The 7 Keys to Turning Bad Habits Into Good Habits

Valeria | TimelessLessons Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 18:46 pm

Someone once told me that if you haven’t written it, you haven’t thought about it.

I find, even if it’s double work, I best remember things when I actually write them down. Committing it later to digital is fine for keeping it more organized, searchable, but I need to do that first step.

Not even typing it into a computer first works. I need that actual pencil to paper process. Anyone else like that?

banji - LessonInLife Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 19:17 pm

Well explained Leo. Personally I just kept reminding myself that stopping bad habits is not an easy war. Interestingly it really helps. This may sound as a very negative thing to say to a person who struggle. But when we know the that it’s going to be hard, we usually start become tougher.

Confident Nerd Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 19:33 pm

easier said than done, but still some good points :)

Simple Sapien Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 20:02 pm

This is one of my focuses in life right now. Breaking bad habits. I want to eat better, exercise more, play more music, and watch less movies. Also, internet is taking up quite a bit of my time lately.

Thank you for the helpful tips, Leo. Wish me luck!

- Jack Rugile
Simple Sapien

Vik Dulat Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 20:02 pm

I couldn’t agree with you more Leo. I used to eat a lot of junk foods but little by little, I have eliminated 95 % of them. I mean here and there isn’t too bad. It just gets bad when you eat junk food all the time (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, etc)

Matt Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 20:04 pm

Insightful one..

Majority of bad habits are triggered by something and bearing this in mind might really help. I have actually never thought of that even though it is so obvious.

thanks…

Eric Hamm Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 20:14 pm

“5. Realize that your urges will be strong, but they will go away after a few minutes.”

This has always been key for me. If I’m trying to quit a bad habit, its those sudden urges that get me. To get me through those few minutes, I try to focus on how disappointed I’ll be if I give in. Once I get past the urge, my resolve is that much stronger and the next urge becomes weaker.

I can appreciate the fact that you quit smoking. It’s one of the hardest habits to kick. But it doesn’t surprise me because you went in the complete opposite (healthy) direction. Good job and great post! Eric.

Kathy Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 21:08 pm

Leo
All great tips that work. I gave up smoking over 24 years ago and haven’t looked back. It took me three tries to quit for good. More recently, I gave up soft drinks. This actually took only the first try. Amazing, but true. There are days though when an icy coke would taste heavenly… It’s been over a year now and I’m still holding.

What worked for me in both cases was a supremely powerful desire to give up the habit accompanied by a vision of the person I would be without it. This got me through those tough moments until the urge subsided. In both cases, reminding myself that the choice I made in that moment would affect my long-term health helped.

My experience also showed me that habit breaking needs are different. For smoking, peer pressure from my family combined with a desire to have a smoke-free pregnancy and home to raise my children kept me focused on the goal. For soft drinks, I found that a simple substitute of sparkling water did the trick - although it took a couple of months to actually enjoy carbonation without sugar :).

I truly believe that none of us will break bad habits until we are ready at the core of our being to do so.

Darhk Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 21:22 pm

Very good suggestions for eliminating bad habits. I’m having trouble with establishing good habits (exercise). Inertia is a powerful force.

Leo, who are you supporting for President? Do you have a vote in Guam?

tomlinton Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 21:35 pm

I quit smoking cold turkey
29 years ago
in one of the worst
emotional crises of my life

My marriage was on the rocks
not the first time or last
I was actually counseled
for the first and only time
for poor performance at work

Since I was addicted
every which way
and had already tried
about 200 times
I consider this
the performance of my life
or perhaps proof
that I’m even more stubborn
than I want to believe

Nicotine and alcohol
are tough to beat
They both have
40% recidivism rates
as compared
to the woos hard drugs
like heroin and cocaine

If you beat it
consider you got help
:>)

Nicolas Soergel Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 21:40 pm

Hello,

One key message is to replace a bad habit with a good habit, so that you don’t feel any vacuum. But I agree that it can be a very painful process.
It is important to manage your expectation and not to put too much pressure on you. I therefore recommend not to focus on discipline and feeling guilty on occasional drawbacks but to focus on motivating yourself.

I wrote an article about this on my blog on time management.

http://memytime.wordpress.com/2008/08/23/focus-on-motivation-not-discipline/

Anandi Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 21:47 pm

Awesome article Leo. Simple, but effective. (Time for me to embark on trying to get to a healthy BMI for what seems like the 100th time.)

