Give and get support around quitting
I have been reading about how our brains shape our current and future selves. It involves some 'quantum physics' (which I now get some of what that means) but it's a method to change who you are in any situation simply by changing the way we think. You may have heard the experiment of how 2 equal novice basketball players got better at the game using 2 separate methods. The first person practiced daily. The second person spent 20-30 minutes a day simply visualizing what to do to improve their game. After 6 months the person who did the daily visualization improved much more than the person who practiced at least an hour a day on the court. The difference is our brains are much more powerful than we give them credit for and can affect change greatly.
The exercise is simple. Spend time every day visualizing yourself going about your day without smoking, vaping, chewing, whatever your choice of nicotine infusion you use. Really SEE it. Picture yourself from the time you get up until you go to bed without having a cigarette. Picture how you will tackle each task without nicotine. Picture each stress you have doing something other than smoking. It doesn't matter what you have difficulty with or what is going well just keep SEEING yourself through every day is a non-smoker. BELIEVE what you're seeing with your whole being. Do you smoke when you drink alcohol? Picture yourself enjoying a drink with your friends and family without smoking/vaping. Smoking in the car? Do that scenario in your mind and see and believe yourself driving or riding without using nicotine.
This may sound like BS, mumbo-jumbo, crazy or just stupid but it works. I've been quit over three years and I'm only just learning this technique but it works. I have used this to lose weight and I have lost 12 pounds in two months without being on a 'diet'. I've pictured myself eating better and as much as I love carbs I have limited them only by seeing myself make a different choice.
I won't lie that it doesn't take work. You must do the visualization daily or nearly daily and you must believe what you see. It works because our brains are powerhouses and we just need to tap into the right plug but once we do the results can be profound. My friend who wasn't supposed to be able to walk again after being disabled with Osteoarthritis in her legs, a crushed sciatic nerve, several spinal fractures, a heart attack, cancer, all her systems failing, on a respirator, and in bed for 14 YEARS can run circles around me. She's only been out of bed 6 years. She used this method and still does. If you're interested in the book, message me and I'll send you it's title. So think, think, think, and believe and you will find you can do a lot more than you ever thought possible, including becoming a non-smoker!
This is an interesting concept. I'm not sure how I could make myself believe something?
It works, it just takes work. Everything that is good takes work and we have to be open to making that change. I wasn't sure but my afore mentioned friend lives (and walks) by it. Her heart has healed, she has no cancer, she can walk, run, and lift more than I can. She used this method and still does so I know it works. It's already helping me. 😊
Seeing is believing AND believing is seeing. This method does both. 😊
@minihorses I think I understand this from a psychological level. The idea is to put an intention out there through creative visualization. The part about imagining ourselves doing something as a non-smoker is a way of conditioning the brain against what it has been conditioned to do in the past (smoke). I know in hypnotherapy, this is an approach that is used. Makes sense.
Thanks for sharing!
John
You are right on the money of your understanding of this. I actually used hypnotherapy once to quit smoking and I quit for a year. My bad for going back. So far I've been able to work on how I define myself and it seems to be working! I'm not so down on myself all the time and am gaining some self-esteem. You keep up your quit and if I can help you in any way just let me know.
Positive thinking at it best. Thanks for sharing.
I should add that in order for change to begin you not only have to see yourself and believe in that vision you have to FEEL the emotions of the scenario you create. Really feel those emotions. Intent and emotion combine to a great new you. Keep up the great work!
It has definitely been a change for the better!
Congratulations to her, she is a warrior!