persistent hoarseness or unexplained cough.
Unexplained loss of weight.

TIMELY SCREENING AND EARLY DETECTION CAN SAVE LIVES

WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR BODY IF YOU STOP SMOKING RIGHT NOW

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:18:00 +0000

I think one of the main reasons it’s so hard to quit smoking is because all the benefits of quitting and all the dangers of continuing seem very far away. Well, here’s a little timeline about some of the more immediate effects of quitting smoking and how that ill affect your body RIGHT NOW.

In 20 minutes your blood pressure will drop back down to normal.



In 8 hours the carbon monoxide (a toxic gas) levels in your blood stream will drop by half, and oxygen levels will return to normal.



In 48 hours your chance of having a heart attack will have decreased. All nicotine will have left your body. Your sense of taste and smell will return to a normal level.

In 72 hours your bronchial tubes will relax, and your energy levels will increase.

In 2 weeks your circulation will increase, and it will continue to improve for the next 10 weeks.

In three to nine months coughs, wheezing and breathing problems will dissipate as your lung capacity improves by 10%.

In 1 year your risk of having a heart attack will have dropped by half.

In 5 years your risk of having a stroke returns to that of a nonsmoker.

In 10 years your risk of lung cancer will have returned to that of a nonsmoker.

In 15 years your risk of heart attack will have returned to that of a nonsmoker.

So, you have more immediate things to look forward to if you quit now besides just
freaking out about not being able to smoke.

QUIT SMOKING SUCCESS

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:16:00 +0000

There are two factors that will determine your success. They are;
1.You must have the desire to give up your habit.
2.You must have the confidence to know that you can do it.

Of course it’s possible to get motivated to quit, yet you fail for a variety of reasons. Quitting smoking can be an uncomfortable experience, and cigarettes have given you something to do for a long time. Consequently, it is only natural to think about the ups and downs of giving them up. Most who try to quit, fail to do so and have to try several times before they succeed. Should you have any doubts about giving up smoking, put it off until you are determined to do so.

THE RISKS OF SMOKING

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:14:00 +0000

According to health care experts, if you smoke, you will be twelve times more likely to die from lung cancer. Now let’s just think for one short moment: wouldn’t it be very important for you to increase your chances of living from two to twelve times longer, gain many extra years of happy, healthy existence, and save thousands of dollars in increased medical costs?

· 10 times more likely to die from Cancers of the mouth, throat, and esophagus risks.
· 12 times more likely to die from lung cancer or some form of lung diseases.
· 10 times more likely to die from cancer of the larynx.
· 6 times more likely to die of heart disease.
· And you will be twice as likely to die of a stroke.

Enough is enough!

Another overlooked benefit is the amount of money saved by not buying cigarettes in the first place. For example; If you smoke one pack of cigarettes a day at $2.00 per pack, you spend $730 per year. If your habit has continued for a period of 15 years you will have spent an incredible $10,950! If you smoke two packs for that same period of time, you will spend $21,900!

If you want to help yourself to be successful, you need to be able to answer the following two questions:

1) What can you do to reduce the desire to smoke every time it hits you ?
2) What will you do until the urge passes?

With the information contained in this site, I will give you the ammunition you need in this war against tobacco. You will be able to resist the urge to smoke every time it hits you and you will be able to resist it until the urge passes. Next, you will need to deal with the reasons that you smoke now. What kind of satisfaction does smoking give you - physical, mental, or emotional? Ask yourself.

SMOKING IS YOUR ENEMY

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:10:00 +0000

Nicotine creates a biochemical reaction in your body that has an immediate effect on your mood, your ability to reason, and your metabolism. Even if you only smoke a few cigarettes a day, you do feel so bad when you try to quit? The more that you smoke, the higher level of chemical dependency will be reached. Light smokers can also become just as dependent on cigarettes because of nicotine’s psychological impact. In this way it can affect moods and feelings in certain situations.

It is only a matter of seconds after that first puff that nicotine starts to have an effect on your central nervous system, and the rest of your body. Certain areas of the brain, when stimulated by nicotine, help you think more clearly. Other areas of the brain lie in a pleasure center which when stimulated can make you feel more relaxed and less anxious.

Nicotine also affects the hormones produced by the body, which creates a chemical dependency to nicotine and the accompanying craving. Heavy smokers have become dependent on heightened levels of hormones, stimulated by nicotine, which can have an addictive quality. They need a cigarette at certain intervals of time. After the stimulation of the hormones starts to fall, they need another cigarette to bring them back into the comfort zone. If they do not get that cigarette, the craving begins.

