I started smoking, like most caught in this trap by youthful folly. The Company and the unwillingness to remain a black sheep were the main prerequisites, the main lures. Then I was only 15 years old. Of course, there are many ways to start smoking, but how many ways to quit smoking forever?
Let’s first walk briefly on the history of the average smoker. First, only starting to smoke, he/she probably said: “Oh, I just do not get used to it, I can control it. I just dabble.” Then, when smoking ceases to be unusual, and it seems like a sunflower – a cure for boredom, a smoker will say: “Oh nothing I was not used, I can quit at any moment! I just do not want to do it now – I like to smoke! “. This period will be delayed for several years. Then, our hero can not fail to recognize the dependence. But he/she finds another excuse for the defense – his/her conceit. This smoker will say: “Yes, I’m used to, but I have enough willpower to quit smoking at any time, but now I do not need it.” Once he/she begins to understand that smoking should be abandoned and there are a lot of reasons to do it. And then the first quest and torment begins, because he/she first tries to quit this horrible habit, and meets with failure.
What does it lead? First of all, after what he/she said before, he/she struck a blow for own ego. It was the revelation that, at the very fact he/she is not so strong as previously thought. Usually the smoker begins to unconsciously take steps to prevent this falling or at least soften the blow. What are the actions? Most often it is the reduction in the importance of the goal: “Well, I do not want to quit, anyway, I like to smoke.” Next, some time passes, a poor man tries to recover from the recent setbacks and again tries to quit. But now it is much more complicated, because the experience has become even more and bad habit is stuck even deeper in the subconscious. It may be repeated many times. Each time a smoker can search for different motivation, for example, to argue with someone for a large sum of money or take an oath to loved one. But in most cases it does not help. Maybe he/she will take breaks for several months, but it will be failed. Very few people are not failed, in spite of all these incentives and other ways to quit smoking. What we can say, even some patients with lung cancer do not quit smoking!
So, what’s the reason why people can not quit smoking? This question can be answered almost all the people who were able to quit forever, and moreover, without pain and harmful consequences for themselves. I’m just one of those people, and therefore I’ll try to give an answer. Firstly, I believe that the main reason is that smokers consider this question unconsciously. For example, very often people try to quit smoking just because they are pressed by people around them. That is the other people make a conclusion instead of the smoker. In this case, a person does not think about why it is necessary to quit smoking and that is why there are few chances. In the end, unhappy person wanders in search of ways to quit smoking – tries tablets and nicotine substitutes, and the above-mentioned motivations. As a result the smoker fails and despair begins. In fact, it is important to approach this issue as independently as possible. After all, everyone has their reasons for attachment to cigarettes. This means that we should not look for ready-made solutions, you need to sit down and think. About what? Well, for starters, you can take paper and write on it in one column, all that speaks for smoking, and in another column all that against it. Listen to yourself and your feelings. For example, you can remember your feelings during those times when you smoked in the company, in which many are non-smokers. You can go to the mirror, smile and imagine your smile a few times whiter than it is now. You can even go outside, run a little bit and watch your own shortness of breath. In general, you should fill the second column. Well, you will manage with the first column without me. It is very good for raising awareness in this regard, it would be to remember how you started smoking. Surely at first you were coughing. What does this mean? It means that the body is trying to push something intolerable for it. Generally speaking, if nicotine itself, and without cigarettes is contained in our body, the other components of cigarette smoke, for the most part, are the real poisons. The bronchi meet it with the cough. Okay, we overcome the cough, but try to remember the taste of the smoke, which you then felt. If not, then smoke a cigarette right now and catch every moment of inhaling, try a taste. I say “try” because you have become so accustomed to this taste, that it does not feel long. When you feel the taste, ask yourself the question: “And how could I get used to it? How could I learn to ignore it, smoking a cigarette?” I think you will make the right conclusions.
The second major problem faced in the way to quit smoking is a lot of stereotypes created by society. For example:
- if you quit smoking, you would gain some weight
- if you quit smoking, you would have some health problems
- it is difficult to quit smoking
- it is not permitted to quit smoking abruptly

And so on. There are a lot of such delusions. I will not disproof it, these arguments are a lot. You just need to want and search it. But one of these statements, I still say – “To quit smoking is very difficult.” So: this is nonsense. I just stopped smoking at one moment, and I did not want to smoke the next day! I did not gain weight, I was not sick, I did not feel weakness but just the opposite – an incredible burst of energy. How did I do it? – You’ll ask me. It was harder for me than you, dear readers. Because it was necessary to find the thread of thinking, as described above for you, which allowed me to realize almost everything what needed to quit smoking. Why almost? The fact is that I finally understood when I read the book “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking“, which was written by a great man – Allen Carr. And now I tell you: After reading an article following my advice, take this book in your hands and read it. If you have firmly decided that you want to quit, then you will succeed for sure. And it will certainly be achieved by reading articles and book.

Joe, U.S.A.