John Haydon Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 21:56 pm

Leo,

Great post - thank you. One positive outcome that I’ve experienced from changing bad habits is in increased level of compassion and understanding towards others who have had similar struggles. In Buddhism, I believe this is called turning “poison into medicine.

John

Fit Bottomed Girl Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 22:15 pm

My bad habit is biting my nails…I really need to replace my behavior with something to make a change I’ve learned. Tapping my foot or twirling my hair usually works, but I kind of look weird. lol.

A Dawn Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 22:22 pm

Everything sounds good. But there is a scenario I have noticed happening to my relatives. They quit, stay put, and started smoking again after couple of years later.
Cheers,
A Dawn Journal
http://www.adawnjournal.com

johnlazy Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 22:28 pm

Bad Habits is not easy to dislodge, it takes considerable amount of time and self persistent to manage it.

Grace Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 22:33 pm

Not a smoker, but certainly have a few bad habits I could stand to lose! For me, the first step is to bring the pre-conscious automatic behavior up to a level of awareness. Then I can CHOOSE to continue or not. Without that awareness, I remain in auto-pilot mode. The other thing that works for me, and this is more difficult, is to slow down time. There is a nano-second between urge and action. If I can SLOW down that moment, I have the possiblity of changing the following behavior. Good post! G.

Success Professor - Danny Gamache Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 22:49 pm

Leo,

Excellent list. I love your ability to explain triggers. The good news for your reader Tarra is that she has a lot of pain associated with not making the changes she is talking about. By associating a lot of pain to continuing with the habits and a lot of pleasure to beat the habit (and install the new habits) will make the process a lot easier.

Thanks again!

Shanna Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 22:53 pm

Great post AND perfect timing on your personal experience considering that November in National Lung Cancer Awareness Month. If only I could acquire more good habits. Hmmm…

Tabitha (From Single to Married) Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 23:25 pm

Great tips - I’m going to give this to my husband who is trying to give up desserts (one month and counting). It’s a hard process trying to break any habit but it can definitely be worth it!

Janet Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 23:27 pm

Not just positive thoughts, but positive feelings. Find the things that bring you JOY, and fill your life with them as much as possible (heck, do this even if you’re not trying to break bad habits :-)

There is a program called The Solution (http://www.thepathway.org/), which can help you learn to deal with stressful situations with your own internal resources instead with external solutions like smoking or drinking.

Amelia Says:

November 2nd, 2008, 23:35 pm

Kathy said: “I truly believe that none of us will break bad habits until we are ready at the core of our being to do so.”
Kathy, I think you are absolutely correct in that. I’ve recently made some changes in my life but I believe until now I haven’t been ready to make them. By the same token, even if you are ready to make the changes, you need to have the tools to do so and this is where this post comes in. Leo, excellent advice, you are right on the mark!

Genevieve Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 0:00 am

Good advice from everyone. One thing I found helped with quitting smoking was some advice from a Buddhist monk: she said that when you feel the energy of addiction that makes you want go and have a cigarette, just sit and feel it, focus on it but don’t let it force you into doing something you know you really don’t want to do. Just sit with it for a while. Eventually I realised that that energy could be turned into something else: exercising, working harder on an assignment etc. Actually that addictive energy is a bonus if it can be turned into a healthier channel.

Chad Levitt Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 0:03 am

Excellent article!

We fail at many things in life — but being unsuccessful in breaking a habit is only a failure in the moment. The journey to the complete removal of a habit can be filled with setbacks. But, if you can remember that all setbacks are just setups for future success — you will succeed.

Persistence is the key!

Giyen Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 0:12 am

Great post. I am going to focus on conquering my bad habits when it comes to food. Luckily, I am a generally positive person! It does make a difference.

Giyen

Joyous Living Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 1:00 am

Getting rid of some of my bad habits really wasn’t all that bad. For me, managing my triggers was 90% of the work. If the trigger wasn’t there, the urge to continue the habit was not there or was there but the urge was drastically reduced.

I then chose new positive beneficial habits to replace the old. This was the other 10% of the work.

– Something to keep in mind.

Usman Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 1:16 am

What can one do is these bad habits are addictions. Not just habits?