HOW YOU CAN QUIT SMOKING

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:08:00 +0000

Quitting Smoking is hard. If you have tried to quit smoking, you know how hard it can be. It is hard because nicotine is a very addictive drug some times it can be as addictive as heroin or cocaine.

Many people have found that including physical activity in their program to quit smoking has added a tremendous benefit to assist in quitting. There are many reasons for this:
When people are more active, they gain confidence and like themselves more. They feel more energy, and are more capable of dealing with tension in their lives. With increased activity, the smell of tobacco actually becomes offensive. Whenever you feel the need to smoke after you have decided to quit, get up and move around instead. A brief physical activity can provide you with the lift that you may have received from nicotine.

BENEFITS - QUIT SMOKING

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:06:00 +0000

Look at the following Reasons for Quitting: -

· You will live longer and live better.
· Become a high-energy person without cigarettes.
· Quitting will lower your chance of having a heart attack
· Reduce the chance of Cancers of the lung, mouth and throat
· Relax and enjoy the pleasure of relaxation without cigarettes.
· Deal with your tensions without a cigarette.
· If you are pregnant women, this will improve chances of having a healthy baby.
· The people you live with, especially family members will be healthier.
· Save money.

QUIT SMOKING TEST

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:04:00 +0000

There are only two ways to effectively quit smoking, immediately (cold turkey), or gradually. When you quit gradually, you use various methods to taper off before you have that last cigarette. Neither way is better than the other for all people. Pick the one that you feel fits your temperament. Either way, a nicotine patch may prove to be a real benefit in giving up, especially if you are a heavy smoker.

Try this test to see which way is better for you.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT METHOD OF QUITING FOR YOU

Answer the questions by circling “yes”, “no”, or “not sure”.

1. Stopping smoking is one of the most important things in the world for me right Now Yes no not sure
2. I can handle a tough problem without a smoke.
Yes no not sure
3. I have to quit smoking and my reasons are good enough to do it now.
Yes no not sure
4. If I quit this minute, I know I can find a way to resist the craving to smoke, even if it is strong. Yes no not sure

If your answer to all of the above questions is ‘yes’, you may be a candidate to quit immediately. But before you do, read on to get the tools necessary to be successful. After reading the following, set a time to quit. If not right now, then tomorrow, but do it.

What about the doubts you may be feeling now?

Most smokers will get a sense of doubt when they read the questions above. You probably are not confident in your ability to follow through with resisting any future craving to smoke, or finding something to substitute for the feelings that smoking has given to you.
In order to have the confidence to quit, you :

(1) must find an alternative to handle the urge to smoke, when it hits, and
(2) create ways to deal with the reasons that you smoked in the first place.

Together we will accomplish both these tasks so that when the day comes that you had planned to quit, you will be confident to do it.

HOW TO HANDLE THE URGE

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:03:00 +0000

There are several weapons that you can use in your fight to quit.

EACH OF THESE WEAPONS WORK- THEY HAVE BEEN PROVEN

You may use one, all, or a combination of several to achieve your goal. The urge to smoke is immediate, and usually lasts for five minutes. If you can resist for that period of time, you reduce the urge.
1. Take a deep breath, hold it for a few seconds, and exhale as if you had just taken your first puff on a cigarette. Part of the feeling you get from smoking is a direct result of taking a deep breath. A deep breath allows you to take in a maximum amount of oxygen, and exhaling lets out large quantities of carbon dioxide. This results in a feeling of relaxation. Try it, you’ll see.

2. Take a sip of water several times during this five minute period. It can help to diminish the need to smoke, and gives you something to do with your hands. The extra water will also help to flush the nicotine out of your body.

3. Put something in your mouth that has no calories, such as a stirrer, toothpick, or another substitute for a cigarette.

4. Get busy with something, anything, to keep you busy for the next five minutes.

5. As long as it does not lead to a craving, chew a piece of gum or a piece of hard candy. Life Savers work well.

6. Get up and move around for five minutes. It will help the urge to smoke to pass.

7. Use a nicotine patch as replacement therapy.

LET’S STOP SMOKING RIGHT NOW!

