Why Do You Really Smoke?

Smoking. A habit that we started when we were kids because we thought it was cool. The same habit that then haunts us for the rest of our lives. We spend every day from that first puff of choking, foul tasting smoke regretting that first cigarette. How many of you smokers, knowing what you know now, would have smoked that first cigarette? None of you right? I thought so. I smoked my first cigarette when I was 13. One of the saddest choices I've ever made.

So why do we smoke if we know that we never wanted to smoke in the first place? The answer is simple really - habit and association.

Let's look at association first. When we were kids or teenagers we smoked because we saw our parents, older kids and maybe some movie stars smoking. We associated smoking with being grown up, famous or desirable. That's how it was portrayed. The dying hero always asked for a cigarette in his last moments. Our parents always smoked a cigarette to relax or when they were under pressure. We watched older kids who smoked and somehow, amazingly really, looked cool blowing smoke out through their nose.

When we were younger we all wanted to grow up quickly and smoking was seen as a quick path to that goal. We'd look more grown up, a bit cooler and maybe even be able to relax a bit more by smoking. Now that you're sitting there reading this does it make more sense that you started smoking? Shocked? It's always strange when we see the real reasons behind our first cigarette.

Can that association be broken? Of course. Hypnosis can help as can neuro linguistic programming (NLP). Sometimes this reassociation can come from inside us when we realize just how uncool and incredibly unhealthy smoking actually is.

Now let's discuss habit. We smoke out of habit more than any other reason. Ask most smokers why they actually smoke. Ask them for the real 'Why' behind their smoking. You'll find that most of them smoke out of habit. The habit might be that they smoke when they're bored. Or the habit might be that they smoke when they feel stressed. Or another habit (I was guilty of this) is that they smoke when they can't sleep. Regardless of the reasoning behind the smoking it's still habitual.

Can habits be broken? Of course they can. Dogs can be house trained. Kids can be 'trained' to not bite their finger nails. Smoking is the same type of habit. So how can you break the habit? The easiest step is to realize that smoking is 90% psychological and about 10% physical. You may disagree with this but how else I can quit smoking cold turkey and not feel any of the withdrawal symptoms and cravings I used to? Simple. I accepted the reality that smoking is a psychological pursuit more than a physical addiction.

If I can break these associations and habits I'm confident that you can too.