Popular Ways to Quit Smoking Cigarettes
Frank Daily
Over the years, researchers have examined numerous possible ways to quit smoking. Different people experience different degrees of success with various methods. Below are some of the most common ways to quit smoking, with a brief description of each, to help you find the right method for you;
Cold Turkey: This method is among the most difficult of the ways to quit smoking. Basically, smokers will immediately cease using cigarettes, as well as other tobacco products, without the aid of medication or nicotine supplements. The key benefit of this method is that it costs you nothing, and it may be a good opportunity to strengthen your will power and self-esteem. Unfortunately, the desire to resume smoking will often overpower individuals as they attempt to quit amid the stresses of everyday life.
Chantix: Currently, there are a number of prescription drugs available that claim to help ease cravings for nicotine, and one such name brand medication is Chantix. In theory, Chantix is supposed to alter the neurochemistry of the patient’s brain in such a way that he or she will no longer have the urge to smoke. Like a number of other drugs that affect the nervous system, the use of Chantix is associated with a number of undesirable side effects. Chantix has been reported to cause physical ailments such as nausea and vomiting, as well as mental irregularities such as erratic behavior and even suicide. For those who are predisposed to such adverse medical reactions, Chantix, and other prescription drugs, are not among the recommended ways to quit smoking.
Stop Smoking Injections: Another one of the supposed ways to quit smoking is the stop smoking shot. This method involves getting injected with chemicals such as atropine or atarax, and scopolamine. As with most any prescription medication, this method of quitting often causes a slew of rather unpleasant side effects. In addition, these shots are also quite costly, and there is no data that clearly indicates the effectiveness of this treatment.
Nicotine Replacement Therapy: Probably one of the most common ways to quit smoking is the use of nicotine replacement therapy. Many people have had moderate success using products such as gum and patches to deliver nicotine to their blood stream while they attempt to quit smoking. This helps mitigate cravings for nicotine while eliminating the harmful effects that smoking tobacco can have on the body. Unfortunately, because this method does not treat the psychological addiction to smoking, it only has a success rate of 20%. Using the patch along with mental reprogramming methods like self-hypnosis or neurolinguistic programming has shown to be one of the most effective ways to quit smoking.
Electronic Cigarettes (E-Cigarette): This method is a much healthier alternative to smoking traditional cigarettes. Often smokers claim that they resume smoking because they need to feel a cigarette in their hands and mouth. This device simulates the action of smoking a cigarette, delivers nicotine into the body, and does not have any of the harmful carcinogens found in traditional cigarettes. The E-Cigarette is perfect for the social smoker, or someone who is not quite ready to give up smoking, but still wants a healthier alternative.
Hypnosis: When done correctly, hypnosis is among one of the most successful ways to quit smoking available. This will subconsciously reprogram the thought process to counter the constant desire for nicotine. Most hypnosis classes do not use any type of nicotine replacement therapy, but many people have had a lot of success coupling hypnosis/self-hypnosis sessions with the patch.Neurolinguistic Programming: Among the ways to quit smoking, this is one of the newest and most interesting. It has an impressive success rate, and has recently been combined with the type of hypnosis mentioned in Clinical Psychiatry News regarding the ability to quit smoking. This technique is one of the most popular and effective ways to quit smoking today.
Acupuncture: This is probably the most ancient among all the ways to quit smoking. A specialist will use small needles to stimulate the energy patterns in your body, hopefully eliminating the urge for tobacco. Unfortunately, success rates are not as high as many clinics advertise it to be.
Any of the ways to quit smoking that involve medications have a potential to be very dangerous.
According to a publication in the British Medical Journal, each cigarette you smoke takes roughly 11 minutes off of your life.
If you’re here looking for ways to quit smoking, then you’ve already taken the first step in freeing yourself from this deadly habit. Quitting is most successful when the physical and psychological aspects of the addiction are dealt with.
You have the resources available to quit smoking right now. If you’re sick of being a slave to a habit, and you want to find the best ways to quit smoking now, you can find all the information you need HERE