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:02:00 +0000

The first thing to do is set a date when you are going to quit smoking. Let’s start one week from today. That will give you plenty of time to practice with the weapons in your arsenal. Eight days from today, it will be the beginning of the end of your smoking habit. Days 1 and 2 Examine your smoking behavior for the first two days. Every time you light up, ask yourself: 1. Why am I smoking this cigarette? 2. Would this be an easy one or a difficult one to do without? 3. If I did not smoke this cigarette, what would I do instead? Day 3 Let’s get out and test your weapons today. At least once today, use your weapons to shoot down the urge to smoke. During the five minutes that it will take for the urge to pass, try out some of your arsenal. Try one, or all, or find a combination that works for you. Day 4 Today is the big testing day. If you haven’t already tried it, skip those one or two cigarettes that you feel may be the toughest to give up in your daily routine. Pick the ones that you rated “difficult” during your monitoring period. Remember, this is a practice period, and you must not get upset if you are unable to give up a difficult cigarette. You must practice and experiment with your different weapons to realize how you can be more effective. If you found skipping that cigarette very difficult or even failed in the end, review any factor that got in the way of your success. The most common causes of difficulty or failure that a potential quitter faces are: Chemical properties of addiction When you do not have that cigarette, you feel lousy. If you are a heavy smoker, a nicotine patch may help to relieve your bad feelings. Social pressures You may find yourself in a situation (card game, party, coffee break) during which you would normally smoke. It may help to let others know of your desire to quit, and also your reasons for quitting. Enlisting the aid of a non smoker to confide in may also help. Make sure that he or she is aware of your goals so that they do not say or do anything to instill a negative impact on your desire to quit. If you feel that you may not resist the social pressures of smoking, consider the option of giving up these social encounters for two or three weeks until the urge passes and you can be comfortable again. Tension and negative emotion A crisis occurs during your work or personal day, and one of the main reasons for you to smoke has been tension reduction. Try to deal with your negative emotions and use the tension reducing methods that we talked about earlier. Get away from the area that the tension is associated with. Take a walk, or go to another room. You may also find that nicotine gum will give you enough tension relief to get through. Days 5, 6, and 7. You are now heading down the home stretch. In the next three days, your goal is to come out of this week smoking half the cigarettes that you would normally smoke. If you started as a one pack a day smoker, cut back to ten cigarettes per day, or less. The fewer the better. During days 5 and 6, set your goals toward achieving positive results on day 7. Maintain your smoking record during these three days, and continue to decrease your dependency on nicotine. What do you do if you still have doubts? This is probably due to your chemical dependency on nicotine. It is a highly powerful drug, and many factors have been working together to make you dependent. Discuss with your doctor about the feasibility of a patch or nicotine gum. Nicotine is the hook that has gotten you to smoke which carries the harmful effects to your body. With the help from the patch or the gum, you will have all he tools you need to successfully quit. The patch or gum will give you a steady influx of nicotine into your system, which will be reduce[...]

SYMPTOMS OF WITHDRAWAL

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 18:10:00 +0000

Dizziness may occur during the first one or two days. Take a quick break, it will pass.Headaches may appear at any time during the first weeks. Try to relax. Take any usual remedy for headache, a cold cloth on the back of your neck, or relieve the stress by taking a short walk.Tiredness may occur during the first few weeks, but if you meditate or relax during the first few weeks, it will pass.Coughing may actually increase during the first few days, simply because the residue from the smoke has not been flushed from your system.Tightness in the chest may occur in the first few days. Rest and take deep breaths, it will go away.Sleeping problems may occur in the first few days. Try to stay away from drinks that have a high caffeine content, try not to exercise too strenuously in the hours prior to bedtime. A hot bath prior to retiring at night may also be helpful.Constipation may occur in the first month after you quit. If this occurs, eat foods with a high fiber content, drink plenty of fluids, and do some light exercise.Concentration may tend to wander during the first few weeks. Be ready for this, take a break or do something physical for a short period of time.The following pages will give you an example form to chart your progress as you begin to give up cigarettes. They are all self explanatory and should prove to be a tremendous asset in assisting you to give up your habit. On a daily basis, chart each cigarette that you smoke during the day. Enter the time, place, and with whom you smoked, the reason for smoking, whether it will be easy or difficult to give that one up, and the weapon that you will use to fight the urge to smoke that one.������������� ��������������������������������������������������������������� CONCLUSIONIf you are not completely confident that you can resist the urge to smoke after you have quit, it may be necessary to remove any visual reminders of smoking from your living and work areas. Throw away or give away those leftover cigarettes, get rid of lighters, ashtrays, matches, and anything else that could be associated with smoking. Why should you force yourself to resist the urge to smoke when it is far simpler to just remove the reminders. If you keep a pack of cigarettes in your home or office, there is a good chance that you may pick one up. Just this one may be the cigarette that hooks you again.DAY 1 - CIGARETTES SMOKEDDATE:NO. TIME Place & With Whom Reason for Smoking E or D Weapon to UseFollow this chat for a week days time and check what's the difference you can observe.[...]

