Psychology of smoking
Dr Jozelle Miller
PhD. Health Psychology
Milton Cato Memorial Hospital
The reasons for smoking are mostly psychological. People are seduced to try tobacco or marijuana by the glamorization of smoking in the media or on the streets. Addiction to nicotine or marijuana makes it hard to quit smoking once you have started, but this addiction can be overcome in as quickly as two weeks, once the psychological reasons for smoking are eliminated.{{more}}
It is important to understand and eliminate the psychological root of the problem. Think about your own experience; what was the main reason you started smoking? Most reasons given for smoking are related to how the individual perceived themselves in the company of others. Persons generally start smoking in an attempt to change their self-image and appear more attractive, more masculine, more feminine, or even more “intelligent.â Sometimes you start smoking in a misguided attempt to calm your nerves, cope with stress, or lose weight, but smoking does not help to solve the source of your problems. Denial that you are addicted to smoking is the greatest barrier in overcoming the habit.
Strategies for Quitting
The ritualized behaviour of smoking addiction has many features in common with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which is an anxiety disorder in which people have unwanted and repeated thoughts, feelings, ideas, sensations, or behaviours.
To quit smoking, you have to solve two problems:
1) You have to find out the psychological reasons why you smoke, and develop better coping methods for dealing with all the aspects of your life, instead of being dependent on a drug.
2) You have to conquer your physical addiction. Enroll in a rehabilitation program where you will get the needed support to break the habit.
Your main strategy for quitting smoking will be to figure out what to do in all those situations where you smoke now. Here are some techniques that will help:
o Donât carry matches or a lighter
o Avoid situations that you associate with smoking
o Keep busy to overcome the urge to smoke
o Sit in the “no smokingâ sections of public places
o Remember the health risks of smoking
o Focus on what you expect to gain by quitting
o Breathe deeply to fight off the desire to smoke
o Drink plenty of water to remain hydrated
o Stay away from places where people smoke to avoid temptation
o Ask friends and family for support to help you quit smoking.
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