The Psychology of Smoking: Why Some People Find It Easy to Quit While Others Cannot
Smoking is such an unhealthy habit that hooks billions of people around the world. In America alone, 20% of the population smoke (this constitutes millions). While there are numerous smoking cessation methods accessible to all, including the massive campaigns and awareness programs, majority of smokers who attempted to quit fail for many times. Why is this so?
The Two Kinds of Smokers
There are two kinds of smoker. The first one does it for pure fun and pleasure. They do it because other people do it as well. This kind of smoker can easily quit. With just a little form of motivation, they can forget about smoking altogether anytime they wish to. They smoke when they want and they can stop at pretty much any point in their life.
The second type of smoker is someone who at some point in their life, thought that they smoke for the same reasons like the first type of smoker. They thought they just want to experience fun and pleasure, that’s all. But actually, they smoked because they wanted to seek independence. Many people dream to gain independence from many aspects of their life – from their parents, teachers, family responsibilities, superiors, etc. Teenagers tend to experience this severe want for freedom. They believe that they are already capable of living their life the way they want and nobody’s taking control of it. It makes them cool. It makes them independent.
What they don’t realize is that as the time pass by, they tend to lose the status of being “independent” to being a slave of cigarettes. Slowly, tobacco is taking control of their lives. And the moment they realize it, quitting becomes almost impossible. The moment they quit, they start experiencing undesirable withdrawal symptoms such as headache, anxiety, mood swings, and even depression. These people, who were once trying to seek independence from other people, have lost their freedom to cigarettes instead.
But the moment that they become aware of their nicotine addiction, quitting smoking becomes easy. With a little help from the professionals and support from their friends and family, the second type of smokers can quit anytime, just like the first kind of smoker.
Whatever smoking cessation technique one is attempting to use, giving up the habit can be easy with the following tips:
- Anyone trying to quit should make a statement to the people around them about their intentions to quit. This way, their colleagues and relatives will be more considerate enough to avoid lighting up when one is around.
- They should understand that smoking is a form of addiction that takes some time to get completely eliminated. Therefore, seeking help might be necessary, unless one has a strong willpower to give up smoking.
- They should not think that quitting smoking is hard. It is never a burden to experience a bit of discomfort during the smoking cessation period. Any negative feeling will pass, in just a little time.