SMOKER VS NON SMOKER

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 18:10:00 +0000

1 YOU AS A SMOKER


Permanently stale breath, morning phlegm cough, nicotine stained teeth, shorter life expectancy, stained fingers, constant financial drain, various health problems, poor role model for your kids, dirty ashtrays, bland tasting food, smelly clothes and more and more frequently in today’s health conscious climate, a lack of social acceptance.


2 YOU AS A NON SMOKER


Fresher breath, cleaner lungs, whiter teeth, likely to live longer, no stains on your fingers, more money, better all round health, good role model for your kids, tastier food, fresher home, fresher clothes and a greater level of social acceptability.

UNDERSTANDING ADDICTION

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 17:10:00 +0000

One of the psychological ‘defences’ that goes hand in hand with all addictions is the process of denial.IF YOU ARE A NICOTINE ADDICT (and if you are a regular smoker you almost certainly are) THEN YOU WILL BE AFFECTED BY THE PROCESS OF DENIAL.There are no words that can adequately express the importance of that last statement. In fact it is so important to understand that I am going to say it again:IF YOU ARE A NICOTINE ADDICT THEN YOU WILL BE AFFECTED BYTHE PROCESS OF DENIAL!What is denial?Denial is the method adopted by your unconscious mind to keep you feeding nicotine to your body. The easiest way to understand why on earth your own mind is attempting to get you to poison yourself with nicotine, is to think of it in these terms:One of the functions of your unconscious mind is to ensure that you go through life feeling as little discomfort as possible, irrespective of how it manages to achieve this. Unfortunately, your unconscious mind doesUNDERSTANDING ADDICTIONNot make value judgements. It doesn’t, for instance, say to itself “Mmm.., I’ve stopped smoking and I’m starting to feel uncomfortable, I would like a smoke, but I don’t want to risk cancer so I will just tolerate the withdrawal symptoms until they go away.” If your unconscious was able to make value judgements of this kind - ie., I won’t do (a) because it will result in (b), then no one would have any real difficulty in giving up. When this situation arises, i.e., when you start to feel the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal, this is what you can expect from the treacherous little ‘voice’ that is your unconscious:Firstly, your unconscious will notice your discomfort. It will then compare your feelings of discomfort to the memory bank of feelings stored in your mind, and will decide on what it believes to be the source of your discomfort. In no time at all it will figure out that the last time you felt these negative feelings you were able to relieve them by having a cigarette. Having found the simple solution to your problems, it will send a message to your conscious mind. That message is likely to be “Have a smoke”. The problem now lies with the conflict that arises between your conscious and unconscious mind. By the time you get to the stage of feeling withdrawal, you have already consciously made the decision that you are never going to smoke again. This is when the real battle begins. Before we look at this whole battle process, let me tell you some moreQuit smoking is about this destructive unconscious ‘voice’. This ‘voice’ is generally stronger and more determined than your conscious mind - a lot stronger and a lot more determined. For this reason when you first hear this ‘voice’ telling you to smoke, you will need to immediately be on your guard. Here’s why -When you first stop smoking your conscious mind will start of with a high level of motivation to carry through your resolve not to smoke. Now, all would be well if your little ‘voice’ was to agree with your decision to stop, and think: “Fair enough, I’ll just not smoke.” However, let me assure you that is never, ever, going to happen. Like a spoilt brat, this little ‘voice’ will then resort to all sorts of mental trickery in order that you feed it the nicotine that it so desperately wants. In fact, it will resort to levels of deception so low and cunning, that at first you will hardly believe it possible. Here is a typical conscious / unconsciousdialogue:U: = UnconsciousC: = ConsciousC: “Oh, oh, I am starting to feel cravings”U: “I’ll have a smoke”C: “No I have stopped, I must be strong”(Your unconscious may then wait until the craving becomes a bit stronger then:)U: “I’ll have a sm[...]

