If you have developed a smoking habit and ever tried to stop, then you probably know how hard it is to stop smoking, not only because your body craves the nicotine you are trying to deny yourself but also because there is an extremely powerful psychological aspect to smoking in terms of how it makes you feel better, more relaxed etc.

Indeed this craving for these effects is so strong that you probably didn’t last very long on your first attempt to stop – otherwise you probably wouldn’t be reading this article. It can be quite painful to try and break the habit, but while the cravings may make it seem impossible for you to stop smoking, it is however possible to stop with a little help.

Since there is a mental aspect to quitting smoking, lets deal with that. The first mental problem you will face is the fact that because you are thinking about stopping and denying yourself your favourite pleasure, cigarettes (or whatever you smoke) are constantly on your mind – so the first thing you need to do is distract your mind from thinking about them. How? By both thinking about other things and keeping yourself active with other things especially during those periods you would have sneaked off for a smoke break.

You will need to identify the factors that lead to you having a smoke – is it pain, anger, frustration, boredom, a particular time you are used to going on a smoke break? Identify what they are and schedule some other positive activity for that period.

Obviously, you mustn’t have any smokes with you or be around colleagues, friends or family who have them and will give them to you on demand or when you are weak. So you will need to endure the loss of your smoking buddies until you can break your habit – at least in areas or places where they smoke. The very last thing you want is to be able to smell cigarette smoke. If your partner smokes inside your home you will need them to smoke elsewhere for the duration and perhaps from now on.

If you can go a day without smoking, you can go 3 days, a week, a fortnight, a month etc. Don’t kick yourself if you fail, think of it like a sportsperson who can only do 3 minutes of exercise on the first try. They don’t give up rather they bounce back and try do more or get better next time. Similarly, you need to develop endurance. So if your effort fails after 2 days. Try again and again – and again, improving each time and reinforcing your ability to withstand the cravings both psychologically and physically as your body gets more and more used to not getting the nicotine.

Also combine your will power with other methods such as patches etc.

Once you are able to break these cravings, both chemical and psychological, you will be much better positioned to quit smoking. The cravings may not disappear completely so don’t let your guard down. You are still likely to miss smoking or desire them at points where they fulfilled a need or you had programmed yourself for a smoke e.g. after a nice meal at a restaurant.