subject: The Best Way To Stop Smoking - Cutting Down [print this page] The Best Way To Stop Smoking - Cutting Down
What is the problem with cutting down? Maybe you have cut down yourself or you know people who do?
Cigarette addiction means that you will smoke most of the time when you can. You do it because you don't feel normal when you don't have your cigarettes. So most smokers will smoke between 10 and 20 cigarettes a day. Depending on your work and life commitments, 10 or 20 a day will easily fill in the gaps.
So how about if you cut down to maybe 5 cigarettes a day or even less? Nearly every smoker I know that does this just wishes that they could smoke more. They only don't smoke more because they know that it is more harmful so instead they use willpower to smoke only 5 a day and no more.
But sooner or later, you will be back to your normal level, between 10 and 20 a day. So you either smoke 10 or 20 a day and feel "good" or you smoke 5 or less a day and feel "good but worse".
Think about an alcoholic. That's an addict of alcohol. How many successful recovering alcoholics do you know that drink only a little. Now how many do you know that drink absolutely nothing at all. They stopped drinking for good.
I don't know any recovering alcoholics who go on to live the rest of their lives drinking the same as you or I - just a little and on occasion. The fact is, an addict has to stop their addiction completely. Smoking is different though - you can't just enjoy smoking in moderation. You cannot just cut down on smoking. No matter how few you smoke, you will always have a strong desire for a cigarette and you will never truly stop smoking for good. And it is highly likely that you will relapse into your old ways and go back to whatever your "normal" amount of daily cigarettes was.
And anyway, why would you want to cut down on cigarettes if there was a way for you to stop smoking them completely? Don't you desire to be totally free of cigarettes? They cost your wallet and your health so surely you would rather be rid of them completely? If there's a voice in your head saying that you'd be happy with smoking 1 or 2 a day then STOP NOW. This is your addiction making you think that way - see it for what it is and don't listen to it.
Knowing the myths behind cutting down will allow you to get even closer to truly stopping for good and getting the freedom from smoking that you deserve.
