Smoking is the single biggest avoidable risk a person can take in one's entire lifetime. And yet, millions of intelligent people choose to take that risk every single day of their lives.
Why? Because of the false beliefs that smokers have about cigarettes that force them to continue smoking against their better judgment.
Myths and illusions
There are several myths and illusions about smoking, but here are some of the most common:
•Smokers do not have sufficient willpower and that's why it's hard for them to quit.
•Smokers have addictive personalities which make them different from non-smokers.
•Smokers have a self-destructive streak in them.
All of the above are false. Smokers will walk miles in the middle of the night if they run out of cigarettes, proving that they can be strong-willed people. Secondly, it is not the personality that's addictive; it's not even the drug (nicotine); it's the belief that you are dependent on the drug that's the problem. Thirdly, I say to smokers who think they have a self-destructive streak, “Let's test it out. Before you light your next cigarette, try jumping off the roof.”
Facts about smoking
Knowing the facts will help smokers to quit easily and permanently.
Fact #1: Contrary to their perception, smokers do not receive a boost from smoking a cigarette. Smoking only relieves the withdrawal symptoms from the previous cigarette, which in turn creates more withdrawal symptoms once the new cigarette is finished. In this way, the drug addiction creates a vicious cycle.
Fact #2: The “relief” smokers feel on lighting a cigarette, the feeling of being “back to normal,” is the feeling experienced by non-smokers all the time.
Fact #3: Contrary to popular belief, willpower is not required to quit smoking. This is because it takes no willpower to stop doing something that an individual has no desire to do, which is the realisation smokers come to once their doubt and fear about stopping have been removed (using cognitive therapy).
Tips to be
“smoke free”
• Set your date and time to stop and carry on smoking as usual right up to that time. Don't try to cut down beforehand, because that just makes cigarettes seem more precious rather than less precious.
• Look forward to stopping. Rather than assume you are going to feel deprived and miserable, just look forward to finally being free.
• Remember, you are not “giving up” or “quitting.” These terms are negative. Who wants to be labelled a quitter? Instead decide that you are going to stop. You are going to be a non-smoker, not an ex-smoker!
• Never be fooled into thinking you could have “just one cigarette.” You will either return to smoking at your old level immediately or gradually build up to it over a period of time. Never think in terms of one cigarette, always think of 100,000.
• Avoid any form of substitution. If you replace cigarettes with chocolate — you'll gain weight and be miserable. Even the use of seemingly innocent substitutes such as carrots and apples creates a feeling of deprivation. Remember you are not giving up anything — you are getting rid of smoking. Looking for a replacement would be like getting rid of a terrible cold and wanting to replace it with the flu!
(The writer is a certified Allen Carr therapist and a practising doctor at Uforia Centre for Integrated Medicine in Bangalore.
He can be reached at info@easywaytostopsmoking.in)
Keywords: smoking, cigarettes
Since mankind discovered the uses of this plant, tobacco has been
chewed, smoked and eaten as social ritual and as curative for gastric
and digestive disorders. Bone and tissue remains unearthed in
excavations from primitive sites suggest that whatever diseases
alleged to be associated with smoking never existed then. Where it was
extremely cold, when it was gloomy, it was used to relieve mental
stress, to heat the ice-cold interior of the lungs and to give
something for the impatient human hands to do. For centuries, this
peaceful habit has been doing silent services as a social ritual and
an individual involvement, causing no particular harm on its own. It
is not smoking tobacco that causes diseases but the habit of drinking
not enough water. Tobacco smoker will need more water-intake than the
ordinary man to compensate for energy loss and to restore the oxygen
content that he exhausts. If we question the afflicted, they will tell
us that they drink only one or two glasses each day.
Bollywood king Sharukh Khan take a lead to stop smoking!
If a celebrity stops, millions follow!!
And, of course, a commendable job by The Hindu, as usual. Kudos!!
A thoughtful presentation of myths and facts associated with smoking and with potential to bring about change, really! It did inspire confidence in me about the possibility of making an effect on smoker's mind through clearing of false beliefs first thing so I have forwarded the link to this page to all my friends, associates and acquiantances! Hopefully the change I have always been looking forward to in my dear ones bent upon ruining their lives will take seed! Thanks a ton, Dr.Suresh.
Nice pointers for folks who want to quit smoking. Also what I have seen in close quarters is that if the call to quit comes from a child, a loving parent will stop immediately!
Several years ago, I have read SCIENTIFIC literature stating that tobacco is addictive, and specifically, nicotine is addictive. Therefore, I am unable to understand the author's view that nicotine is not addictive. The observed fact that nicotine patches and nicotine chewing gum give relief from craving for cigarettes also suggests that nicotine is addictive. I have also known habitual smokers who could not pass stools unless they smoke. Nicotine apparently stimulates the bowels.
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