Total Mind Connection’s Weblog

When you decide to quit smoking you’ll probably have a craving or urge to continuing smoking. Here are eight simple ideas you can use to help you handle the urge. You might decide to use one, all, or maybe a combination of the following urge handling ideas. Just remember, the urge to smoke is immediate. For most people it lasts for five minutes or less. If you can resist the urge to smoke for that short period of time, you will greatly enhance your ability to give up the habit of smoking completely.

Here are the 8 Simple ideas.

1) Make the cigarette “V” with your fingers and bring your hand to your mouth as if you were smoking a cigarette. Suck in a deep breath, hold it for a few seconds, and exhale just as if you had just taken your first puff on a cigarette. One part of the feeling you get from smoking is a direct result of taking in a deep breath. This deep breath will allow you to take in a great quantity of oxygen. Your exhale lets out a large amount of carbon dioxide. This process overcomes the nervousness you feel when you have the urge because it relaxes your mind and body.

2) Keep water close by at all time and take a small sip when the urge hits you. Sipping water can help reduce your craving to smoke.  It also gives you something to do with your hands. An extra benefit is that the water helps to flush the nicotine and other chemicals in cigarettes out of your body.

3) Keep things around to stick in your mouth that don’t have any calories. These are thing like stir sticks, toothpicks, or straws.

4) Keep carrots and/or celery to nibble on. You’ll find these especially helpful in the car.

5) Do something, anything, to keep you busy for the next five minutes. Squeeze a squeeze a squeeze ball, write a note to a friend or look up the capital of China. Just do something to get your mind off cigarettes.

6) Keep sugarless gum or hard candy around and chew on them. Many people find that Life Savers work really well.

7) Don’t just sit there suffering! Get up and move around for the next five minutes or so. Take a short walk. It will improve your fitness while helping the urge to smoke pass by quickly.

Write down the reason you quit smoking. When the urge hits pull the list out and read them. Remembering the reasons you want to quit can help you stay smoke free!

Make 2009 a smoke free year. If you would like a FREE course to help you become smoke free just follow this link.

Until next time…

Wishing you only success!