Emma Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 4:15 am

I have never touched a cigarette in my life (ok, not quite true, after my father’s third heart attack I used to steal his cigarettes and hide them from him under my dolls, which did involve handling them) so I can’t vouch for the techniques, but I have only heard good things about Allen Carr’s “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking”. Everyone I’ve spoken to who has read it has quit straight away and never looked back.

I have quit refined and added sugars, though. It wasn’t easy, as THE major trigger was tiredness, hunger and low blood sugar, but I used the same methods as you have outlined above: avoiding triggers (e.g. keeping blood sugar even with well-planned healthy snacking), and reshaping habits (grab a cup of green tea instead, which gives a satiated feeling that also removes the hunger-trigger). It does work, but it takes will-power!

Stephen - Balanced Existence Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 4:58 am

A very solid and structured way in which we can go about altering our behavior. Something that is not easy. Good to see helpful info for those who need and want help.

Lily Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 5:31 am

I like to go by 40 days instead of the usual 21- or 30- day stint for anchoring in new habits. It’s a mantra tradition where you chant a particular mantra for 40 days, and should you miss one, you have to start all over again. I have tried it many times and it works. It worked for me to build my morning meditation habit - which is now second nature to me. I finally found out why 40-day works. After many trials, I realized that the mind goes into resistant mode around day 25-27 and day 33-35. Resistance creeps in in the form of suddenly thinking that your practice is stupid and you would get pretty angry for being ‘cheated’ into it. Laziness is also a great clue when you suddenly feel too tired to follow through. Sneaky mind. But it clears up mysteriously after that once you push thru.

Vincent Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 7:14 am

Great article!

We have seen how persistence can achieve the desired outcome. The tips are useful and practical too.

Cheers
Vincent
Personal Development Blogger

Elizabeth Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 7:38 am

Tara,

Please don’t see it as a punishment. You are given a chance to break with some habits that aren’t there to benefit your body. It isn’t hard, I promise, if you at every moment you decide to stick to it celebrate your victory. You will gain an enormous amount of strenght from it.

san Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 8:13 am

Your post seems repetitive these days :-(

William Vogel Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 8:17 am

Leo, I have a hint for everyone who wants to whip bad habits. It’s absolutely effective:

BRAUNSCHWEIGER

Yes, that’s right. Smoked German liver sausage is the key to licking bad habits for good.

I should know.

At one time, I needed to confront all of these bad habits simultaneously:

Overeating
Drinking
Cigarette smoking
Marijuana
Cocaine
Peyote buttons
Chronic masturbation
Nail biting
Cussing
Kicking the neighbor’s dog
Speeding
Running red lights

and, although I’m ashamed to admit it,

Being mean to cute little kids

One day, I decided I’d had enough, and like you, I determined to replace my bad habits with a good one.

So, I got a roll of Eckrich Braunschweiger and pledged to eat a slice of it on a Triscuit every time I had the desire to do any of the bad things above. After all, liver sausage has a very high amount of protein, iron and especially Vitamin A … so how could I go wrong?

After that, if I was speeding down the road, I’d whip out a Braunschweiger Triscuit, slow down and eat it on the spot. If I had the urge to pleasure myself, to the fridge I’d go, and have a slice of liver sausage. If I felt like getting stoned, I’d do a hit of Braunschweiger instead. If I got the urge to be mean to a kid, I’d go home and have a bite of Brauschweiger.

Now, five years down the road, I am free from all the miserable addictions I listed above … gloriously free … and I owe it all to REPLACING BAD HABITS WITH A GOOD ONE.

BRAUNSCHWEIGER. It’s the answer.

Personally, I think it’s the ritual of slicing and spreading the soft, gooey liver sausage that soothes the savage beast … in fact, the process of preparing the snack is rather addictive itself!

Not only have I forever whipped the bad habits listed above by eating braunschweiger instead, but I have:

Improved vision
Glowing skin
Increased libido
and
High antioxidant levels

The only downside is that my fingers have acquired a permanently pungent, spicy odor that people sometimes notice … but hey, it beats the bad habits.

Daniel Richard Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 9:32 am

7 tries to quit smoking? I wonder how long exactly does that take. :)

My story would be regarding anger management. Yeah, I thought I had it over and done with earlier this year, until I got charged and had to pay for damaging government property.

That alone literally drained me off my savings which I would have to start from scratch again at the end of this year.

