Cravings will usually last only a few minutes, but can last up to 30 minutes. It will take quite a bit of your willpower to ignore that voice inside your head screaming at you to give in. But you will have to dismiss this voice. Every time you do, you will become better able to manage and tolerate the next craving when it arises.
In order to boost your willpower against nicotine cravings, you will need to learn some tricks to help you along on this journey. The major goal is to become more self aware of your mental processes and behaviors that trigger your cravings.
Once you understand what your major triggers are, you can invent ways to interrupt your thought processes and automatic behaviors in those moments to diminish your cravings. We at STIG understand that it is a lot easier said than done.
In understanding that, we want to tell you about some tricks that were helpful for us when we first began our journey. You too can be successful and live a smoke free life by using the following 3 ways to boost your willpower to fight cravings. It is tough not to give into cravings, and we hope that these 3 tips will help you along your journey.
1. Establish A Mantra For Yourself
Every time you get a craving you can repeat your mantra over and over to yourself to distract your brain from tempting you. For example, when you start to crave a smoke break, you can tell yourself something like what famous NBA star Michael Jordan is known for saying:
“I can accept failure, but I can’t accept not trying.”
Another well known mantra you can tell yourself is:
“Just because I am struggling, does not mean that I am failing.”
You can find many good mantras out there, but it would be best to create one for yourself. It will really help you during these moments to delay yourself from giving into the craving and will help keep you on the path you want to be on.
2. Create Distractions
Find anything else to do. Anything is better than giving in. It is during these times you will need to get creative and really harness your inner strength. You could maybe consider:
- going for a walk
- eating a snack
- chewing some gum
- drinking a glass of water
- cleaning something
- calling a friend
- meditate for 20 mins while repeating your mantra
- yoga
We’re sure you get the point, right? Just try distracting yourself as much as possible with activities that will not trigger your cravings, but will cancel them out in your mind. Focus on interrupting your thought process and soon you will find the craving will dispel.
3. Create Mini Goals With Incentives
You can give up smoking once and for all, but admittedly it is going to be a long journey. In order to not be overwhelmed by the long term, you will benefit from creating mini short term goals for yourself with incentives to keep you on track. For instance:
You know yourself and the things you enjoy doing, so you can get creative with this. Grab a calendar and hang it someplace visible for yourself. Write the incentives on the days you will earn them and actively mark off everyday until you reach those mini goals. We hope that you can find the above information useful. All you can do is try to implement these ideas into your daily life or help a friend / family member to do so. These ideas will turn into action and will hopefully be useful in learning to resist any physical or mental cravings you may have. Events in your life and feelings of anxiety and stress will always somehow trigger you into perhaps wanting to smoke. With patience and these 3 tips, you will soon be able to divert your thoughts away from your cravings. And any cravings you may have will eventually become defenseless against your ability to control your mind. It is this type of willpower that can be useful in all areas of your life. Just remember to breathe deeply, relax and repeat your mantra to yourself. This will allow you to focus on your body and your mind, so you can remain present and calm. In this fashion, your cravings will soon disappear before you know it!
Lasting Thoughts