QUIT SMOKING

Do you do Bad Things? Even though you know you shouldn't?

It's not your fault. It really isn't. You know you should stop doing it, but no matter how much you know that, and how much you try, you just can't stop!

Everyone knows how to lose weight. Don't eat fattening foods. Exercise. Everyone knows how to give up smoking. Don’t light the cigarette. Yet having this knowledge just isn't enough. Sometimes even having the desire isn't enough! Time and again I hear about people who get really close to quitting smoking. They can get all the way down to one or two cigarettes a day, but just can't give up those last two. Many even make it all the way down to zero, but the cravings, oh the cravings! They are wretched, those cravings. Most will go back to smoking within the first few days. They can cut away most of the "stuff" that keeps them glued to the cigarettes, even not be addicted to nicotine anymore(!), but there is just something deep in their core that magnetically pulls them back in, like two lovers who know they are bad for each other but just can't help themselves.

What is this thing? What is at this core?

Let me take a step back for a moment. How many adults do you know who are happy? I mean really, truly happy? Think that question is foolishness? Let me ask you this. How many people do you know who love their work? I'm talkin' jump out of bed in the morning, can't wait to start. Sadly, the percentage is very small. Why is this?

We live in an interesting quick-fix culture. People don't really have to deal with their issues. We've got:
•television
•movies
•shopping
•toys
•and hitting the gym

to distract us and make us feel better. Even more than that, many people's issues are quite buried. Think of dreams that were squashed when we were young. "An artist? You could never make a living at that! You should be a doctor!" People often forget what their dreams once were.

As a result, I see an awful lot of unhappy, unfulfilled people walking around. They don't know what is bothering them, they just have that gnawing feeling that there must be more. Advertisers pray on this, selling us more and more bottles and gizmos to give us that ever elusive Happiness.

True inner needs? People either:
•think they're impossible to fulfill
•are too scared and resigned to fulfill them
•or are so disassociated from those needs that they don't even know what they would be even if they had to guess!

All those "bad" things -- smoking, overeating, gambling, alcohol, the list goes on and on -- are easy ways to fill the void. Smokers will be able to relate to this one -- if you've just had a fight with your family, what do you do? You go for a smoke. Smoking makes it feel like the problem goes away. (I call this the "smokescreen." Har har!)

I'll let you in on a little secret--the real reason it's so hard to quit is not the nicotine. It's this void-filling. When you quit smoking (or any bad habit), you're suddenly faced with real life. All those stresses and needs that you've been avoiding? There they are, pulling at your coat tails, yelling, "Pay attention to me! Pay attention to me!" If you got in touch with your real inner needs and took baby steps to start fulfilling them, you would actually have little desire for cigarettes. It's true! I see it happen time and again in my Stop Smoking Coaching practice.

How do you do that, you ask? Here are some baby steps that you can start trying out now:
•Next time, instead of taking that quick fix--stop.
•Have a little quiet time and listen to what your insides have been trying to tell you.
•Try journaling -- don't edit your thoughts, just write.
•Some people find meditation and yoga to be great accesses.
•Try deep breathing.
•Go for a quiet, leisurely walk by yourself.
•Personally, I find it easiest to just start noticing where in life I seem to be avoiding things the most, or if I want something more immediate and active, doing a mindmap (a word drawing) to figure out what I'm really thinking.

For each person, the key to figuring out your needs is different. Play around with it, don't give up! You'll be glad you did!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jill Binder is a Stop Smoking Coach with a 90 day program to show people how to quit smoking forever, with a 100% success rate. She is the author of "What's Your Smoking Type?" and has appeared on the radio on "Radioactive Women" and the newspaper Metro Toronto Today.

You can sign up for her newsletter, "YourTurn - Turn Your Weaknesses Into Your Perfect Life" at http://www.StopSmokingCoach.ca.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jill Binder is a Stop Smoking Coach with a 90 day program to show people how to quit smoking forever, with a 100% success rate. She is the author of "What's Your Smoking Type?" and has appeared on the radio on "Radioactive Women" and the newspaper Metro Toronto Today.
You can sign up for her newsletter, "YourTurn - Turn Your Weaknesses Into Your Perfect Life" at http://www.StopSmokingCoach.ca.

HOW TO?

Advanced Laser Solutions Claims You Can Quit Smoking
In One Day
Independent survey results substantiates laser treatment completely removes the physical withdrawal symptoms

Cleveland Ohio. Most smokers will tell you they could quit smoking, overcoming the habits associated with cigarettes, if the physical cravings were removed. The constant nagging of the physical addiction overrides the best of intentions among many smokers who truly want to quit.

Nicotine replacement therapies, antidepressants, hypnotherapy and cold turkey methods have helped some smokers kick the habit. The fail rate is higher than the success rate of these therapies, leaving many a smoker with the heavy feeling of defeat.

Advanced Laser Solutions, located in Garfield Heights Ohio, offers a 20-minute treatment that claims to remove the physical cravings of the cigarette. To a smoker, this claim may sound too good to be true.

Low-level Laser therapy has been safely used with great success in Canada and in Europe for over thirty years. In May of 2003, an Institutional Review Board (IRB) authorized investigational clinical trials using low-level laser therapy in compliance with FDA regulations in the United States. The FDA has already ruled low-level laser therapy as a “non-significant risk” and the US investigational trials are being funded through patient participation.

“After my mother, a smoker for most of her adult life, received this treatment in Canada and successfully quit smoking, I knew this was a viable treatment that could actually change a person’s life,” says co-owner of Advanced Laser Solutions, Tony Latina. Tony went on to become a Certified Laser Technician (CLT). Peggy Schmidt, LSW, LPCC, CCDC, a Licensed Addictions Counselor joined Tony and together they have opened the first Ohio office.

Tony and Peggy are dedicated to helping those that smoke and want to quit, finally succeed. They offer a full program addressing both the physical and mental addiction to nicotine.

As part of their overall commitment to the effectiveness of the treatment and the client’s perception of the treatment, they contracted with an independent survey company, Quality Care Options, LLC (877-620-6448) QCO

The following questions were asked within the confidential survey:

• The Laser Treatment removed the physical craving for tobacco – 100% said Yes

• My questions about the procedure were answered satisfactorily – 100% said Yes

• I feel the ongoing support and ability to receive reinforcement treatments have been of value to me – 100% said yes

• I believe this treatment lived up to its promises – 100% said Yes

• I now consider myself a Non-Smoker – 90% said Yes 7% said Unsure 3% said No

Advanced Laser Solutions received Certification as a Senior Approved Service and is included within an exclusive network of services recommended to seniors, family members, health care professionals and employers. Advanced Laser Solutions far surpassed the required 90% customer satisfaction rating. Senior Approved Services
Is becoming a non-smoker your New Year’s Resolution? To help answer questions and ease your concerns about the laser therapy, Advanced Laser Solutions is hosting a free one-hour seminar on Monday December the 27th. Seating is limited and RSVP’s are required. Phone 216-663-0766 by December the 23rd.

Advanced Laser Solutions is located at 5246 E. 98th Street, Suite 2, Garfield Heights Ohio and serves the tri-state area as the first and only center offering low-level laser therapy. Telephone: 216-663-0766
Web: Advanced Laser Solutions
###
About the Author
Barbara is the founder of Quality Elder Care and of Seniors Approve