Could say that the incident was the turning point for me. :)

Christina Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 10:22 am

I thought it may be useful for Tarra to know another method to stop smoking which I used successfully 16 months ago.

I smoked for 23 years, about a pack a day and loved every minute. A friend whom I considered to be an even more committed smoker (I have seen him smoke in the shower) attended an Allen Carr EasyWay seminar and never looked back. This left me as the only smoker amongst all my friends, family and co-workers, and was the final push I needed to do something. I should add here though that I didn’t really want to stop, I just felt I should.

I paid £230 and the session was 4-5 hours long. I struggled to understand how it was going to work and questioned the coach until I thought he was going to allow me to continue smoking forever just to get me out his face. The seminar stops every 40-50 minutes so you can have a cigarette so you really do keep smoking right up to the last minute. Even as I was leaving the place sans cigarettes I still felt like a smoker and was sure I would be buying a pack later that evening. This did not worry me too much because if you smoke within three months of attending a seminar they refund your money.

16 months later I am still smoke free, and although I miss it I have never craved or had even one awkward moment where the desire to smoke overtook me, or interrupted what I was doing.

There is an Allen Carr book which you can read - another friend of mine stopped this way, but I read it three times without getting the point and continued to smoke. The seminar really worked and it honestly and truly was easy. The only problem I had was believing stopping smoking could be that easy!

Stopping smoking will be an enormous personal achievement and one which you can use to leverage positive power and thoughts into your daily life. It is very hard to stay positive and on top of things when you can see problems and obstacles around you, but you must always be aware of feeling negative so you can change your state. You are bringing up three young children; my goodness I couldn’t cope with that even if my life was plain sailing! So already you are doing something good and positive, and you are clearly a strong person. Why else would you be looking for tips? You are focused on action and that is a brilliant position. Don’t beat yourself up and I wish you all the best.

FrugalNYC Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 10:29 am

@san
Once you read enough on a aprticular topic and get past a certain point, things are usually repetitive. However, habits are just that, repetitive things you do! ;)

@Leo, I liked this post in its easy to read format. It was short, compared to some other posts. I like that. I agree with the point about swapping one habit for another. Given enough incentive to do or change something, you will make that change.

Neil Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 11:18 am

I quit smoking 4 years ago when I met my wife. It wasn’t the first time I had tried, but it worked that time as I was highly motivated to quit. I’ve had urges since then, usually when I’m highly stressed. That’s normally when I take a few deep breaths and take a brief walk to de-stress before getting back to the task at hand.

scott Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 11:22 am

Question: What exactly is braunschweiger? Does anybody know? Anyone other than William eat the stuff?

Where could I get some? I’m willing to give it a try. Heck, I’ll try anything that could get me off cigs.

Someone help, please!

jenny Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 11:35 am

This post comes at the best time!! I am quitting on Sunday, November 9th. I have quit before (once for two years) so I know the hardship I am going to go through. But I also know I can do it!!!

Thanks again for the post. And the site. I love your site so much and am so glad to have found it. Keep up the great work!!!

Hannes Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 11:39 am

Winston Churchill said: “If you are going through hell, keep going.”

TDC Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 11:46 am

As always some great advice and although what works for one may not work for someone else it is always good to read someone elses ideas as it may give you new inspiration. I particularly like your bonus tip as it is so true, if you slip back into a bad habit don’t class it as failure, learn from your mistake and treat it as a lesson. As Thomas Edison said “I haven’t failed, I’ve found 10,000 ways that don’t work”.

Matteo Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 12:08 pm

Hey Leo,

I’ve been an enthusiastic reader of your blog for some time,

As much as I love your article on turning bad ahbits into good ones I have to say your principles are far from the truth when it comes to smoking,

Having been a smoker myself, I claim to have stopped without willpower, cravings and long term planning, following Allen Carr’s method called ‘easyway to stop smoking’,

You might find it interesting to check one of Allen Carrs books yourself, as they lead you to question the brainwashing nicotine addiction causes and thus removes the desire to smoke before you decide to commit to it, giving a different perspective on smoking as a whole,

Regards, Matteo

Michael, Go Success Now Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 12:22 pm

Valeria I TimelessLessons@:

I actually do the same as you do:) If I thought of something I need to put it on paper.

