Quitting smoking spontaneously is a challenge that requires great commitment and persistence. If you want to quit smoking on your own, you will need to stay mentally strong, keep busy and active, and react appropriately to relapses. If you want to know how to quit smoking right away, follow these steps.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Maintain Mental Strength
Step 1. Understand the pros and cons of quitting by willpower alone
Quitting smoking spontaneously means quitting completely without the help of nicotine replacement therapies or medications. To do this you need perseverance and independence. Only 3-10% of people are able to quit smoking in this way, due to the drastic changes taking place in their lives. Before trying to quit, you should try to understand the advantages and disadvantages of this method.
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Benefits:
- If you have to quit because of a serious health problem due to smoking, quitting without the help of drugs will be the fastest way to improve your condition or prevent it from getting worse. You will also be more motivated to go it alone if you have a serious health problem.
- You may feel more pain, but you will feel it for a shorter time. Instead of spending months or a year between drugs and nicotine patches and gradually ridding your body of nicotine, you will be able to overcome the addiction faster if you are successful.
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Disadvantages:
- You may suffer from intense and unpleasant withdrawal symptoms, such as depression, insomnia, irritability, and anxiety.
- You will be less likely to succeed if you quit without the help of other methods.
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 2 Step 2. Prepare an action plan
Preparing an action plan will help you be more decisive about your choice to quit, and make you more focused on the process. You should choose a day on the calendar that marks the beginning of your withdrawal, and mark each day you managed not to smoke. Choose the day of the month or week where stress will be at its lowest, where you will be least likely to give in and smoke a cigarette.
- Know the triggers. Write down the factors that lead you to smoke, whether it's drinking whiskey, going to parties or listening to jazz music. Decide how to avoid them.
- Keep reminding yourself why you want to quit. When you start your plan, keep telling yourself that you want to quit for health reasons, for your family and for your friends. You can also write a cover letter to yourself and keep it in your wallet.
- Remember that the first few days are the hardest. Consider this in your action plan. Reward yourself for being able to cope with the first few days or weeks of abstinence.
- Keep a journal to record your thoughts and feelings during the process. Plan on journaling at least once a day to feel more in touch with your mind and body.
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 3 Step 3. Manage your stress
If you manage your stress, you will be much less likely to continue smoking. You may be using smoking as a coping mechanism, so it's important to find other ways to relieve it so you don't get tempted and relapse. Here are some great ways to manage stress so that you have a clear head as you try to quit:
- Think. Write down all the factors in your life that cause you stress and try to figure out how you can minimize them. If you can eliminate or reduce sources of stress before trying to quit, the process will be much easier.
- Do activities that calm you down. Try meditation, yoga, long walks, or listen to soothing music before bed.
- Rest a lot. You will feel more able to cope with stressful situations if you go to bed and wake up at about the same time each day and if you give your body enough time to sleep.
- Tell a friend about your feelings. You will feel much more comfortable if you don't have to go through the decision to quit smoking alone.
Method 2 of 3: Lead a Busy and Active Life
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 4 Step 1. Keep your body active
If you want to quit smoking, you will need to keep your body active so that you have less time to give in to temptation. Keeping your body active will make you feel healthier and help you replace your smoking habit with other habits. Here's what to do:
- Keep your mouth moving. Drink plenty of water, tea, juice, or anything that can keep your mind busy. Chew gum or suck on a peppermint if necessary.
- Keep your hands busy. Squeeze a stress ball, scribble, play with the phone, or find another way to keep your hands busy and not look for a cigarette.
- Exercise. If you don't have a training program, start one. Working out for 30 minutes a day will help keep your body and mind in shape and make you feel relaxed.
- Go for walks. It's a great activity to do, especially when you have a craving.
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 5 Step 2. Be socially active
If you're trying to quit smoking, there's no need to isolate yourself in your room, or it will be much harder to take your mind off cigarettes. Take this opportunity to spend more time with friends and family and you will be happier, as well as distract yourself from cigarettes.
- Accept multiple invitations. Take this opportunity to participate in multiple events, even if you would have avoided them in the past.
- Invite a friend for a coffee, a drink, or for a walk. Turn a regular acquaintance or friend into a close friend by taking the time to talk to them. Try to propose activities that don't make you want to smoke.
- When you hang out with friends and family, make it clear that you intend to quit. This way you will feel less alone and receive their support.
