Stop Smoking In Stages

If you struggled to stop smoking previously and relapsed, or if you are presently considering stopping, it’s constantly a great idea to understand the factors involved in the process of quitting smoking. It is essential for you to know what you will encounter while defeating your smoking habit so that you are more prepared to cope with the various possible scenarios.

People who quit smoking often go through five stages, with each stage having distinct psychological features. There’s evidently a suitable way to handle each and every stage to make sure that you advance to the following point and in due time succeed in defeating your smoking addiction entirely.

Stage 1: Pre-Contemplation

Pre-contemplation is the 1st step in the smoking cessation process. It’s somewhat usual for smokers to attempt to quit smoking as a result of peer pressure; for instance, colleagues, friends, and family compelling the individual to kick the habit. In point of fact, this individual doesn’t actually mean to quit smoking, but is pressured to do so due to external variables. Basically, the said individual attempts to give up smoking not because he or she is particularly willing, but because he gave in to external pressure. If the smoking cessation process starts under this particular scenario, the most apparent result is that the said person will later regress and take up smoking again, because the motivation is inappropriate or insufficient.

Stage 2: Contemplation

Contemplation is the second step in the smoking cessation process. At this point, the intention to stop smoking is clear, but the smoker does not mean to take steps in that direction in the foreseeable future. Said individual is conscious of the reasons for quitting, and most possibly agrees with such reasoning. But, in this stage, he/she still finds justifications for the addiction, with the remote and abstract idea of quitting smoking someday.

Stage 3: Preparation

The 3rd phase in the stop smoking process is called preparation, which can be seen as the waiting room for the actual quit smoking process itself. Said individual has a genuine intention to cease smoking and has in fact taken the first steps to reach that goal. Mostly, these measures are meant to make the transition more bearable, like reducing the number of cigarettes one consumes each day, or changing to a filter brand.

Stage 4: Quitting

The 4th stage among the stop smoking stages is actually quitting. In this stage, the smoker is committed to stop smoking and has even taken measures to fulfill this plan. As this specific person stops smoking, he or she has to endure withdrawal, fight the irresistible cravings for cigarettes, and on the whole adapt to a smoke-free life. This fourth stage can last from 6 months to 1 year.

Final Stage: Post-Quitting Maintenance

The fifth and last stage in the smoking cessation process is known as post-quitting maintenance, which normally starts about one year after quitting. At this stage, a relapse may occur. Roughly seventy five percent of people who quit are susceptible to resuming smoking in the first year after the process. However, this should not imply that their efforts were useless, since researches show that it takes about 3 attempts to completely quit smoking. While a relapse is commonly perceived as a regression, this should not discourage you from trying to stop smoking once more and, consequently, trying harder the next time.

To conclude, you must understand the implications of the 6 stop smoking stages so that you are more ready to deal with each particular circumstance that you will most likely encounter. A knowledge of where you stand in the smoking cessation timeline will enable you to measure your progress and inspire yourself further until you eventually quit smoking for good.

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If you struggled to stop smoking previously and relapsed, or if you are presently considering stopping, it’s constantly a great idea to understand the factors involved in the process of quitting smoking. It is essential for you to know what you will encounter while defeating your smoking habit so t

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