I actually wrote a post about it: http://www.gosuccessnow.com/2008/10/20/why-a-pen-and-notepad-can-get-you-there/

It really works, sometime we had something great on our mind and we forget about it fast. Putting it on the paper can bring its rewards, doesn’t matter if it’s an idea or just a bad habit you want to get rid of. Everyone should try it.

Leo, good points. I would really want to hear more of your bad habits you changed.

Miss Attica Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 12:22 pm

Very interesting post! I totally agree with you, Leo. Espessially the “don’t give up if you fail… get up and try again!”

I have been working on getting better habits in the morning, and I find that by thinking of this as if I am an AA - only adicted to sleeping in and making a stressful start for myself… Has been working out pretty well for me. :-)

Miss Attica

pril Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 12:44 pm

Stopped smoking a couple years ago. I was doing great! until the parties started again! so found my main trigger that and my desire to want to so bad!
well i’m currently a smoker… :( but what made me want to quit was a book so i’m going to try again! the odd thing is it wasn’t a quit smoking book it was more or less a postivie approach to changing your life!
the book is called are you up for the challenge and it was givin to the sellers at work! and i got a copy! YEAH! it moved me!

I know you state to be accountable! but on something like smoking i found it best to keep it quite!
only because everytime someone asks me how is the non smoking thing going (it’s a trigger) why bring it up don’t say anything!
also using postitive self talk!
I live a healthy lifestyle!
i breath fresh air
I have healthy lungs!
helps and when someone points out the negitive (i don’t smoke) that’s negitive to me they say words count! don’t is a negitive word!
so instead of stop smoking
i’m learning to live a healthy lifestyle and making the needed changes in my life to be healthy!

TinyNow Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 13:50 pm

Leo,

I have been reading your blog for the past two seasons. Your writing is perfect for delivering real, practical information, concisely.

I noticed that your big list of accomplishments (on the “My Story” section of the About page) starts with quitting cigarettes. I am interested to hear about your failures before you found the tipping point.

I quit cigarettes twice, once for a year and a half, and once for nearly a year. I don’t know the secret, except that I had a positive attitude and a productive life when I quit. (I am smoking now, although quitting time is right around the corner. Thanks for keeping it in my consciousness.)

I know more about quitting drugs and alcohol. I was clean and sober for 7 years. I made a semi-conscious decision to use again a year or so ago and slowly came to realize it wasn’t a good idea for me. I quit drinking 50 days ago as a 30-day experiment. You can read about it at The 30-day Nephalist.

This is all prelude to a question:
How is quitting something related to creating a good habit?
I have often described my clean time as something that was predicated on the development of the habit of not drinking. In other words, is quitting really quitting, or is it creating the habit of not doing?

Thanks for the steady stream of common and uncommon wisdom.
-Tiny Now

(51 days and 10hrs ago, but who is counting)

Billy Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 14:58 pm

I favor trying to replace the negative habit with a positive addiction. This can literally send out different chemicals into the bloodstream that short circuit the desire for addictive substances. When I play music or listen to music, such as complex classical pieces, I find that my mind shifts gears, and whenever that happens, brain chemistry is altered for the better. I have also found that hypnosis and meditation are tremendously helpful when breaking addictive habits, and smoking ranks up there.

Anna Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 15:24 pm

What a timely post as today is my first day of quitting smoking! It’s been a tough day, that’s for sure. Cold turkey. I’ve quit before, for each of my pregnancies, so I know I can do it!

Angela Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 18:43 pm

That comment by William about braunschweiger really cracks me up! What a well written comment! It made my day. My dad loves the stuff so I grew up eating it - ahh brings back memories. Especially the smell - only a true braunschweiger eater would mention that, LOL.

kate Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 20:00 pm

Thank you Leo for another wonderful post : )

I’ve lost 12 kilos, about 26 pounds, in 2 yrs and have definitely formed new habits. The things that have kept me going are remembering i’m human and forgiving myself, re-inventing my plans, that is, tweaking them or changing them as interest/motivation wanes,not making it all too hard and NEVER EVER GIVING UP! Getting up each day or week and starting again.

Tess Marshall Says:

November 3rd, 2008, 20:08 pm

I was 27 when I quit smoking. I quit because I didn’t want my kids to smoke. I knew I had to replace it with something so I began running. I added one lap a week on an indoor track. Withing 6 months I was up to 6 miles. I entered my first 10K and came in dead last. However I thought of myself as a winner and so did my family.

