FAQ #7: Do you have any tips on how to stop smoking?
These things helped me.
1. Begin to think of yourself as a non-smoker . . . one who just hasn't quit yet, but is making serious plans to do so.
2. Every time you light a cigarette think: The tobacco companies are getting rich by selling this addictive, destructive, stinking thing to me. I'm not going to put up with this much longer.
3. Believe that you CAN be free from the addiction...and, will be...
4. Know that you WILL feel better, younger and more healthy without the carbon monoxide dragging down your system...
5. Make sure you know exactly why you are quitting . . . there is, by the way, only one sure reason to quit: Because YOU want to.
6. If you 'have' to quit because _________________ (fill in that blank with any reason other than number 5) . . . then, now is not the time to begin. I repeat: There is only one reason to quit: Because YOU want to quit, for you.
Those are all good reasons to want to TRY to quit. But, to actually QUIT you must WANT to stop. And, you have to REALLY want to stop.
7. Smell an ashtray. When you wake up in the morning, before your first cigarette, pipe, cigar or taking any nicotine in any form . . . brush your teeth. Get them nice and clean, then rinse your mouth with pure, fresh, cool water. Then go sit down in your favorite chair with the unemptied ashtray . . . and get real acquainted with the aroma. Start by just a gentle sniff, with your nose as close as you dare. What do you smell? Unfortunately, probably not much . . . because your sense of smell is still deadened from smoking. (About six months after I quit smoking I noticed I could smell a glass of red wine at an arms length.) So, get that nose REAL close. Stuff some of that stink in up you nose...taste it. Can you believe you PAY to make that stink?
8. Plan your trip to becoming a non-smoker...it is NOT going to be easy. But you can do it.
There are other really good techniques...I'll get to them later.
For some of my more recent thoughts on this subject, see my musings in this forum thread.
Good Luck...It is worth the trouble.