3 ways to prevent smoking again

I can't tell you the amount of time I spend telling smokers that they need to put some serious effort into preventing smoking again.

It is one of the most important parts to stopping smoking. The easiest way I can clarify this is by using an example. Imagine you are smoking a cigarette right now, or in fact go ahead and light one up. Seriously, light a cigarette right now and keep reading!

Ok so you're smoking a cigarette, and now I'm going to ask you to put it out. So go ahead put your cigarette out. You know you can do this easily.

If you want to you can put your cigarette out after only a few drags, it's not a big problem. But now what are you going to do and how are you going to feel when I say - don't light another cigarette?

This is the hard part! Not lighting a cigarette again is the bit you struggle with!

You can put them put but you can't prevent yourself from smoking again! Let me tell you why, it's because you and every other smoker out there have Reasons For Smoking! And yours will differ from your friends.

Ok so you're thinking - well I smoke again because I'm addicted ... Right? I'm sorry but that is wrong! For the most part anyway. Yes nicotine plays a role but, you struggle to keep that cigarette unlit and out of your mouth for many, many other reasons!

You have smoking routines, these are the daily cigarettes you have on your way to work, with your coffee, after your meal, after sex and at least a dozen other things make you smoke again.

These play a bigger part on your life than addiction.

So what are my 3 ways to prevent smoking again? Firstly there are many, many things you can do, so I'll give you three of my best ones.

But remember - that you cannot prevent smoking again in a matter of hours or a day or so - you need to do several things in preparation for over a week before you actually stop smoking.

1. Find out what things make you smoke - like the things I listed again. If you find that you smoke because you are stressed, find another way to relax - spend a weekend at a spa, treat yourself to a massage.

Make sure stress is not thing that will make you smoke again.

2. Get it out of your head that you need cigarettes. If you rely on cigarettes when you lack confidence, when you feel insecure, when you get a flat tire, burn your dinner, hear some bad news, or need to let off steam, then you really need to look at other ways to do this.

For years now you have consciously and subconsciously told yourself (by smoking when you're upset of lacking confidence, composure etc.) that you really need cigarettes.

To prevent smoking again you should remember that you are the one that deals with the problems - the cigarette does not magically help you cook dinner or make your first meeting with your new partner's parents go well.

You don't need cigarettes - you have told yourself that you do but it is all in your head!

3. Prevent smoking again by preventing withdrawal syptoms and cravings. Yes I'm 100% serious when I say this can be done, and it must be done, or else you will have a miserable time.

You get withdrawal symptoms because your body is going through a heavy cleansing process - getting rid of the 4,700 chemicals in our body found in each cigarette. And how do you normally help to ease this discomfort?

Eating. And actually the best thing you can do to prevent withdrawak symptoms is eat! But the thing is you eat a bag of chips, junk food and processed food that has very small quantities of the vitamins and minerals your body needs at this crucial time.

So to prevent withdrawal symptoms you should eat three square cooked meals a day with plenty of fruit and veg and take multi vitamin supplements to help give your body the foods that you have been denying it when you smoked.

Those are symplified versions of my top 3 ways to prevent smoking again. But if you do just this alone you will be miles ahead of your friends who are using their will power (which is useless by the way) and those that are using patches.

Stopping smoking side effects

Have you considered the possible stopping smoking side effects?!

Because if you haven't then I strongly urge you to find out what they are! Yeah we all hear the words 'pangs', 'cravings' and 'withdrawal symptoms', but what do they really mean? And what are they?

Some of you will probably know all too well what the possible side effects of stopping smoking are, through your own horrible and painful experiences!

So what do they include? I'm not going to name them all, but here are just a few:

1. head aches

2. panic attacks

3. strong urges / wants / desires 'cravings' for a cigarette.... now!

4. increased hunger levels

5. increased irritability

6. smoking dreams ... you may not have heard of this one - you can really dream that you have smoked, and you will really, really believe that you have smoked a cigarette even though you can't remember smoking one! It's all to do with the next one...

7. heavy cough and tobacco and tar taste in your mouth ... when you dream about smoking and combine it with a cough or smoky taste in your mouth you can really begin to believe that you have actually smoked a cigarette

8. inability to stop eating after your meals

9. inability to cope with stress

10. crabbyness and a generally foul mood!

11. quick and uncontrolable weight gain

Ok these are a few of the bad ones! But there are two reasons you should be aware of these!

Firstly, you will know what to expect. The thing about these stopping smoking side effetcs is that they are without a doubt going to be the things that make you light up your cigarette again.

When you get easily irritated or can't focus or concentrate you immediately think about how you normally solve the problem - by smoking. When you put on weight or get into a panic attack, you think that a cigarette will help.

Innevitably, you will return to them.

Secondly, now that you know about these problems you can be prepared for them and plan on how to actually prevent them. Yes I'm absolutely serious, you can on your own, stop every single one of the above, and any other, side effects of smoking.

And I'm not talking about going on a diet, or taking some wonder drug. I mean you can take a number of steps to prevent you from over eating and gaingng weight. Like eating the right foods your body needs to heal itself for example.

