How can I ensure I don't go back to smoking whenever I get frustrated?

Hello Mr. Tyrrell,

I am Santosh, from India. I am 26 and I've been smoking since I was 18. I smoke an average of five cigarettes per day. Now I've started to reduce it to two to three cigarettes per day. I drink only on weekends, like Friday and Saturday. I work as a software engineer and have a problem quitting these sticks.

Real problem with me is: about a year ago, I quit for six months and suddenly relapsed on a day when I was frustrated with heavy work at the office and fought with my girlfriend the very same day. From that day on, I started smoking two to three cigars per day and gradually increased my intake to four to five sticks per day.

Now, I know that I can quit. But I am worried about 'that one day' where I might be very frustrated due to some issues/problems that would make my day miserable. Please give me a piece of advice to avoid the relapsing moment because of 'that one day'.

Thanks in advance. Meanwhile, I read your blog; very motivating, sir.

This question was submitted by 'Santosh'

Mark says...

Hello Santosh and thank you for writing in. I'm glad you like my blog! : )

I'm going to talk about smoking in quite an unfamiliar way.

Smoking lies to you, just like a manipulative person. It convinces you that you can't do things, experience things, or go through things unless it's with you, poisoning you from within. Smoking takes false credit for waking you up, calming you down, comforting you when you're upset, and all the other things that all non-smokers go through without sucking in 6,000 poisonous chemicals.

The smoking lies to your unconscious mind that you can only survive with its 'help', even as it seeks to slowly kill you. People don't so much stop smoking as grow out of it, but many don't escape until after it's too late. If you don't stop smoking, smoking will stop you. Once it has used up your body, it has no loyalty to you.

But even if it only takes a couple of years of your life, it steals your youth. We all age fast enough as it is; we don't need help from cigarettes. Check out my article, 'Are you in the smoking cult? Here's how to quit'.

I suggest you use hypnosis to 'rehearse' in your mind those times in which smoking is more likely to get you back, such as times when you feel frustrated. Strongly hypnotically rehearse standing up to any 'whispers' from the smoking; because like any bully, it will try to manipulate you when you are vulnerable. If you need help using hypnosis to leave cigarettes behind for good, then check out '10 Steps to Become a Non Smoker'.

All my best,

Mark