Are you psychologically addicted to smoking?

If so, that may be why you haven't been able to quit yet...

February 8, 2010

Dear Reader,

Most quitting methods only deal with nicotine, so they don't get rid of your desire to smoke. But what if you could eliminate the desire to smoke, before you quit?

If you’ve quit before, you’ve probably experienced those gut-wrenching cravings I’m talking about. The kind that make it difficult to focus on anything else. The kind that make it hard to remember why you even wanted to quit in the first place…

Well, what if you could quit without those cravings? What if you could eliminate the desire to smoke – naturally, at their source, without patches or pills, without herbs, acupuncture, or hypnosis – before you actually quit smoking?

Let me back up for a minute and explain something here.

We now know for a fact that nicotine – the drug in cigarettes – is fiercely addictive. Even the tobacco companies admit that now. And there are tons of products to help you deal with that physical addiction to nicotine – patches, pills, even herbs and acupuncture.

But that’s not the whole story. In fact, that’s not even half the story.

Most smokers are also psychologically dependent on smoking.

The truth is, in addition to the physical addiction to nicotine, smoking is also psychologically addictive. And if you’re going to quit smoking for good – and be happy and comfortable afterwards – you’ve got to get rid of the psychological dependence, too. Because for most people, it’s the psychological dependence that drives them back to smoking. And it’s the psychological dependence that drives them crazy with cravings for cigarettes – for weeks, months, sometimes even years after quitting.

Consider this: Nicotine is completely metabolized by your body within 72 hours. So anyone who has quit smoking for three days or more and then gone back was responding to the psychological dependence, NOT the physical addiction to nicotine.

In other words, according to the way nicotine is processed in your body, if you can quit smoking for three days, you should be home-free, not have any more cravings, not ever think about cigarettes, and never again have any desire to smoke.

But that’s not how it works, is it?

If you’ve also got a psychological dependence – and most people do – and you quit cold turkey, those first three days are horrible, and the ones after them can be even worse. In fact, if you don’t deal with the psychological dependence, you could have cravings for cigarettes for the rest of your life – even if you never go back to smoking!

Are you psychologically dependent?

There’s no question that anyone who has smoked regularly for awhile is physically addicted to nicotine. But what about the psychological dependence – is your smoking habit part of a psychological addiction, too?

Well, have you ever: 

• Quit for three days or more and then gone back to smoking?

• Had more than one cigarette lit at a time?

• Found yourself automatically reaching for a cigarette at certain times, like when the phone rings, or when you get in your car?

• ‘Chain smoked,’ lighting one cigarette right after another?

• Seen someone smoking (for instance, on TV or in a movie) and then wanted a cigarette?

If you answered yes to even one of the questions above, read on. Your addiction is partly psychological, and you’re going to need something more than a patch or a pill to quit smoking for good – especially if you also want to get rid of the desire to smoke.

Psychological principles of deep learning hold the secret.

Yes, the secret to quitting smoking lies in how people learn new information and behaviors.

Psychologists have discovered that people process information in two different ways, with two different ‘systems’ of learning. One of these – the rational system – processes conceptual information: ideas, facts, figures… This is the kind of learning you did in school, and the kind that you’re used to thinking about as ‘learning.’ Think of it as learning ‘on purpose.’

The other kind of learning is different. It’s called ‘experiential’ learning. It happens at a much deeper level, and often without even thinking about it. In fact, you rarely do ‘experiential learning’ on purpose, but you do it all the time anyway. The experiential system processes perceptual information – that is, information from your senses about your own personal experiences. Your experiential system ‘knows’ about things on an ‘intuitive’ level, because it’s based on your experiences.

In school, your rational system learned things like the capitols of all of the states, and historical dates and places, and when to use a comma instead of a semicolon. Now, your rational system probably knows that smoking causes cancer, heart disease, emphysema, and a host of other major and minor health problems. This system is the one that knows you ‘should’ quit smoking.

What does your experiential system know about smoking?

On the other hand, what your experiential system ‘knows’ is that after dinner, it’s time for a cigarette. And it knows that coffee and cigarettes go together. And it knows that if you’re feeling stressed out, a cigarette will help, right?

So, what your rational system ‘knows’ and what your experiential system ‘believes’ are often very different. For example, you probably know that statistics show that flying is safer than driving. But if you’re scared of flying, it is because your experiential system ‘believes’ that flying is dangerous.

See how that works?

You’ve probably already figured out that your rational learning doesn’t have much impact on your experiential beliefs. So telling yourself about how terrible smoking is because it causes all kinds of diseases doesn’t make you not want to smoke. That kind of information is ONLY processed by the rational system, and it doesn’t work on the experiential system.

I’m sure you can see the problem here. The desire to smoke is rooted in our experiential system, but it seems that there is nothing we can do with our rational system to change it.

Or is there?

In fact, you CAN tap into your experiential system of deeper learning, if you know how.

And since your experiential system controls your desire to smoke, you MUST tap into this system if you want to become a comfortable, happy ex-smoker. 

If you're psychologically dependent and you want to learn more about how to influence your experiential system, you may benefit from a series of informational e-mails I created to help people prepare to quit smoking. 

I call the series "Quit Smoking Tips," but it's much more than that.  In these e-mails I explain the experiential system in more detail, including The 7 Action Steps that you MUST take in order to develop an effective plan to quit smoking.  You won't find this information on any other quit smoking tip sheet!  You'll also receive a special preview offer for the Complete Quit System, available only to Quit Smoking Tips subscribers. 

Simply enter your name and e-mail address below to register.  It's free, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

The truth is, if you’re psychologically dependent, you really are going to need more than a patch or a pill to quit successfully.  You’re going to need information and techniques for beating both the physical AND the psychological addiction - so you can quit for good. 

If you really want to quit for good this time, read more about quitting with the Complete Quit System... 

"What did I like best about the program?  It works!  After 20 years of smoking, I didn't think I'd be able to quit, but the Complete Quit System not only showed me how to quit successfully, it told me exactly what to expect  during the process― right down to my cigarette dream!"

― Georgia S.,
Los Angeles

"I recommend the Complete Quit System to all of my patients who smoke.  As a periodontist, I see the effects of smoking every day.  Quitting may be the best thing you can do for your teeth and gums."

― Terry S., DDS

"I loved the very specific directions contained in the program.  I knew I wanted to quit, but I didn’t know where to start.  Having it all laid out step-by-step made it much easier.  I’m now smoke-free, and I’m completely blown away by it.  I never imagined that I would be able to do it, but I did!"

― Elizabeth B.,
Graduate Student

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