DEALING WITH PAIN

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 17:08:00 +0000

When I use the word pain in this site I am referring not just to physical pain, ie., the type that makes you go “ow”, but also to psychological pain. Pain that includes anger, jealousy, grief, despair, loneliness, guilt, resentment, fear, sadness, depression and hate. These forms of emotional pain are the ones most likely to weaken your initial resolve to stop smoking and create for you, through that little ‘voice’, the excuse you need (or more accurately, want) to start smoking again.Why do you need to examine pain?The answer to this question is that each of us has a pain threshold that is unique to ourselves. This threshold is partly established at birth and partly acquired by our experiences as we go through life. Once this threshold has been exceeded, we will allow ourselves to operate outside the normal boundaries of our personalities. For example, most of us has at some time or another promised to keep a secret and have been strong in our resolve. Had this resolve been threatened by physical or emotional pain however, it may soon have crumbled. The likelihood of you keeping a secret will always be in direct relation to the amount of pain that you have to endure. If you were being asked to tell your secret by someone who was giving you gentle slaps on the back of your hand for a period of ten minutes, you would probably have little or no difficulty in keeping quietIf, however, you were being burnt at regular intervals with red hot pokers over a period of weeks, it is extremely likely that you would tell your torturers whatever they wanted to know, (and probably a whole lot more!) and to hell with your original resolve! An extreme example, granted, but it does clearly illustrate the link between pain, and failure to keep a resolution. If you view this pain / failure link in the context of stopping smoking, then it becomes clear that in order to increase your chances of staying stopped, you will need to look at how you can reduce all the areas of pain and potential pain in your life. Let’s start now bytaking a look at pain itself. Pain is one of the areas in your life where your little ‘voice’ has a lot of control and when you stop smoking your little ‘voice’ will steer you towards focusing on any emotional or physical pain that you might have. It will try to convince you that this pain is almost unbearable and of course that the pain is there because you are not smoking and therefore you should have a smoke! (Just the one of course!) Back in the land of reality it transpires that almost every day brings some level of emotional or physical pain for most people. Perhaps in the form of a headache, or a row at the office, or a final demand from the gas board. Perhaps a disagreement with your mother, or a touch of arthritis, or a bad cold. Maybe a sleepless night or a pulled muscle. It could be an embarrassing Freudian slip, or a wasp sting or, a bad report from your daughters school. Perhaps a whisper about job losses at your factory, or a missed promotion - and so on and so on. This list is but a very small sample of all the potential areas for pain in your life and it could be extended almost indefinitely. It is sad but unfortunately true, that for most of us, a lot of the time, life can be quite painful in one way or another. Stopping smoking will not make life any tougher, but at the start it will make you feel a little more vulnerable. This in turn will make you suddenly focus on all this negative everyday pain. Once again your little ‘voice’ will step in and it will try to tell you that life wasn’t this tough before you stopped smoking. Of course it was - most of the time you simply didn’t notice!Now then, how[...]

