By: Roy Dobson

Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese medical treatment. It involves in stimulating some particles of the human body for deriving specific outputs. Do not be horrified, as acupuncture is done by piercing the skin with thin needles. It is not painful but seems to be relaxing.

All smokers can use acupuncture to stop smoking. If you are a chain smoker and cannot quit the bad habit at all, then acupuncture can be a good option for helping you quit smoking. It can give you really positive results, where other methods to stop smoking have failed. Yes, acupuncture decreases chronic smoking habits.

The Prerequisites

Once you have reached a decision for using acupuncture to stop smoking, you must first and foremost get a licensed acupuncture practitioner. Make sure that you find a practitioner who has a proper medical cultivation and who can better assess the medical treatment required by you.

The process of acupuncture

Acupuncture is usually done on the cartilage of your ears. Do not worry, the procedure is safe, just ensure that the needles are useful ones, that is they should be purified to avoid contamination.

When you go for acupuncture to stop smoking, the acupuncturist will ask you a lot of questions to understand your health, behavior and lifestyle. Open out to the acupuncturist and do not conceal facts concerning any medical complications or any medications that you might be taking presently. It is only then that the acupuncturist will be able to tell you exactly how many acupuncture sessions you will be requiring.

The needles are pricked on the ear, hands and wrist of the smoker. The needles remain pierced on your skin for 30 to 45 minutes and this relaxes you. The result is that the pricked needles lessen the cravings for smoking.

As the needle pricking sessions are going on, the therapist recommends you to undergo herbal treatments. For speeding up the process of acupuncture to stop smoking, you can apply a mixture of wintergreen and clove oil, Sichuan lovage rhizomes and the extracts of evodia fruits in the acupuncture points.

The therapist will give you the up-to-date information about the progress that you are making. Depending on your condition, the acupuncture to stop smoking can go on for a few days or may continue for maybe a couple of weeks.

The after-effects of acupuncture

When you are done with the acupuncture treatment, the cigarettes seem to have a foul and nasty burnt taste; you do not feel like smoking. Yes, acupuncture to stop smoking also decreases the side effects of nicotine withdrawal, like cravings, depression and anxiety.

The acupuncture treatment also helps in de-congesting your lungs and improves your blood circulation.

Try acupuncture if you seriously want to quit smoking. Do not let your desire to stop smoking just be another New Year resolution that you intend to break. Trust acupuncture, and free yourself from the addiction of smoking.

About the author: Roy Dobson is a successful writer and publisher of Smoking related issues, for more informative articles go to http://www.stopsmokingtoday.net
Article Source: www.isnare.com

By: Allen Jones

Congratulations on your decision to stop smoking. Identifying your smoking triggers (reasons that cause you to crave a cigarette) will help you out when you are experiencing the toughest times. Always remember that your strongest cravings will only last a few minutes.

Getting through these few minutes is vital to your success at becoming an ex-smoker. These 2 tips will help you get through them. Note: Utilizing the tips below will probably not be enough for you to stop smoking. They are intended to be used in conjunction with a proven stop smoking plan.

Identify Your Triggers

Cigarette cravings come from two sources, physical and psychological withdrawal. Physical withdrawal happens when your brain realizes that your body does not have nicotine in its system. Seeking equilibrium, your body sends you a craving so you will give it the nicotine that it thinks it needs.

Psychological withdrawal is basically your body trying to act on a habit it has developed over the years. The act of smoking the cigarette and gaining pleasure from it (in many different ways) has ingrained itself into your everyday life.

The first step in handling these cravings is identifying what kind of craving it is, physical or psychological. It’s important to realize which type of craving you are having because once you do; you can handle it much better.

If it is a physical craving, think about the actual process that is happening. Your body is simply trying to seek equilibrium. Knowing that this equilibrium could be slowly killing you, you can take a deep breath and realize that you are doing something that is good for your body, not bad. I can tell you first hand that merely knowing what is happening inside your body will ease your craving. Close your eyes, breathe deeply and think about it. The craving will soon pass.

If it is a psychological craving then you must quickly identify the trigger that is causing the craving. Is it boredom, anger, routine or something else? Once you realize the cause of the trigger then you will be able to act upon it by using an alternative to that specific trigger. Chances are, once you have thought about the craving, identified it as a psychological craving and then acted with an alternative action, the craving will almost be gone already! As the days go by, your cravings will become shorter, less strong and farther apart.

Find Alternatives to Triggers

As you become better at identifying your psychological smoking triggers, you will quickly be able to see those triggers coming. Realizing that a trigger is about to happen will greatly increase your chances for success. So what do you do when a trigger hits? You act on it. Instead of giving in and lighting up, you should have a pre-planned alternative to the trigger that is happening, or that is about to happen.

