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A Summary of the Actions to Be Done
Until your quitting day, strive to perform all these actions:
- starting today, you will use one pack of cigarettes. You will smoke only the
cigarettes in this pack, don't give and don't take.
- Ask yourself a question before lighting a cigarette: do I
really want this cigarette now? Can I and do I want to give it up?
If you decided not to smoke the cigarette, break it into
crumbs, while repeating the sentence: I don't need this
cigarette now, soon I will be absolutely free from smoking.
- Change your brand of cigarettes. From now on smoke a
different brand of cigarettes from what you have smoked till today, preferably low
nicotine or menthol cigarettes.
- Think about smoking-substitutes: how you can replace
the pleasure of smoking, relaxation, doing something, stimuli, holding something
in your mouth, etc. make a list of substitutes you can adopt instead of smoking.
- Decide that from now on you don't smoke in a certain situation: with coffee,
after dinner, while driving, on the street, in company etc. you can also decide to
increase the intervals between smokes: from today on I smoke every hour and a
half, every two hours etc. or - the first cigarette I light will be at 10:00,
tomorrow at 11:00, the day after tomorrow at 12:00, and so on, until you "run out"
of smoking time…
- A more extreme from is to set yourself one smoking place or situation, and to
smoke only in the place or the situation you set. E.g. you may smoke only standing
by a window, sitting in a certain chair, on the porch etc. but you should strictly
keep one important rule: dedicate yourself to smoking only: don't smoke while
reading or during a conversation. Smoke without any additional activity. This form
of "defrosting the habit" and breaking off from the stimuli is most efficient.
- Brush your teeth after every meal. (or use fresh
breath spray)
- Try not to smoke at "enjoyment situations": with
coffee, during break-time, when going out, etc. Instead of smoking in these
situations drink juice, eat dried or fresh fruit, listen to music - do something
enjoyable.
- Put off every cigarette lighting three to five minutes.
If you feel like smoking now, put off lighting the cigarette. Do something
else like phone call, drink water or juice, take a shower, go outside, etc.
Afterwards light yourself a cigarette.
- Try to change your smoking patterns. Do your best
not to smoke in situations where you used to smoke. Fix yourself new smoking
situations, such as: smoking on the porch, in the yard, near a window, etc. Do not
smoke in your "favorite" couch, or while watching TV, etc.
- Dedicate yourself to smoking: smoke without doing
anything else. Only smoking the cigarette. (not while reading a paper, writing,
talking on the phone, etc.)
- Smell a "cigarette butt jar": collect cigarette
butts (preferably yours) in a small jar with a screw-in top. The minute the desire
to smoke arises, especially in an enjoyment situation, when you want to derive
pleasure from smoking, open the jar and smell its contents at least three times.
- Plan your smoking for tomorrow: until you totally
quit smoking, plan every day your smoking for tomorrow. At night, before going to
sleep, imagine to yourself the situations in which you decided not to smoke. Think
how can you avoid smoking in the situation? what can be done? what substitute to
use? Maybe you'll decide to try the substitute tomorrow? Imagine the situation and
you do instead of smoking: eat an apple, drink juice, a glass of water, doing
breath exercises, etc.
- Make yourself a physical exercise plan. Join one of
the plans where you live: in a community center, the health club, etc. Start doing
regular physical exercise by yourself: swimming, walking, etc.
It is best to consult a physician or to get authorized
guidance, before starting vigorous physical exercise.
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