- Do something fun that's active. Take a yoga class with a friend, go dancing or invite a friend for a hike or a swim in the sea.
- Remember to avoid temptation in your social life. Don't go to parties where everyone smokes, and don't spend all your time with heavy smoking friends, as you will likely succumb to temptation. Find new ways to be socially active if you have to.
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 6 Step 3. Avoid temptation
It is a fundamental aspect. Once you have learned about triggers, it is important to avoid situations that can lead you to relapse, or that would only lead you to think about smoking. Here's how to do it:
- Try to avoid dating other smokers as much as possible. Of course, if one of your best friends smokes, talk to them seriously, and try to minimize the time you spend with them when they smoke.
- Avoid the places where you used to buy cigarettes. If you can't go to the bar you always go to or drive in front of the vending machine without feeling the desire to buy a package, avoid the usual routes and find new bars.
- Avoid situations where you have a habit of smoking. If you always smoke when you go to the mall, restaurant or nightclub, avoid these activities.
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 7 Step 4. Find a new interest or hobby
Finding a new, healthy "addiction" to replace smoking can help you focus your energy and find interest in your new habits, instead of feeling like you drag yourself through the day without being able to smoke. Here are some hobbies or interests to follow:
- Do something with your hands. Try writing a short story or poem, or take an art or pottery class.
- Try running. If you set the goal of running 5 or even 10km, you will be so focused on your new training plan that you won't have time to think about smoking.
- Be adventurous. Go hiking or biking. Do something unusual for yourself that takes your mind off cigarettes.
- Find a new love of food. While you shouldn't replace craving for cigarettes with craving for food, you should take the time to enjoy food and perhaps learn to cook. Notice how everything tastes better now that you've quit smoking.
Method 3 of 3: Reacting Appropriately to a Relapse
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 8 Step 1. Think after the relapse
After you've had a relapse, whether it's a cigarette at a party or a pack on a bad day, it's time to sit down and ask yourself why it happened. Understanding why you've relapsed is the key to avoiding others in the future. Here are some questions you should ask yourself:
- Did you relapse because you were feeling stressed? If so, you should think more about how to minimize stress, or avoid particularly stressful situations. For example, if you've smoked a cigarette because you've had a stressful day at work, find a way to deal with another stressful day at work, like enjoying ice cream or watching your favorite movie.
- Did you relapse because you found yourself in a situation that made you want to smoke? If you've smoked a cigarette at a friend's party, because you associate their parties with a nice cigarette in their backyard, you should avoid their parties or come prepared with a gum, a cake, or a cravings plan.
- How did you feel right before you had a relapse? Recognizing these feelings can help you fight them in the future.
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 9 Step 2. Resume your routine
This is an important aspect. Just because you've smoked a cigarette or relapsed for a day doesn't mean you're a failure and need to quit altogether. Don't use relapses as an excuse to go back to smoking. Just because you had a moment of weakness doesn't mean that you are a weak person and that you don't have the skills to quit.
- Keep doing what you did. If you've been trying to quit for a while, the cravings will be milder than normal, even if you've been relapsing.
- Be even more careful after a relapse. For the week after your relapse, try even harder to stay busy and active, to avoid temptation and manage stress.
Quit Smoking Cold Turkey Step 10 Step 3. Know when to try other ways to quit
There is a reason why only 3-10% of people manage to quit smoking with willpower alone: it is very difficult. If you have been trying to quit on your own for months or even years but have always suffered from relapses or have had a long period of smoking again, this method of quitting may not be the best for you. Here are some great methods to try:
- Behavioral therapy. A behavioral psychologist will help you find triggers, give you support, and help you decide the best way to quit.
- Nicotine replacement therapy. Nicotine patches, lozenges, gums, and sprays are ways to deliver nicotine to your body without tobacco. They are great ways to manage nicotine withdrawal without having to stop out of the blue.
- Medicines. Consult your doctor for prescriptions to help you quit smoking.
- Mixed treatments. Combining all of the above treatments, along with support from family and friends, can be the best way to quit smoking forever.
Advice
- If you can't quit on your own, try cutting back on the amount of cigarettes. Instead of buying cartons, buy packs, and try to limit yourself to a few cigarettes a day.
- Write down five reasons to quit smoking and stick them on the back of your cell phone.