Sit down with a pencil and paper and list as many smoking triggers as you can think of. Skip a line between each trigger. Here is a short list that will help you get started:

• Driving your car
• After a meal
• After an argument
• During a break at work
• When you are bored
• When you are anxious

Now that you have written down all of your triggers, go back to the beginning of your list and think of at least two alternatives to each trigger. For instance, when driving in your car and you get a craving, you can turn up the CD player and sing loudly, play the drums on your steering wheel, chew 2-3 pieces of gum or call a support buddy on the cell phone.

Once you have completed your trigger/alternative list, carry it with you at all times. Any time you realize a trigger that you don’t have in your list, write it down and come up with alternatives for it. If you are having difficulty finding an alternative, you can find hundreds of them online by doing a web search on your favorite search engine.

Tying it All Together

Now that you have a (very) basic understanding about what causes cravings when you try to stop smoking, you will have an easier time with them. Just knowing this information will allow you to endure the cravings a little bit longer. Physical cravings will subside in a matter or days, usually 3-4 days. Psychological cravings, however will last much longer. Some people experience psychological craving for months. Although they are not as strong as physical cravings, they can easily get you smoking again even months after you have smoked your last cigarette.

This is why most people stop smoking successfully only to start smoking again weeks or months later. The physical addiction was broken. It was the psychological addiction that did them in. For this reason, you must identify and act upon your smoking triggers for the rest of your life. It is important to know that you must never take even one puff on a cigarette for the rest of your life, not one. The very next puff you take will have you completely addicted again, both physically and psychologically.

About the author: Allen Jones is the owner and administrator of http://TheStopSmokingGuide.com and an expert in nicotine addiction. Visit his website and discover the proven stop smoking plan that eliminates both physical and psychological withdrawal symptoms. Download their free Stop Smoking Guide ebook today and find out!

Nicotine patches are a form of nicotine replacement therapy to help you quit smoking by replacing the cigarettes and cigars you would use to obtain nicotine with a less toxic method of delivery. While you still get the nicotine you are trying to avoid, the point in using them is so that you don’t experience the craving you normally get from your smoking addiction when you don’t smoke.

Nicotine patches have been found to be more effective in helping you quit if you use them along with some kind of psychological or behavioural therapy or hypnosis.

How Nicotine patches work.

Nicotine patches are plaster like skin patches impregnated with nicotine. You stick them on an arm or body surface and they gradually release nicotine through your skin over a period of time (up to 3 hours to get into your blood, with effect lasting for 16-24hours depending on brand and dose).

They are usually waterproof so you can wear them while bathing or any other activity.

You would normally change your patch with a fresh one once a day.

The patches come in different sizes and contain different doses. Larger patches tend to contain higher quantities of nicotine. Some manufacturers recommend starting with a larger patches and gradually switching to smaller sized patches (and reduced doses) over a period of time.

Nicotine patches help you to diminish the normal nicotine withdrawal symptoms of fidgeting, irritation, inability to concentrate, drowsiness etc.

Side effects:

Some people have claimed to become dependent on their nicotine patches – which is not unexpected since they also supply nicotine to the body.

Nicotine patches have been found to cause dizziness, sped up heartbeat, headaches, vomiting, skin problems, sleeping problems, vivid dreams, in some people. Some users find that removing their patches in the evenings helps them alleviate sleep disturbances.

How do I use a nicotine patch

You should however use the patches according to the directions given to you by your doctor who has your medical records and is aware of specific information concerning you, and your body that the manufacturers will not be aware of.

Normally, the patches are simply Nicotine impregnated plasters you can apply to any hairless part of your skin. It is best to place them on your shoulder, back or upper arm.

Since the patches can cause skin rashesor irritation in some people, try to apply new patches to different parts of your body each time rather than the same place each day.

Don’t remove your patch and put it back on. Don’t use patches and cigarettes at the same time – they are substitutes for the cigarettes you would normally use.

Change your patch to a new one daily. Avoid using more than one patch a day.

It can take up to 8 weeks to quit but they have been shown to cut craving in under 2 weeks.

How effective are Nicotine Patches:

This is debatable with a range of studies showing effectiveness from 10%-40%. They are more effective when used with some other method of quitting as they only cut down on the withdrawal symptoms.

What is Chantrix

Chantrix is a nicotine-free replacement therapeutic drug you can use to help you quit smoking cigarettes. Its active Ingredient is Vareniciline Tartrate. It is especially useful in helping you if you are one of those who experience severe withdrawal symptoms when you stop smoking.

