Tobacco is one of the most consumed legal psychoactive substances (technically drugs), along with alcohol, worldwide. However, the habit of smoking has been shown to be harmful to human health, causing different alterations and facilitating the appearance of serious problems such as pulmonary emphysema and lung cancer or generating possible alterations in fetuses.
For this and many other reasons many people decide to quit smoking , but they find that it is not as easy as not picking up a cigarette, since they must face the anxiety that will be generated by not having access to a substance to which they have a certain dependence and that they have integrated into their daily lives. How to stop smoking? In this article we leave you with 13 psychological keys to take into account to do so.
Quitting smoking is not easy. The majority of people who do it start doing so in adolescence and acquire the habit of smoking in very different situations and contexts. It is therefore a habit that is well established in the majority of smokers. There are many programs and strategies to quit smoking , some with greater success than others. However, for the most part they share a series of keys or steps, some of the most notable being those that we will see below.
1. Analyze your consumption habits
One of the first steps to quit smoking is knowing how to recognize the extent to which we are dependent on tobacco. In this sense, the first thing we have to know is how much we smoke. You can make a simple self-registration to fill out daily and evaluate after a week how many cigarettes are smoked.
Likewise, it may be useful to reflect on whether there are situations that trigger this consumption and reflect on why they do so.
2. Decisional balance
Whether a person quits smoking depends largely on the person’s willingness to do so. In other words: we are not going to stop smoking if we don’t want to. A good way to motivate yourself to do this is consider the pros and cons of smoking or quitting in a realistic way.
Considering what smoking contributes and what implications it has in the short and long term (both for oneself and for the environment) and contrasting it with the advantages of quitting this habit or replacing it with other alternative activities is an interesting step to motivate us to change. . Aspects that are usually valued are the increase in health, the lower probability of suffering from cancer or respiratory problems, the non-intoxication of loved ones, the risks for the fetus in the event of pregnancy or the financial outlay that would no longer be used to purchase tobacco. .
Yes indeed, This strategy by itself does not guarantee anything; must be combined with other At the end of the day, addictions are never a purely rational phenomenon.
3. Set goals and plan
We have finally decided that we want to stop smoking and we are motivated to do so. This is a process that can be very short or very long depending on the person, their characteristics and the type of consumption habit they have. In any case It is advisable to plan the steps to follow and establish short and medium-term objectives that can lead to meeting the final objective: quitting smoking.
4. Consider using elements to help you quit
Although not really necessary, many people find it useful to use methods that reduce nicotine withdrawal. Examples of this are nicotine gum and patches However, it must be taken into account that these mechanisms are fundamentally for physical abstinence, having little effect on psychological one.
5. Start by reducing the amount
Deciding, for example, that starting tomorrow we are going to stop smoking when we have been smoking four packs a day for twenty years is not impossible, but for most people it is not viable. We are dealing with a habit that has been established throughout life, and changing habits usually requires a process of progressive adaptation.
Therefore, it is recommended that rather than quitting smoking suddenly, you begin by reducing the daily amount of cigarettes, in a gradual and tolerable way for the subject. This can be combined with the progressive change of brand to others that contain a lower amount of nicotine. Make a record of the maximum number of cigarettes you are going to allow yourself per day and comply with this limit, and it is advisable to ration them. The reduction must be real and significant : that is, if you smoke 50 a week, don’t go to 48, but for example to 35.
And these cigarettes are the totals: both your own and those that other people may offer you count. In fact, it is recommended not to accept other people’s cigarettes, since it makes it easier for quantities to get out of control and can also set a precedent for accepting them in the future.
6. Inform your environment
Quitting smoking is difficult for many people. Communicating the decision to quit smoking to those close to you is a good way to help them take into account and understand the smoker’s situation, as well as the probable increase in irritability. The support of this environment can help and reinforce the fact of quitting smoking
7. Value alternative behaviors and behaviors
We must be aware that as we reduce the amount or stop smoking, we will have to face moments when it will be difficult to hold back the urge. Normally, those who begin to quit smoking tend to be more nervous and tense, as well as irritable. It is necessary and very useful to consider alternative behaviors to smoking, and especially if they are incompatible.
For example, some people decide to take a shower, chew gum or eat (the latter is the reason why some people tend to gain weight after quitting) in order to resist the discomfort and desire to consume that the absence of cigarettes causes.
8. Exercise
Physical exercise is a very stimulating activity which is beneficial and very useful for almost all people in general, and which can also help us stop smoking. It is likely that initially exercising will be complicated for the person who is quitting smoking, since practicing sports requires a greater need for oxygenation and smokers (taking into account that smoking damages and blocks the airways) will tend to get tired sooner. .
But this is also a source of motivation to stay abstinent from tobacco: Over time, respiratory capacity will increase and, together with the habituation to the fact of exercising and the endorphins and relaxation it generates, the need and desire to consume tobacco will decrease. It is also a behavior that is partly incompatible with smoking (since it makes it difficult to do intense exercise correctly).
Quitting smoking, as we have said on several occasions, is hard. That is why it is convenient reinforce oneself as we achieve our objectives This reinforcement must be some pleasant activity that we do not usually do, and can be reflected in a therapeutic contract that the person makes with themselves. It can range from going out to dinner or a movie to taking a short trip or getaway.
10. Ask for professional help
Treating addictions like smoking is complex, and many people cannot quit on their own. Go to a professional who indicates more specific guidelines It can be helpful and can also be a source of support and motivation to quit.
11. Control exposure to places associated with smoking
Quitting smoking can be more difficult to achieve if we are surrounded by stimuli that continually remind us of the habit. For example, surrounding ourselves with smokers or breathing in other people’s smoke can trigger the desire to smoke. Although exposure to certain stimulations may be unavoidable, we must try to limit our exposure to them
12. Be aware of the risk of relapse
We are at a point where we may have stopped smoking. Good, but we also have to keep in mind that there is the probability of relapse again. In fact, the first weeks without consumption can be hard, but the highest risk of relapse generally occurs after three months without consumption. Likewise, events such as weddings and parties, or stressful situations, can generate an increase in the desire to consume These factors must be taken into account and it may be useful to consider ways to react if the urge to smoke appears.
13. Be careful! Falling is not relapse
Once we have stopped smoking, this last key is essential to take into account (and is applicable both when quitting smoking and when quitting other drugs). And it is possible that on occasion there will be a specific consumption, a fall. After this, many people consider that the attempt to quit smoking has been a failure. But This need not be so : We will only talk about a relapse if the consumption habit is reinstated. It is not about minimizing the importance or allowing ourselves a cigarette from time to time, which is something that should be avoided, but it is about not criminalizing and considering all the progress made until then lost.
