Issue Date: December 28, 2008
Stop smoking now with hypnotherapy
There are about 45 million smokers in America, and I would guess that most of them wish that they had never started. Stopping can be tough, and it often takes several attempts to kick the habit for good.
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It can be a helpful tool for kicking the habit.
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Counseling and medication are commonly used to help break the nicotine habit. Another tool is hypnotherapy. Smoking becomes an ingrained behavior over time, so if hypnosis can subconsciously diminish a person's desire for a cigarette while strengthening his resolve to stay smoke-free, then he may have a better chance at overcoming those cravings.
The goal is to reinforce the benefits of a smoke-free life, help overcome previous connections to other behaviors (e.g., smoking while drinking coffee or after eating) and establish healthful connections (like going for a walk instead of lighting up).
A 2007 study followed 67 patients who smoked and had heart or lung problems. Half of those who underwent hypnotherapy for smoking cessation and half of those who were treated with a combination of hypnotherapy and nicotine replacement therapy were still smoke-free more than six months later, a better rate than those who were treated with nicotine replacement therapy or who quit "cold turkey." Hypnosis may be a helpful tool for you, too.
Tedd Mitchell, M.D., is the co-author of "Move Yourself: The Cooper Clinic Medical Director's Guide to All the Healing Benefits of Exercise (Even a Little!)."
Want to know more about stop smoking drugs? Click here.
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