The Best Way To Stop Smoking

If you're a smoker, then you're probably panicking. Obviously you have come to this article because, on some level, you had a desire to stop smoking. But heck, as a former smoker myself, I know that you won't be entirely comfortable with the proposition of never lighting up again. An emotional bond has been formed. Smoking is more than a habit to you - it's like letting go of an old friend. So it's only natural that you want to find the best way to stop smoking and, preferably, the easiest.

You're going to be bombarded with a thousand ways to quit the habit. Your government's health department will probably tell you to hit the patches. TV adverts will be promoting the nicotine gum. You may even have flirted with the idea of taking on herbal cigarettes as a means of breaking your ties with nicotine.

As a former 40-a-day man, and someone with a rather intimate knowledge on the profound effect smoking has on our psyches, I'd have to tell you to steer clear of all these smoking aids. There is an incredibly simple reason for this: if you take to patches instead of cigarettes, all you are doing is transferring habits. The bottom line is that you will still be taking nicotine, and you will still be addicted to a habit.

If we remain addicted to a habit, then we are slaves for a lifetime. It is the equivalent of locking the habit up in a box, but having to carry that box around your neck for the next 20 years. If you want to successfully quit smoking, then you have to let go physically and emotionally. You have to wave it farewell. You have to be at peace with yourself. As hippy-like as that sounds, it's absolutely true.

To this extent, the best way to stop smoking permanently is to leave tobacco behind by your own choice. That means no patches, no gum, no herbal substitute. It doesn't mean willpower, either. Smoking is primarily a psychological addiction, which leaves you with two choices - either tolerate the psychological wall as best you can, or knock the sucker down. By choosing to quit cigarettes through sheer willpower, you are essentially fighting your own mind. If you choose to tackle the psychological links you have with smoking, then your mind will be at peace and, consequently, you will be able to live a non-smoking existence in perfect harmony.
Tip! First sit down and write down why you want to quit (the benefits of quitting): live longer, feel better, for your family, save money, smell better, find a mate more easily, etc. You know what's bad about smoking and what you'll get by quitting.

This is not a difficult task. There are many forms of hypnotherapy available to help you break down your psychological bonds with tobacco, coming in the forms of vis-à-vis consultations, CD's and books. I managed to break a 10 year habit within four hours thanks to this method, and I didn't even have to leave my own house. After nearly a hundred failed attempts using patches, gum and willpower, I'd say that was a pretty good result. So take inspiration, and always remember that the best way to stop smoking is to simply let the love affair go.

Jonty Smith is a former smoker based in the U.K.

After 10 years of smoking two packs a day, Jonty finally managed to quit in 2006. His story of how he managed to beat the habit is available for free reading at (http://www.How-I-Stopped-Smoking.com)

Stop Smoking the Natural Way

At the age of 18 I was a real fat kid. I was probably some 70 lbs overweight, had long tangled hair and was exceptionally miserable. At that age, the hormones had kicked in and I was desperate to get out there socialising with the opposite sex. However, my weight battered my confidence and self-esteem levels, rendering that kind of social interaction almost impossible.

So, I made the decision to lose weight. I simply cut out all junk food, all soda, and started running as far as I could each and every day. By the time four months had gone by, I had dropped the best part of 60 lbs and I was running an easy three miles every day. On top of this, the number of push-ups I could do had risen from one (when I first started) to 400 over the course of several sets.

So where does smoking fit into this little story? Well let me elucidate. After I had lost the weight, I had a ton of people come up to me asking how I managed to shift the fat. When I replied that I had simply eaten less and exercised more, they wouldn't take that for an answer. Most overweight individuals want a magic bullet, an instant cure, and they were convinced that I must have been doing a special diet or exercising with unique technique.

I lose weight the natural way. And if anyone else in the world wishes to lose weight and keep it off, they will eventually learn that they have to do it the natural way. No fad diet is going to work for them long-term. This is one of the laws in life - we must do things naturally. If something seems to good to be true, then it usually is. You need to stop smoking the natural way.

So how does one stop smoking the natural way? Well, it's pretty simple. Don't use the patches, don't use the gum, don't use the substitute cigarettes, don't use the herbal cigarettes. If you want to quit smoking, then just stop smoking.

Don't replace your smoking habit with another habit, such as gum or patches - all you'll end up doing is replacing one addiction with another. Half the success in quitting cigarettes is in beating the power of addiction. If we substitute habits, we will never kick the power of addiction and, just like the individual doing the latest fad diet, we will be destined to have an ongoing battle for the rest of our lives by harbouring a viper in our bosom.
Tip! Babies are also likely to have less developed vital organs than their counterparts (babies of non-smoking mothers) – there is a great likelihood that these babies have an undeveloped liver which will affect them throughout their lives.

However, just because you choose to stop smoking the natural way, don't start to worry that it has to be difficult. I was thoroughly addicted to cigarettes for over a decade, smoking two packets a day, and yet I managed to quit the habit within a few hours of trying a certain technique. And what's more, it was easy and peaceful to do; I've never craved a cigarette since then. There are many methods to help you stop smoking the natural and easy way, particularly with hypnotherapy. Just resolve to quit the habit properly instead of using half-hearted measures.
Tip! The babies of pregnant smoking women have poor lung functions right from birth.

Jonty Smith is a former smoker based in the U.K.

After 10 years of smoking two packs a day, Jonty finally managed to quit in 2006. His story of how he managed to beat the habit is available for free reading at (http://www.How-I-Stopped-Smoking.com)