DEALING WITH YOUR UNCONSCIOUS

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 17:04:00 +0000

In this section you are going to continue looking at the little ‘voice’ and some of its more common tactics and learn how you can be ready to take control when it tries to convince you that you need to smoke. What you are going to do now is to look in some depth at the little ‘voice’ and prepare yourself for the battle that will begin within a couple of hours of stopping smoking. Actually, your little ‘voice’ will now know of your intentions to stop smoking and will already be trying to put obstacles in your way! You may, for instance, have had thoughts while reading this book along the lines of “I’ll read this section now, but I won’t stop until the end of the month in order that the information can sink in.” Or perhaps “Oh dear, I don’t like the thought of all this self-analysis stuff, perhaps I should just try nicotine patches instead. Yeah, that’s it, I’ll buy a supply at the end of the month.” Again, if you listen to this little ‘voice’ you are doomed to failure. The only realistic way of stopping smoking is to put this little ‘voice’ in its place by agreeing to pay the price of some discomfort, making a resolution to stop smoking straight away, stopping, and finally, staying stopped, no matter what happens. Here is an analogy from my own life that helps to illustrate the effectiveness of carrying on with a resolution in spite of feeling discomfort:When I was running a charity in Belfast for recovering addicts, we regularly entered the Belfast / Dublin Maracycle, a two hundred mile cycle over two days. At the forty mile point in this cycle there is a mountain to cross, and one stretch of road by the name of Newry Hill, is very steep and climbs for about two miles. Each of the first three years that I’d participated, I had simply cycled about a quarter of the way up this hill, got off my bike and walked up the rest. On the fourth year my good friend Arty Magill called me aside at the start of the Maracycle and said to me: “I know how you can get up Newry hill!”“ Oh really?” I replied with more than a modicum of disbelief. “Yes,” he replied “When you reach the bottom of the hill, keep pedaling and no matter what happens, don’t stop until you get to the top.”Now as you might imagine I was, at first, none too impressed with this pearl of wisdom. However, when I actually took the time to think clearly about what he meant, I discovered that his advice was pretty much faultless. Cycling that hill was certainly well within my physical capability because, although I was not particularly fit, I was a young and reasonably strong man and, in the previous years, I had observed the majority of participants successfully tackle this hill, and this included many pensioners! When I thought about this a bit more I realised that the real problem was that on previous occasions I had used my discomfort (tired legs, a bright red face and panting lungs) as an excuse to stop and walk. In brief, I had not agreed to pay the price of some discomfort to achieve this goal, so when the chips where down I simply gave up. On this forth occasion, however after Artys’ little chat, I decided that when I reached Newry Hill I would pay the price and keep pedaling no matter what. What actually happened was that I cycled up that hill with no real difficulty at all. In fact I stood on the pedals and sprinted the second half of it, havingrealised that it was nowhere near as bad as I had let it become in my imagination. This simple advice turned my whole experience of this hill around. I have since adapted it to many s[...]

CREATING SUPPORT STRUCTURES

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 06:29:00 +0000

YOU WILL STAND A MUCH GREATER CHANCE OF SUCCEEDING IF YOU USE ALL OF THE FOLLOWING SUPPORT STRATEGIES!Using support has always been a stumbling block for people trying to tackle their addictions. Addicts, by their very nature, have a strong Tendency to resist support and I have lost count of the times that I have seen addicts relapse because of their reluctance to utilise available assistance. Curious indeed, when you consider that this reluctance can sometimes cost addicts their lives. There are several reasons why an addict may refuse to use support and it is important that you look at Some of these reasons here. If you are one of those people who cringe at the thought of asking for help, you may benefit from exploring the reasons behind your reluctance. Receiving adequate support will in many cases mean the difference between success and failure.Probably the most common reason for not asking forsupport is this:YOU DO NOT WANT TO APPEAR WEAK Western society has a tendency to socialise its citizens into believing that it is wrong to ask for help, and fosters the belief that individuals should be able to manage on their own. This misconception is in fact quite often the opposite of the reality - it takes strength of character to ask for help and a mature and realistic awareness of ones own personal limitations. Those who are strong enough to ask for help clearly demonstrate a strength of character and commitment to successfully achieving their goals that is missing in those who are too worried about what others may think of them.A second common reason for not wanting to ask for support is this:Addicts tend to think that they don’t really need support and that they can manage well on their own.If you are one of these addicts then consider this - If you know best and don’t need that level of support, how come you are still smoking? There is obviously something missing from your game plan. Your attempts to stop smoking without support have not worked, otherwise you would not be still trying to find a way to stop. Consider this next question carefully if you are a nicotine addict, and feel that you don’t really need support: What if it is only this missing support that has prevented you from succeeding in the past?Surely using all available support has got to be worth a try!A third reason why addicts may be reluctant to seek support:Addicts have a greater than average tendency to be ‘people pleasers’, and don’t want to ask for assistance in case the person they ask regards them as a bit of a nuisance. They also might be afraid that the person they ask to help them may say no, and then they would have to deal with the discomfort of feeling rejected. They worry about all of this and then come to the conclusion that they don’t really need help and that they will manage well on their own. Let me make it clear now - if you are one of these people you are simply deluding yourself in order to avoid discomfort. Yes, it’s that little ‘voice’ again trying to keep you from feeling discomfort, and to hell with the price you have to pay!The key message here is that if you are reluctant to seek support that’s OK, it is a normal enough reaction, but don’t let your discomfort stop you from asking, because to do so is to severely reduce your chances of Succeeding.Everyone who is addicted to nicotine needs support to help them Overcome their addiction and to think that you are an exception to this rule is to fall foul of your own denial. If you find yourself thinking that you will be regarded as weak for asking for help, remember, it is the weak Who are afraid to ask for help. They are afra[...]

