Giving up nicotine might be one of the hardest things you ever do.
The rewards are huge, but nicotine’s highly addictive properties make it a tough habit to break.
The trick to an effective strategy for quitting smoking is to have natural ways to combat the addiction.
Below, we’ve pulled together some of the best ways to combat the effects of nicotine.
Smoke Non-Addictive Herbs
If you’re struggling to quit the physical act of smoking, you may be glad to know you can continue it without the addiction.
Non-addictive herbs like passion flower, peppermint, and ginger root provide an alternative to nicotine. They’re also recommended for their relaxing properties.
Non-addictive herbs can help you displace the activity of smoking nicotine onto another, more benign outlet.
Replace the Ritual
Humans are ritualistic creatures. That makes smoking a double-whammy of a struggle because the physically addictive properties of the drug are backed up by the psychologically addictive ritual.
When we quit smoking, the missing ritual leaves a gap that can be hard to fill.
Many people find replacing the ritual can help them quit. If you’re able to replace the ritual with something healthy, even better!
This ritual can be almost anything. If you wake up with nicotine, try waking up to iced water or fresh-brewed coffee instead. Or try a series of stretches to get your blood flowing.
Improve Your Diet
Quitting smoking is the perfect time to start improving your diet.
Nicotine withdrawal symptoms aren’t pretty. Your body will do everything it can to make you feel bad about the decision you’ve made. What you need to do is convince your body otherwise.
Improving your diet can have a huge effect on your mood. Healthy, fresh fruits and vegetables will leave you feeling energized and alert. This will work to counteract the sluggishness that accompanies withdrawal.
But there’s an even stronger argument for this, too. Fruit and vegetables actually make cigarettes taste worse! This could be just the push you need to drop them forever.
Find A New Hobby
You can think of this as Part 2 of replacing the ritual.
Withdrawl leaves your body with a feeling of restlessness and poor focus. To prevent a relapse, you need to direct that restless energy elsewhere. Picking up a new hobby is a great way to do that.
Try to come up with a hobby you’ve always wanted to try. How about knitting? Learning a musical instrument? Reading? Or maybe even something more active, like biking, surfing, or joining the gym?
Whatever the hobby, it needs to be right for you. A word of warning, though: the effects of nicotine withdrawal will leave you with some extra frustration, so try to keep your temper when you’re first learning!
Revitalize Your Social Life
The effects of nicotine withdrawal can be hell on your emotions. But socializing is nature’s remedy for self-destructive moods.
Get in contact with old friends you haven’t seen for a while. Rebuild connections with your family. Go to gatherings and events. All of these things help distract your mind (are you noticing the theme?) while also providing you with all the upsides of socializing.
You could even join an anti-smoking support group. It’s a great way to make friends and keep each other in check!
Overcoming the Effects of Nicotine
By keeping these simple tips in mind and making a plan to redirect your withdrawal symptoms, you can kick the addiction for good.
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