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  • Writer's pictureDebbie Routly

How Fear Keeps You Smoking and How to Change It



If you’re a smoker and worried about the risks around COVID-19 then now

would be a good time to think about quitting for good.

It’s a harsh reality that if you’re a smoker you’re more likely to get acute

respiratory infections and have a higher risk of those infections becoming

severe

There has never been a better time to stop smoking.

But quitting is hard for many, and perhaps particularly so at a time of great

stress and when many of our routines have been so suddenly disrupted

Perhaps, like the majority of smokers, the mere thought of stopping fills

you with panic

If you smoke, the mere thought of giving up can fill you with PANIC…?

Is this YOU?

You have every intention of quitting one day - just not today…

Is this YOU?

You are not alone

Most smokers continue to smoke for one reason…

FEAR!

THE ONLY THING THAT PREVENTS US FROM QUITTING IS: FEAR!

Fear - that you will have to undergo an unknown period of time suffering

feelings of deprivation

Fear - that social occasions will not be quite as enjoyable without a cigarette

Fear - that you can’t concentrate or be as confident without that crutch

Fear that your identity

your personality

or your character will change

Fear - that you will lose the “helpful friend” that helps you cope with stress

And that quitting may cause you to gain a few pounds.

And here’s the news…

That fear of giving up

is actually CREATED by cigarettes

You never decided to fall into the nicotine trap!

But nicotine is designed to ensure that you remain there

And you need to be motivated to break free


You can take some small steps towards a nicotine-free life

A rehearsal for the time when you can give up smoking

for good!

1 Make a list of the reasons to quit

There are probably a number of them - but have you ever actually

written them as a list?

2 Set a quit date

And stick to it!

3 Change your brand

ONE week before your quit date - change your brand of cigarette. You

will find they are not as enjoyable

4 Try to change the hand you use to hold your cigarette

It will feel awkward - but this small change breaks down habits and

associations

5 Change your routine

If you normally smoke after a meal, try to break out of this routine. Try

reading a chapter of a book, watch a TV show, or retreat to a part of

the house where you wouldn’t normally smoke

6 Get active

A five-minute walk or stretch produces chemicals in the brain that

reduce cravings

7 Positivity!

Make regular affirmations to yourself several times a day

“I am enjoying life as a non-smoker”


Hypnotherapy can help you to have your last cigarette ever!

It will show you the reasons to stop

And can help you

• With motivation to stop smoking - and stay stopped

• Break the connections - the triggers - to smoking

• feel positive about becoming a non-smoker

So if you haven’t been able to quit smoking before, that doesn’t mean you

won’t be able to do it now!

And if you COULD stop smoking easily and without cravings

Why wouldn’t you break out of that habit

into a fresher, cleaner, healthier YOU

To give back to my local community in these current times, I’m offering one

deserving person the chance to become smoke free and have their last

cigarette ever

As so many people in our community are currently helping others. I wanted

to offer something that could help someone's long term health. However,

rather than just picking someone at random I figured it would be nice to give

something to someone who is deserving.

I will be taking entries and then will sit with friends and colleagues to decide

who to give the free sessions to – there must be lots of people out there who

are too consumed helping other people that they often neglect themselves.

To be in with a chance of being given a free session, email

debroutly@gmail.com

with no more than 100 words as to why you deserve the help.

The closing date for entries is Friday 4th December


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