SUCCESS STRATEGIES

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 06:25:00 +0000

1 Tell absolutely everyone you know, that you have stopped smoking and tell them that this time you have it conquered. Tell them, also, that you know that you will never smoke again and if you ever do, you will be a fool. Better still, tell any rivals, or Enemies, or work colleagues who you don’t get on too well with!You don’t need to be a psychologist to work out the reasoning behind this ploy. The more people you tell and the more determined you appear to them to become a non smoker, then the more difficult it will be for you to start smoking again. Sometimes, when the going gets rough, the thought of losing face in front of a work colleague, or your mum, or your boss, may be the thing that keeps you from smoking until that particular bad patch passes. The same logic applies to telling a rival or enemy. The effect is even more pronounced because the loss of face appears even more severe. You may, of course, feel frightened to take this course of action in case you do fail, but if this thought of losing face does frighten you, then what better incentive to stay stopped? Go on, make that commitment!2 Ask all of your friends, colleagues and relations to support you by firstly, taking you seriously and secondly, by never offering you a cigarette.Again, the value of this tactic is self evident, If your associates don’t take you seriously then it makes it easier for you to relapse in their presence. A word of warning here. Some of you will find that no matter how much you implore some people to support you, they will not take you seriously. Some individuals may actually even encourage you to smoke again. These individuals sound uncannily like your little ‘voice’, and their problem may be that they feel threatened by your resolve to beat your nicotine addiction. They may be people who have little or no belief in their own ability to stop smoking and don’t want you to succeed for fear that they will be left behind. They are clearly, very self interested and should be regarded with the same disdain that you have for your little ‘voice’. Sometimes these individuals are non smokers or ex smokers and their problem may well be that they cannot bear to see someone making good or succeeding at something. Quite often this is because many such individuals feel bad about themselves and try to compensate for their negative feelings by trying to drag others down to their level. An alternative theory as to why these people would act with such blatant disregard for the welfare of others is that they may be ignorant of the seriousness of the situation. Although lets face it, if you don’t know by now that smoking is a ridiculously dangerous and stupid thing to do, then you will probably never know!Ask yourself this question if you find someone trying to encourage you to smoke, and you are wondering if it is because they just don’t know any better:Would they encourage their own children to smoke?- I don’t think so!If you do come across one of these individuals who try to talk you or joke you into smoking, or if they continue to offer you cigarettes after you have asked them not to, assert yourself by taking them to one side and telling them straight that you are deadly serious about stopping, that you expect them to be a bit more supportive, and if they feel that they still can’t take you seriously then ask them frankly to stay out of your way. If after all that they still don’t respond, I think it is safe to say that you have either got yourself an enemy, or possibly a friend who is just exceptionally stupid!3 Ask someone you respect and see often, to be your s[...]

SMOKING WEIGHT MANAGEMENT

Sat, 13 Sep 2008 06:38:00 +0000

One of the most frequently used excuses for starting smoking again goes something like this: “Oh, I was doing ever so well, but my weight just soared and I had to start smoking again before I looked like a beached whale.”Rubbish! As you now know, there is never any valid reason to resume smoking. Weight gain may occasionally be an issue, but it is certainly a resolvable issue.Just because you stop smoking, it doesn’t necessarily follow that you will put on weight. There are two factors to be considered here. First of all your metabolism. It has been reported that a for a minority of individuals, stopping smoking can lead to a small change in their metabolic rate. What this means in layman’s terms is that a little more of the food you eat is converted into fat and stored on your body. This is obviously not good news for you if you are concerned about weight gain, but it is not as bad as it might at first appear. For a start, this phenomenon only occurs in a minority of individuals, and furthermore the changed metabolic rate is normally quite small. Here is the main reason that some people put on weight when they stop smoking:NICOTINE WITHDRAWAL PRODUCES FEELINGS SIMILAR TO HUNGER!Hunger is another of those feelings that is under the control of your little ‘voice’ and it knows, of course, that the solution to the pain of hunger is to eat. Lets look at another conscious / unconscious dialogue:U: (having felt the pain of withdrawal) “Have a smoke”C: “No I have stopped smoking.”U: “Look, I am absolutely gasping, have a smoke for goodness sake!”C: “No chance, I am staying stopped”U: (realising that for the time being it is not going to win, starts to look for alternative pain relieving strategies.)“Mmmm… this feels very like being hungry, perhaps food will take away the discomfort - I’ll have something to eat.”C: (Not having made any resolutions at all with regards to eating, agrees immediately) “OK.”Off you go to the fridge, only to find that after stuffing yourself you still have the feeling of withdrawal, which as you know, feelsvery similar to hunger. Your unconscious is still not happy of course and so the whole process starts over again:PainEatStill painEat againStill painEat againAnd that’s the way it goes, on and on, until you find yourself the size of a baby elephant.The good news is that it doesn’t have to be that way. There is a simple three part formula that determines whether or not you put on weight and it is this:1 If you consume more calories than you burn off, then you will put on weight.2 If you consume the same amount of calories that you burn off then your weight will remain constant.3 If you consume less calories than you burn off you will lose weight. Now with this knowledge to hand it becomes easy to formulate a plan that will allow you to indulge (if you want to) in filling your stomach when you feel the pain of withdrawal, without having to suffer the end result of putting on more weight.This strategy can take one of two basic forms:1 Eat more food but without consuming additional calories, or:2 Increase the amount of calories that you burn off each day.Let’s look at strategy 1 first.You are going to want to eat a lot more, particularly in the early days, so in order to do this without putting on any weight you have to increase the amount of food you eat in terms of volume, yet still maintain roughly the same calorific intake. This is not as difficult to achieve as it sounds. If you agree to modify your diet from the moment you stop smoking, not only will you find it possibl[...]