Chantrix acts as a replacement therapy by providing you with the same effect nicotine has on you without its very dangerous effects.

How Chantrix helps in Giving up Smoking

Your brain has special cells called receptors which respond to chemicals or drugs. Many drug therapies make use of this response and several. drugs are designed to copy the effect of natural chemicals on these receptors e.g. sleeping pills, anti-depression pills etc.

There is a portion of the brain that nicotine acts on to create a very pleasurable sensation. Just like cocaine and heroine it causes the release of a substance called Dopamine which produces intense pleasurable sensations in the body. This is why it is hard to stop smoking without help.

What the drug Chantrix has been designed to do is to attach to and occupy the same portion of the brain that nicotine would normally attach to.

This has two very important effects that can help you to stop smoking.

1. If you smoke, the nicotine from your cigarette has fewer cells to attach to and is therefore ineffective – This is why many smokers have reported that they don’t enjoy smoking while on chantrix i.e. the nicotine loses its satisfaction.
2. Secondly, because Chantrix can stimulate the same receptors as nicotine, it provides some of the pleasure of smoking and reduces the craving to smoke. So you don’t feel compelled to light up a cigarette.

Side Effects of Chantrix

Some users of Chantrix are said to have experienced:
Depression, Suicidal thoughts, Behavioural changes
Irritability, Unusually aggressive behaviour
Headache, Insomnia, Abnormal or colorful dreams or nightmares
Stomach upsets, constipation, flatulence , indigestion
Nausea, Vomiting
Changes in the way food tastes

People who may wish to avoid Chantrix or use it with caution:

People with asthmatic conditions
During Pregnancy
Diabetes sufferers
People with Kidney problems
Mental health issues
Undergoing Anticoagulant treatment
People predisposed to suicidal thoughts or depression

Efficacy

It can be very hard to quit smoking but a combination of behavioural changes and medication should help you to stop smoking permanently. Some studies have shown chantrix to be 44% effective in helping smokers to quit smoking.

By Peter Howells
There are many quit smoking benefits – and obviously health benefits are the main reason why most people want to quit smoking.

Secondly, money plays a part in quitting smoking and the benefit to the average smoker is in excess of $1500 per year, so that is a good quit smoking benefit!

Thirdly, the way you and your clothes and your car and your house smell after you have stopped smoking are more good quit smoking benefit. For non- or ex-smokers, tobacco is a very pervasive and disagreeable odour.

Your appearance will also improve as your skin will have a better pallor to it and your teeth can be cleaned a little better without the incessant wash of smoke over them.

But lets get back to the health benefits. It will obviously vary from person to person, but every smoker can enjoy a several benefits from quitting smoking.

1) Within 20 minutes of a cigarette, blood pressure and heart rate decline to ‘normal’.

2) Within 8 hours, or a nights sleep, nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in the blood are down by at least a half.

3)Within 2 days, carbon monoxide and nicotine will be virtually non-existent in the blood.

Your lungs will start the process of cleaning themselves and your taste and smell will start to improve. However, whilst these are good quit smoking benefits, it is at around this time that the withdrawal symptoms will be at their worst.

It is not uncommon for a sore throat, coughing, irritability, constipation and sleeplessness to set in at this point of quitting tobacco. These are common side effects of quitting smoking.

4) Over the coming few months, breathing will become easier and energy levels will increase. The blood’s oxygen carrying capacity is back to 100% and the circulation of the body will have already improved.

5) By the end of the first year, lung function can improve by up to 10%, and wheeziness could become a thing of the past.

6) Ten years after quitting smoking, the ex-smoker benefits from a halved risk of lung cancer and a normal risk of heart attack.

Other quit smoking benefits include confidence, fitness and energy levels being better along with a much improve complexion and more youthful skin. Fertility in both men and women improves and the chance of pregnancy complications is much reduced.

One of the biggest quit smoking benefits can be found in families; infants have a much higher chance of still birth, premature birth or even cot death (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome or SIDS). Children of smokers have higher chances of asthma, pneumonia and chest and ear infections during childhood and are much more likely to become smokers themselves.

Quit smoking benefits are numerous, the disadvantages of quitting smoking are non-existent!

About the Author: Pete Howells has written the EasyQuit System that will help any smoker quit tobacco. The EasyQuit System works by giving smokers the instructions they need to follow to achieve their ambition to quit rather than just telling them smoking is bad for them. Please visit http://www.easyquitsystem.com to find out more about his incredible process for quitting smoking.

Source: www.isnare.com
Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=165717&ca=Wellness%2C+Fitness+and+Diet

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.