You can find new ways to concentrate, relax and gain confidence and you can find a new focus in your life.

A lot about preventing these side effects is about eating right, and distracting you and your mind away from smoking. It's not the nicotine that your body needs or wants, if it was you would get up every our of the night to smoke a cigarette ... but you don't do you ...

Your mind is used to a cigarette ... clear your mind and distract it and you will be well on your way to completely destro the possible stopping smoking side effects

Quit Smoking Timeline

Most smokers I know want to know how long it will take them to quit smoking and what their quit smoking timeline should look like. And to be honest is all depends on the approach and method you use as a smoker.

But firstly I think that it is a pretty good idea to think of a quit smoking timeline. Mostly because you can see beforehand where you should be in X amount of time. And you'll be able to track your progress over that time and you can see and compare if you are where you should be, and make adjustments and changes if you are not.

But our quit smoking timeline will not be the same as everyone elses. For example, if you go on a nicotine patch or gum course, your quit smoking timeline could be as long as a year! And studies have shown that only about 8% of smokers using patches and gums and the like, succeeed at stopping smoking!

If you use will power, your quit smoking timeline could be as long as several years! Because studies have shown that the average smoker using the will power method alone will have six or seven failed attempts before they manage to stop smoking. That is a long timeline!

For the different types of drugs available your timeline can vary betwen four weeks to twelve weeks, and a lot of those drugs fail or serisously hinder your body or have such bad side effects on your body and mind that most smokers end up giving up on them and return to smoking.

In my opinion the ideal quit smoking timeline should be spread accross three to four weeks. In each week you should have set goals and tasks to complete.

For example, in week one you should be looking at what it is that makes you smoke, not just nicotine by the way. There are habits, phsycological reliance (smoking to relieve stress, help concentrate etc.), routines, boredom and because you enjoy it, these are just a few. You can do this by actively making a note of everything that makes you smoke, on a daily basis.

In week one you should also work on ways to break these reasons for smoking, and you need to find alternate sources of stress relief, pleasure and confidence builders.

Then in week two of your quit smoking timeline you should look at how you can prevent weight gain, withdrawal symptoms and cravings. Preventing these things is very, very acheivable and can be done by any and all smokers.

Towards the end of week two and middle of week three you should actually set your stop smoking date. And what are you going to do in the last week?

This is one of the most ignored areas of stopping smoking. You need to ensure you stay stopped. How do you do this?

Well, you actively ensure that you are putting into practice all the things you planned in weeks one and two. You need to ensure that you continue to enjoy life and find alternate sources f pleasure. What's the point in stopping smoking if you are going to be miserable?!!

You also need to ensure that nothing reminds you to smoke and you disassociate everything you do from smoking. Once you have done this for a week or so you will have successfully stopped smoking.

When your quit smoking timeline is down on paper then you can go ahead and get working, and you can check up on your progress.

Stopping smoking will not happen in a day, it takes a few weeks of acurate and careful planning. The you should put those plans into action and stick to them.

Once you have been through a week or so ensuring you don't want to smoke and you stay stopped then you can really tell people, that you have stopped smoking.

Your quit smoking timeline is a plan for stopping smoking, and it will help you more than you could ever imagine.

Do you want to stop smoking today?

I would say that when smokers decide to throw away their cigarettes, around 80% of them are thinking - 'this is it, I'm going to stop smoking today!'

The good news sit that if you are one of these people you are making a good decision. The bad news is that it is pretty much impossible to say to yourself, I'm going to stop smoking today, and then be able to do it.

The only way that'll happen is if, 'today' is half way through your planned strategy! You see, it is pretty much inpossible for you to stop smoking in one day!

Think about it. You have to beat your nicotine addiction, your reliance on cigarettes to help you relax and reduce stress. You have to disassociate smoking from all of the things you do.

I mean, you probably smoke as soon as you wake up, with your coffee, on the way to work, when you are relaxing and reading a book, when you are with friends and when you finish your meal and after sex.

So how can you realistically expect to stop smoking today?!!

Heck, it's a good idea to stop smoking. But one of the meain reasons why smokers fail is because they have high and unrealistic expectations about the time it will take to stop smoking and the efforts that are needed.

You have smoked for years, you are used to having cigarettes as a major part of your life, you rely on them and you need them. So stopping smoking in one day is a little far fetched!

If you want to stop smoking today, then 'today' needs to be smack bang in the middle of your stop smoking campaign!

You should plan on the days leading up to your stop smoking date. Things you should do in this time include - how are you going to prevent weight gain, withdrawal symptoms and cravings, and how are you going to break your smoking habits.

On your stop smoking day, you should re-inforce your thoughts beliefs and desires to stop smoking and you should throw away everything that reminds you about smoking, cigarettes, novelty ash trays and lighters and you should clean out your smoke filled car and smoke filling curtains in your home.

Then in the days after your stop smoking day you need to put into practive all the things you planned on, like preventing withdrawals and weight gain.

Stopping smoking a process that needs a little thought and some effort. That's why I tell my friends and clients that unless you make good plans, you can't realistically expect to stop smoking today!

Just make sure you are aware of this before you try to stop smoking today, fail and then end up broken hearted!