Today I’m 54 and currently training for a half marathon. No matter who you are or how nasty your habit there’s no doubt in my mind you can quit.

I do think support groups are a good idea. You’ll never feel alone. You all go through the same things.

Miss Gisele B | myBeautyMatch.com Says:

November 4th, 2008, 7:57 am

Thank you Leo for another wonderful post. Getting rid of bad habits is not that easy. It all depends upon your mental strength.

dr aletta Says:

November 4th, 2008, 8:48 am

8) Nurture your spirit. Give your struggle over to your higher power. Doesn’t have to be God, just something or someone very personal, intimate.

Anyone attempting recovery from an addiction, and smoking is the worst, engages in a titanic battle. You all have my deepest admiration no matter the outcome.

nudgeme Says:

November 4th, 2008, 9:50 am

As a relatively recent ex-smoker, I enjoyed this post Leo. I esp endorse what people are saying about the Allen Carr technique - based on the idea that even the expression “giving up” smoking is unhelpful as that suggests it’s something good to give up. He simply says it’s about stopping smoking based on the concept that it’s not a treat, and that’s what really helped me. As long as you see smoking as a treat or reward, you’ll have a tough time. As soon as you see it as not giving up anything (and also not linked to being an addiction as another commenter mentioned) it’s actually not hard. That said, I’ve also stopped and started a few times, but it’s removing the treat factor that works. That and replacing the ritual of smoking with different associations ie, we all get something positive at some level from a habit - so identify what that is and then replace it with something else (in NLP they call this identifying the secondary gain of something - eg, someone might say they like to smoke to relax, when the underlying reason is they smoke to keep slim - it’s tackling the secondary gain that’s important). I’ve also just cut out alcohol for the past 10 days or so, as I felt it was contributing to weight gain (following no smoking) and it got to the point where it was really making me fed up. Visualising the image of not getting into my clothes, along with feeling sluggish, tired etc has really helped - so creating a vivid image of what you will gain to replace the triggers for the bad habit is also very powerful. Oh and I guess when cigarettes reached nearly £6.00 a packet in the UK - that was also a strong motivator!

Wanna Zen things up! Says:

November 4th, 2008, 13:47 pm

ooooh - I just LOVE zenning it up.

Head Health Nut Says:

November 6th, 2008, 16:46 pm

Like Jenny and Anna above, your post Leo is perfectly timed for me. This Saturday, November 8, I will stop smoking for the 5th time. Last time I used Allen Carr’s Easy Way to Stop Smoking - and it was easy!

My pitfall was the same one as the last few times (I’ve learned this time, for sure!) and that was getting drunk and tricking myself that I was a happy non-smoker and that I wouldn’t start again. Dang this blasted addiction!

For anyone interested in one theory of why we’re prone to addiction, I invite you to read: http://www.livelighter.org/what-david-duchovny-and-lindsay-lohan-have-in-common/.

To add to this excellent post, I’ve been seeing a naturopathic doctor to help me this time and among the small list of homework he gave me was creating a mantra. It’s a sentence or two that really means something to me, that will get me emotional when I recite it and will remind me of why I want to be a non-smoker. Two days ago I discovered it!

Thanks again for the wonderful and timely piece, Leo, and good luck to all those battling pesky addictions!

Hannes Says:

November 7th, 2008, 5:24 am

What I have heard is that all people who have started believing in God, have easily turned away from drinking, smoking, drugs etc.

Takumi86 Says:

November 8th, 2008, 11:47 am

well human habit just cannot be changed so easily by that, it takes time and sometimes could be forever, also the motivation from yourself is the most important factor if you really want a big change

دردشة Says:

November 8th, 2008, 17:37 pm

What I have heard is that all people who have started believing in God, have easily turned away from drinking, smoking, drugs etc.

V. Prasada Rao Says:

November 25th, 2008, 10:14 am

So many opposes not to stop suddenly the habit of consuming alcohol or smoking cigarettes. Suppose if the person who adcited since long wishes to stop suddenly by taking decision from next day onwards not to drink or smoke, does he faces any problem in his health conditions? If so what type of problem he faces? If I get reply for this, I am thankful.