It’s perfectly natural that people are fast realizing the health risks of Smoking, and are choosing to kick the nicotine habit, in order to lead a healthier, smoke-free life. However, stopping smoking isn’t half as easy as it sounds those who have been there and done that know how much. Two widely accepted methods are generally followed by those wishing to give up smoking. The first is stopping gradually – setting a date by which one will stop smoking, and working towards it by steadily cutting down. The other is the cold-turkey method, which means that one will stop smoking abruptly in one day, and never again touch another cigarette. However, this requires a lot of self-control and strength, which many people. We give you some tips to help you achieve the cold-turkey method.

Firstly, when you decide to stop smoking forever, stand by your word. Don’t take even one puff. Square one is waiting if you take so much as one drag, and all your effort goes down the drain. Nicotine affects your brain, and grows millions of nicotine receptors in almost eleven different regions. Despite your mind’s nicotine induced dopamine/adrenaline intoxication being an alert high, your chemical dependency on the substance is very real. Don’t fool yourself saying you’ll “take just one little puff” – it’s not feasible. Tell yourself that you want to stop smoking, and just do it!

You will experience strong emotional loss. Your addiction to nicotine is intensely repetitive – your body has been conditioned to depend on it over the years. You will face emotional turmoil in phases like denial (feeling like you don’t need to stop smoking in the first place), anger (at yourself and everyone around you), bargaining (telling yourself you’ll take just one puff and stay absolutely nicotine-free the rest of the week), depression (feeling low and generally down-in-the-dumps), acceptance (of the fact that you must stop smoking), and complacency. Keep in mind that this emotional journey is necessary, and a healthy part of recovery.

Don’t skip meals, and we suggest that for the first three days, you drink lots of acidic fruit juice. Cranberry juice can help to accelerate the 72 hours needed to remove the alkaloi nicotine from your body, plus it also helps stabilize blood sugars. Regular exercise will repair the damage done to your system through smoking. It’s helpful to get a buddy with whom you can stop smoking, to get the support from one who has already kicked the habit.

You need to understand that perhaps your body is conditioned to desire nicotine at certain places, or events, or times. Control such trigger cravings. Maybe a trip to the bar will make you want to light up. Avoid such triggers that will make you go backward in your efforts to stop smoking. Practice deep breathing, reward yourself for little milestones. If it’s been a month since you smoked, go to a restaurant for a meal, and stay in the non-smoking section.