THE ‘BATTLE PLAN’

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 11:34:00 +0000

Right then - this is it, the last chapter before you become a non smoker! What this section is going to do is to sort out all the practical information from the rest of the book and put it into the form of a simple plan of instructions from which you can work on a daily basis. When you finish this section you can take your last smoke (if you want one that is!) and then begin your journey into the land of the non smoker. You now have everything that you need to be a success and absolutely no valid excuses to fail. I won’t wish you luck - you wont need it. What you will need however, is to make a resolution to keep plodding away with all the techniques discussed in this book until you find yourself in a position where you feel confident enough to continue on your own, without the need for assistance from your support structures.This whole stopping smoking process will start off feeling a little difficult at first but with each passing day your journey will become easier. It is of the utmost importance that you hang in there during any rough patches that you may encounter because you can be absolutely certain that they will pass. You will help them to pass easier and quicker by employing the tactics you have learned from this book. If you do so, you will find that in what seems like no time at all you will regard yourself not just as someone who is trying to stop smoking, but as an ex smoker.If I was to try and identify the single most important piece of advice that will best help you to succeed, I would say it would be this:NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, DON’T PICK UP A CIGARETTE.Remember, once again that there is simply no valid excuse, not even something as painful as the death of a loved one, and considering smoking for anything less is simply to admit defeat to that little ‘voice’ in your head.THE ‘BATTLE PLAN’1 IN WRITING, state that you understand and admit that you are a nicotine addict. If you haven’t already done this DO IT RIGHT NOW!2 IN WRITING, state that you are going to stop smoking at the end of this book and that you will never smoke again. Sign this declaration and put it on a wall that you will see every day. Your bathroom is a good place to put it. If you haven’t already done this, DO IT RIGHT NOW!3 SAY OUT LOUD to yourself that you will follow all of theCHAPTER 7 - THE ‘BATTLE PLAN’instructions and use all of the tactics in this book, whenever requested or necessary. DO THIS NOW!4 REMEMBER that you will always be addicted to nicotine, therefore there will be no time when it is OK to have a smoke.5 AGREE to pay the price of sometimes tolerating some discomfort and know that not only will this discomfort soon pass, but also that it is a very small price to pay to become a non smoker.6 BE AWARE of the little ‘voice’. Make it your sworn enemy and know that it doesn’t care about your welfare and will constantly feed you with contrived excuses in order to make you smoke. THERE IS NO VALID EXCUSE FOR STARTING SMOKING AGAIN. If you smoke again it is always because you were conned by this ‘voice’ and refused to pay the price of short term discomfort.7 MAKE A PAIN CHART and put it on your wall. When you feel that the going is getting a bit tough, do a head to toe body check and measure the real strength of your pain. Remember that it is seldom as bad as the little ‘voice’ would have you believe! DO THIS RIGHT NOW.8 REMEMBER that ‘THIS TOO, SHALL PASS’, if you hit a rough patch9 ONE DAY AT A TIME when used as a pain management strategy will help to get even those of you with[...]

SOME CANCER PICS

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 11:40:00 +0000

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