Despite being well aware of the various health risks of smoking, there are many who fail to stop smoking. Once you get addicted to smoking, it becomes really difficult to stop smoking give this bad habit easily. If you are a smoker, and you want to give up this bad habit and want to quit smoking seriously, then here’s the post worth checking. Today in this post, I am sharing a few of the best and easy tips that’ll easily help you quit smoking habit within a few weeks. These quit smoking tricks has worked for me, and I am sure it’s going to work for you.
Both good and bad habits become a part of our life, when we continue doing the same thing for a few days. And once you build the habit, good or bad, it becomes really difficult to quit it.
Obviously, smoking is one such bad habit, and it’s not easy to quit. But, it’s not impossible either, and therefore if you seriously want to quit smoking then these tricks are going to help you give up smoking. And for these or any quit smoking trick to work, the first and most important thing it your determination and urge to quit. If you seriously want to quit, you’ll be able to quit. It’s that simple, and we’ll talk about that in this post.
Anyone can stop smoking
Smoking is increasingly becoming one of the top causes behind premature deaths and if we ourselves do not realize it within time, then things will go out of hand.
And therefore, as I said, if you are determined and willing to give up, only then you will be able to stop smoking and quit it permanently.
I understand that during moments of stress, anxiety, tension and depression, your mind and body craves for that “feel good” effect which nicotine has on your brain.
But, please understand that it is nothing but a disguise, and that same feel good effect is going to become the reason for your bad health if you do not check it before it is too late.
Tips to quit smoking habit easily in few weeks
Smoking is highly injurious to health and we must try and stay clear of it as much as possible not just for ourselves but for our near and dear ones as well. Quitting or stopping smoking is not going to happen in one day, but if you are determined to quit, then you will be able to stop smoking in a few weeks.
And here are the best tips to quit smoking habit.
Determination to quit
The very first thing that you got to do is to find a strong reason to quit smoking. Unless you are determined to quit smoking, you may find it hard to stop smoking. It may be because you are concerned about your own health and want to avoid the chances of getting affected with cancer. Or it may be you want to protect your loved ones from the ill effect of passive smoking, or you just want to save the money you are burning on smoking.
The very first thing is to have a strong reason to quit smoking. Every time, you feel like giving up, you need to remind yourself of the reason so that you can control your temptations to smoke.
Set a timeline
Now that you have a goal, the next important thing to have is a timeline. Set a timeline by which or after which you are going to stop smoking completely. For some people setting a timeline of tomorrow may work. But for many, it’s not that easy to quit from the next day.
So be practical and set a timeline by which you want to stop smoking completely. Choose a date that is like around 3-4 weeks in the future because that is going to give you enough time to prepare yourself to quit.
And remember, that the date you choose is going to be the last date when you are going to smoke.
Many people choose a timeline like their upcoming birth, their anniversary day, or birthday of someone close to them. This is because that will in a way increase the importance, and the value of the promise to quit smoking that you have made to yourself. This is going to act as a motivation to stay away from smoking when your mind and body is craving to smoke.
Prepare yourself
One of the most important tips on how to quit smoking is to prepare you to face the withdrawal symptoms of not smoking. You already know that smoking is an addiction and that your brain is hooked on nicotine and without that, you are going to face the withdrawal symptoms. Hence, once you set the date for quitting, you need to prepare yourself mentally. And that’s where slowing down helps. Slow down the frequency of buying and smoking, as this way you will be able to quit sooner and much more comfortably.
Get rid of triggers
If you observe, there are certain triggers that increase your urge. And you need to control such temptations to completely quit smoking. And therefore, the very first thing that you need to do is to get rid of all those items/incidents/people that can actually trigger your temptation to smoke.
Throwing away your lighters, leftover cigarettes, ashtrays etc. from your home, vehicles, work place and from every place that is reachable to you may help.
Taper off the nicotine
You got to do it patiently and for that, you will have to make efforts to reduce the usage of nicotine slowly. This will make your body slowly get adjusted to the change, and help ease the withdrawal symptoms. On the other hand, if you bring an abrupt change, then that will bring too much unnatural changes in your mind and body that you may not be able to handle.
To be more specific, if you are someone who now smoke a packet of cigarette in a day, then your first challenge will be to try that by the end of one week, you reduce it to half a packet in a day. And, then, continue doing it. Your body will get adjusted to less nicotine and you will not have to feel as terrible as the person who quit cold turkey.
Chew something
Giving your mouth something to chew upon is one of the most effective ways to quit smoking easily. Actually, chewing something like a gum can help you to control your cravings for smoking. You may go for hard candy or sugarless gums or munch on something crunchy and satisfying like nuts, raw carrots, celery etc.
