Freelance Graphic Designer London

A free and easy way to give up smoking

Fanfare! I have just published a new website detailing the method I used to quit cigarettes. Please have a look.

I started smoking when I was 18 and very quickly developed a 20 a day habit. I immediately noticed a dip in my health – not to mention an increase in my asthma. But still I soldiered on. I tried to give up numerous times, sometimes using gum or patches, but it never worked. Every minute of the day I thought about smoking, or felt awkward, or both.

Over three years ago I developed a passing interest in Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) and from that became interested in self-hypnosis and meditation. For other reasons I started practising self-hypnosis and meditation for a few weeks and then one day stopped smoking! I was 35. I have been free from cigarettes and the desire to smoke for over 3 years.

The problem now is how to communicate this to fellow human beings.

I’m facing an uphill struggle with the … deep breath … smoking cessation community. I don’t want to sound cynical but they seem to be as honest as the tobacco industry. “Our practise is to only endorse or link to official quit sites or methods approved by independent research published in reputable journals.” Yeah, research no doubt sponsored by drug companies. Its funny how research suggests that success with giving up smoking is more likely with pharmacological aids and yet heresay and those who work in the field say the cold turkey approach is best.

We have been here before. It was clearly spelled out in the 1964 US Surgeon General’s Report that cigarette smoking was not an addiction and he only came round to the idea in 1988. Nowadays the Surgeon General is advocating the use of pharmalogical aids in quitting smoking. Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.