If you’re a smoker, then you know the drill. End a meal, and you suddenly feel that strong craving for a cigarette. Get up from your desk to have a rest, and all at as soon as you would like to light up. Certain times of the day, areas, and even some foods can spark a strong urge to smoke.
Experts call these triggers. And there can be a good deal of them. They can happen when you:·
- Drink your morning tea or coffee
- Have a beer, cocktail, or glass of wine
- Drive
- Get up during intermission in a show
- Check your texts or email
- Feel bored, sad, angry, or anxious
- Talk on the phone
- Need a break from work
Even positive emotions of happiness or enjoyment could be triggers.
Learn to Spot Your Smoking Triggers
When you know yours, you can prepare to prevent or manage them.
Before you quit, keep a journal for a couple of days or a week. Utilise your smartphone or a little laptop which you can easily carry with you.
Each time you light a cigarette, listing:
- The time of day
- How extreme your craving feels, on a scale of 1 to 5 (with five being the most intense)
- What you’re doing at the moment
- Where you are
- Who you’re with
- How you are feeling (happy, stressed, bored, etc.)
Be precise in your notes as possible. Keep your journal for a minimum of one weekday and a weekend day, ever since your routine is very likely to be different on these days.
Once you’re done, examine your diary. List your most muscular causes, based on the strength of your craving. Which causes occur most frequently? Notice areas, people, situations, and moods that set a desire to smoke.
Triggers are a form of conditioned response. If you’re utilised to smoking a cigarette in a coffee break, for example, you begin to link even the smell of java using smoking.
You will need to sew your causes before they strike. To do so, change your routines to break your strongest objects.
You might want to read about Getting rid of Cigarette Smoke Odour in your House
