Top 3 Ways Reduce Your Urge to Smoke in Less Than 5 Minutes!

Here are the top 3 ways to reduce your urge to smoke.

1) Reduce the possibility to smoke

• Buy only one pack at a time or switch to another brand. Put that pack in a difficult place, like a locked drawer or sealed jar.
• Save your cigarette butts in a large transparent jar. Smell the jar everyday to remind you how awful cigarettes taste.
• Get rid of things that remind you of smoking, like ashtrays, lighters, match boxes and so on.

2) Distract yourself during an urge - Get busy!

• Drink a glass of water or juice.
• Chew sugarless gum, a toothpick, sunflower seeds, or a carrot stick.
• Cut a straw in half and "smoke" it like a cigarette.
• Stretch. Go for a walk. Go for a bike ride.
• Work a jigsaw puzzle or solve a crossword.
• Read the newspaper, a magazine or a mystery novel.
• Sing, whistle, or listen to your favorite music.
• Call up your non-smoking friends. A support group to remind you whenever you falter can be a very effective quit smoking strategy.

3) Self Help Techniques - Wait for the urge to go away

• Speak out aloud to ask yourself whether you really want this cigarette.
• Breathe deeply and count to 10.
• Count to 100 slowly - at least 3 times. In less than 5 minutes your urge is likely to go away! You will feel fewer and weaker urges, the longer you stay away from cigarettes.