very good advice. addiction to nicotine is like any other addiction, you will experience cravings and triggers. as of this past February ive been clean and sober for 4 years and as of this past January ive not smoked a cig.
there are many triggers that cause me to crave for many things. its like associating straws with cocaine and driving with smoking. for me the most important thing is that I realize what im feeling and why. then I can make better decisions. unfortunately I live with 2 smokers, among other things, so its imperative that im on top of whats around me, who is around me, their actions as well as my own actions. a trigger would be like waking up in the morning and smelling a cigarette being smoked by someone, that would then cause you to crave. identify your triggers.
one thing that has helped is each time i removed a negative from my life I replace it with a positive.
for instance I was an avid coffee drinker, picked that up in NA. I killed my coffee with sugar, creamer, and added those little caffeinated shots to âup the ampâ. but when I gave up cigs coffee would trigger a craving for a cigarette. vaping with coffee doesnât appease my taste. so I had to figure out what to do differently/better. now when I want coffee I have a healthy smoothie which goes great with vaping.
essentially ive replaced a huge portion of my sugar and caffeine intake with protein, fiber, nutrients etc. I will have an occasional cup of coffee but I can never finish the whole cup.
most importantly donât give up and donât beat yourself up when you have a slip up. no addiction is easy to harness!