Easy Quit Smoking Method

I am 50 and I was a smoker and have successfully given up using the method you are about to learn. Here’s how I got started- My parents both smoked 20-30 a day each, so our house was permanently full of cigarette smoke, the car, the lounge, bathroom, kitchen…first thing they did every morning was light one up.

My mother died of lung cancer at 48 and my dad died of liver failure a year later as he was an alcoholic, but he suffered from chronic bronchitis and coughed loudly all the time.

By today’s standards a horrific story but in the early 70s it was the norm, it was what most people lived with and often died of, because they just didn’t know how dangerous cigarettes (and alcohol when it becomes a habit) are to their health and survival prospects.

After my dad died, I was 14 years old and found myself living in a non-smoking household and experienced cravings I had never felt before. I was a passive smoking addict and it wasn’t very long before I bought my first pack and from there I was totally hooked. I continued smoking an average of a pack a day throughout my teens and for the next 30 years I am sad to say, I have given up a few times and cut down a lot but the cravings or peer pressure always made me decide to start again, but not now.

Cigarette smoke now smells just plain nasty to me and I feel ill when exposed to it, I feel sorry for people who choose to continue smoking even in today’s anti-smoking society, but I feel more sorry for their kids, who were never given a choice.

The method I am about to give you totally works as long as you work the method. It is easy and pain free – you do not have to buy anything, attend any meetings and to begin with, you don’t have to do anything challenging at all. All I ask is that you try this method and see how well it works, there is no reason why it should work for one person and not another, all you need to be able to do is to count. What do you mean, all you have to do is count? Just count and remember, that’s all. A pocket diary or notepad can be useful but I never needed one.

The Method

1 COUNT ‘EM

Count how many cigarettes you smoke in a day. Exactly. Don’t skimp or try to smoke any less than you feel you need or enjoy, nothing like that, simply count how many you smoke in a 24- hour period and record that number. Every day. When you have done that, you may have noticed some days you smoke more than other days. It may be a result of stress or going to the pub, or someone at work handing them out…they all count so count them all, please. When you have a daily number, let’s say for example it’s 20 a day. You have successfully completed step one. Well done, some people couldn’t even face this step as they really don’t want to know how many they smoke a day out of fear so they prefer not to think about it. Not in this case, awareness is the key, so congratulate yourself, you’re doing great, this is easy and yet what you just did is actually the hardest step to take!

2 PROMISE YOURSELF

Now we have established how many you need a day to feel ok, it’s time to put a limit on this – I want you to promise yourself that you will not smoke more than the daily number required. If you are getting close to your limit, then put the next one off for as long as possible, distract yourself in what ever way necessary (and preferably don’t get too near your daily quota too soon) just make sure you do not smoke one single cigarette over your daily allowance. It’s not difficult, it just takes a little awareness, that’s all. Easy peazy.

3 JUST ONE LESS CAN’T HURT

Now you have a nice bit of control over your habit, you may be feeling rather good about yourself, you have more will power than you first thought…Well Done, Good For You, this isn’t too hard at all… Now I want you, only when you feel ready to, to reduce your daily intake by one cigarette, so if you were on 20, now it’s 19, OK? Only when you feel ready, no terrible rush and it’s no biggie after all it’s only one little cigarette, your body won’t notice it and that’s all you have to do… That’s right, you’ve guessed it, we are going to just keep cutting down by one cigarette every time we feel ready to. Your system soon gets used to having slightly less nicotine in your bloodstream and the only potential problem is in your head, and that’s what we are sorting out. Just occasionally, for fun, try refusing yourself a cigarette when you were about to have one. Just say no thanks, later maybe. This is very powerful because you are re training your mind to accept that not having a cigarette is OK, no problem and nothing to get worked up over, you can have one LATER. So now you are ticking over on 18 cigarettes a day with no anxiety at all, just keep that promise to yourself and you will beat this thing, I promise you. If I can do it, anyone can!

4 HANG WITH THE NON- SMOKERS

The best way to reduce temptation and to get into the mindset of being an ex-smoker is to stop hanging with smokers. They don’t want you to give up because it will make them feel left out And a failure, but if you hang out with non smokers and let them know you are cutting down and want to quit, they are much more likely to be understanding and supportive. Don’t smoke in your house, get rid of all ashtrays apart from maybe one in the yard or garden which is where you should smoke when you have to. Let’s face it, it’s a time wasting habit so whenever possible, do something useful, creative or profitable instead and put the cigarette off until later.

I lived in a rural community and used to take a cigarette break with a cup of tea on the porch and I realised I had, without even trying, cut down to only 5 or 6 a day, so I thought, “there’s something in this”, so I put off my cigarette break until the end of the day, so I had actually cut down to only one a day. When work was over and the sun was setting I made my cup of tea, sat in my favourite chair on the porch, rolled myself a smoke and watched the sun setting and felt great about the moment. Strangely enough, when I lit my cigarette it just didn’t satisfy me the way I had expected, in fact it tasted rather nasty! That’s when I realised the experience I was deferring until later was just the opportunity to sit and relax, enjoy a cup of tea and watch the sun set, the cigarette was actually a real disappointment!

So now you see, it is perfectly possible using this method to cut down to one, then finally no cigarettes a day just by remembering- Count, promise yourself no more than your daily quota, reduce by only one, then reduce again until you’re on one a day..then none at all! (Stop hanging with the smokers)

That’s all folks!

Good luck, (not that you’ll need it)

Have a wonderful life,

Love and happy thoughts to everybody who reads this.