“I completely understand why you wouldn’t want to give it up,” said Dr David Abrams, an addiction researcher at the National Institutes of Health. “It’s more difficult to get off nicotine than heroin or cocaine.” Dr Abrams and Michael Fiore, MD, a professor of medicine at the University of Wisconsin, both agree that counselling is the best way to quit smoking for good.
When long time smokers finally do quit, they soon realise that not smoking does not necessarily make them non-smokers. That is what counselling is for — learning to function without nicotine and to cope with the cues that trigger smoking urges. Most importantly, former smokers have to rediscover that it is possible to enjoy life without cigarettes, although the yearning may never die completely.
The American Cancer Society and National Cancer Institute web sites clearly state that “reviews that looked at studies of hypnosis to help people quit smoking have not supported it as a quitting method that works.” There are numerous fads on offer, but addiction is in the brain, it requires psychological intervention to address the addictive nature of nicotine, so gum, lasers, or hypnotic trance will not address the addiction or the underlying anxiety that surround withdrawal.
If you wish to address smoking once and for all, contact Mind and Body Solutions on 085 763 7059 to address the addiction and the underlying reasons for smoking with the help of an accredited counselling psychotherapist, NLP master practitioner and certified mind coach.
