Quitting smoking cold turkey hasn’t worked the last few times I’ve tried so now I am attempting to quit smoking by gradually cutting back. I downloaded an app to help me do just that. I entered how many cigarettes I usually smoke in a day (20 or so) and the app clocks intervals of when I can smoke. The intervals gradually increase thus my smoking should decrease.
Here’s the thing, I have to be willing to let this timer dictate when I smoke rather than just smoking whenever I want. At the current interval of about fifty eight minutes I’m smoking a little less but I swear sometimes all I can do is watch that countdown for the last few minutes. The next phase will time a longer interval between smokes.
For the last week I’ve also kept track of why I was smoking and it seems like I was smoking out of habit or anxiety about half the time, the rest is pretty much just cravings. It forced me to stop and think about whether or not I was actually craving. This only works if I am honest with myself.
I will say that it’s hardest for me to follow this timer in the mornings. It’s like I need to resupply my nicotine levels in the morning so I was chain smoking for the first couple of hours of the day. Then, throughout the day it was just a matter of maintaining that level so I was smoking less in the afternoons and evenings. Now that I’m on this timed interval I find my cravings are lining up with the times I can smoke, if not a little before. I cope with the wait time between cigarettes by painting or reading or playing a video game.
I’ve also been working on a pros and cons list, it isn’t finished yet but I’m off to a good start.
My Phoenix Rising 