Engage in physical activities
Engaging in some kinds of physical activities can help you to deal with your smoking cravings, and significantly reduce its intensity. Swimming, walking, jogging, cycling, basic stretching or hitting the gym etc. can keep you distracted, and help you keep your smoking urges at check.
If physical activities do not excite you then get involved in something else. Choose journalizing, needlework, woodwork etc. Engaging in other chores like filing paperwork, vacuuming etc. may also be helpful in keeping yourself distracted.
Try relaxation techniques
Many individuals rely on smoking just to deal with the stress and anxiety in their lives. Obviously, it is due to the temporary “high” or “feel good” that you get after you smoke. But, what if you try out the other means to keep yourself relaxed and stress free?
If you are able to relieve yourself from the stress using the other natural alternatives, then it will to a great extent, help you lessen your dependency on nicotine. The various relaxation techniques like medication, yoga, listening to music etc. can actually be helpful to you.
In fact, I have a separate article on how to boost your mood and help yourself reduce. You may consider those natural ways and make your journey towards giving up smoking easier.
Try aromatherapy
If stress is the main reason why you are so dependent on cigarettes then I have another option for you that can help you to deal with the stress and reduce your dependency on the cigarettes and that is, aromatherapy.
See, the essential oils cannot directly help you quit smoking but they can definitely help you deal with the stress. As per studies, the essential oils like rosemary, lavender, tea tree have been seen to boost mood and reduce stress. Hence, you can definitely consider aromatherapy.
Nicotine replacement therapy
You may also go for the nicotine replacement therapy if you want to. In fact, if you are having too much difficulty in controlling the nicotine cravings, then you can definitely consider it. Well, this is because NRT or Nicotine Replacement Therapy provides you with a very low amount of nicotine with the absence of the other poisonous chemicals in the tobacco smoke. This helps a lot in easing many symptoms of nicotine withdrawal without exposing you to the harmful chemicals.
NRT is available as gums, sprays, inhalers, patches etc. You can buy the patches from a medical shop without any prescription. They are helpful as they slowly release nicotine which gets absorbed into the body through your skin. Over 8 to 12 weeks, the nicotine amount your body is exposed to, is reduced gradually by switching to significantly lower dose patches till the time you no longer need it.
Some wear the patches all the time and some remove it at night. You can consult your doctor and choose which option to go for.
Ginger
However, if you are not interested in going for the NRT or Nicotine replacement therapy to deal with the withdrawal symptoms, then you may take the help of a ginger. Especially when it comes to helping yourself deal with the nausea which is like one of the most common withdrawal symptom. Ginger will help you a lot in calming your stomach and will slowly aid in overcoming the nausea. Also, it may keep you motivated to avoid going back to the cigarettes to get relief from the withdrawal symptoms.
To gain the benefits, you may intake ginger as tablets, capsules or in the form of ginger tea as per your choice.
Grape juice remedy
I personally feel that grape juice remedy is one of the best to quit smoking that you may like to consider. Well, this is because the biggest challenge is to prevent the entry of toxins inside you and nicotine is definitely one harmful toxin that you should stay away from. When you are trying to get rid of the toxic nicotine from your life, you can consider drinking grape juice. This is because the acids present in the grape juice are natural detoxifiers which will rejuvenate your body and clean the toxins present in it.
Actually, it is mainly the toxins that lead to so much of cravings when you are trying to get rid of it. They also lower your energy levels. But, the natural detoxifiers, not just help you boost your energy levels but also make you feel better overall. So, it is one thing that you may consider.
Keep yourself full
It is advisable that you keep yourself full for longer periods of time if you are trying to restrict your urge from smoking. This is because, many a times, hunger is mistaken by individuals for the urge to smoke. I would recommend you to eat more fruits and vegetables containing fiber as fiber will help you remain full for long.
Go for food items like beans, grains, bananas, apples etc. to remain full.
Conclusion
Smoking is a bad habit, bad for you and people around you. And most likely you may be aware of it. But then, quitting smoking is not an easy task, especially for those who have been smoking since long.
But, at the same time, giving up smoking is not impossible, because I know people who have stopped smoking just like that. But, whatever is your case, if you are seriously determined to stop smoking then you can definitely quit.
I have already shared a few of the most effective, tried and tested techniques people have been using to stop the bad habit of smoking. Try some of these tips and hacks and with your determination to quit smoking, I am sure you’ll be able to stop this bad habit easily.
Apart from what we have already discussed, what else do you think one can do to quit smoking? Share your hacks and tricks to giving up smoking by commenting below.
Stay happy and healthy, and all the best!
