The Top 10 Ways To Help Stop A Bad Habit Or An Addiction

Originally Submitted on 4/17/97.

Everyone has a habit and some an "addiction" that they would like to break or quit for health or other reasons. The "bad" habits can be minor such as nail biting, mild overeating, eating junkfood, drinking caffeine beverages, or,they can be severe addictions to alcohol or other "hard" drugs, or to tobacco. This list is intended for most people as an ADJUNCT to getting *professional* or other supportive help from their doctors, substance abuse counselors or therapists, sponsors, family and friends. Always get professional help when trying to quit an alcohol/drug habit, and it's highly recommended if you are needing to seriously diet or quit smoking tobacco also.

1. Make Sure Positive Reinforcement Is There For You!

Quitting a long-standing habit is hard enough. Not having any support or positive influences makes it doubly difficult. If you are trying to quit smoking or to drink alcohol, hanging out with friends who smoke or drink in your presence is not recommended. TELL your friends and *all* support people what you are trying to work on and quit, and let them know it will be easier for you to quit if you are not tempted by being around the habits or activities you are giving up. Let them know it is not a "personal" judgment of them. Find new places to go, and new things to do if you must, to avoid smelling the smoke or being around the bars and the booze. This is especially important during the first 2-3 weeks of your "self-improvement" program.

2. Give Yourself Frequent Rewards!

Animal trainers have long known that the way to train or retrain an animal to do something is by giving them a small reward when they have done well. This theory works well with humans as well. If you have gone a day without smoking or sipping a beer, or eating any junk food, treat yourself to something healthy. Buy yourself the scarf or shirt you have been looking at for months. If overeating or junk food is not your bad habit/addiction, buy yourself an ice cream cone, frozen yogurt, or a banana split! A new CD or book is also a small but symbolic gift which says you are doing well, and you deserve to be commended! Buy or give yourself whatever" treat" or gift you like. The above are suggested since the treats animals trainers use of fish, dog biscuits and bananas are not very appealing to most humans.

3. Substitute The Old "Bad" Habit For A Healthy New One.

If you are giving up smoking, eating junk food, alcohol, or tobacco, there are things you can substitute for them that will make quitting easier. Sugar free gum and candy in your mouth is a well tested substitute for a cigarette, pipe or cigar. It lacks the nicotine, but it does serve a purpose and seems to help many people. Lollipops worked for the TV series detective "Kojak" as I recall. Also, if junk food is your "bete noire," keep popcorn (NOT the microwave type that is salted and very oily) on hand to pop in a "hot air" or microwave popper without oil. Studies have found that humans get a lot of their craving for food satisfied by eating things that "crunch." Obviously there are very high calorie snacks that crunch, but pick some that do not, such as carrot and celery slices (keep on hand in a large bowl of water in the refrigerator so they are all ready to eat). If "rabbit food" does not appeal to you, try the popcorn or be creative. People quitting alcohol can keep club soda or carbonated flavored drinks on hand. They allow you to drink something, and they are a good alternative at parties and when you must be in a bar or lounge.

4. Quit or Change For *Yourself* First, Not For Anyone Else.

Self-motivation is vital to quitting a bad habit or an addiction. Do not start trying to quit a behavior or addiction because your spouse, minister, parents, or friends want you to do it. You *must* be at a place where you want to quit for YOURSELF, because you realize what you are doing is not healthy or is not something you want to continue to do. Without this "self-motivation," quitting will be harder, and often is not long-term nor permanent. It is fine to quit also for the benefit of your friends and family and job and doctor, etc. AND, you must first really have a "deep down" commitment and desire to quit for *you* and for your own health, self-esteem, emotional balance, and happiness. Use your family and friends who support your efforts to help you and help keep you motivated beyond your own "inner strength" and desire to change.

5. Use PROFESSIONAL Help And A Dependable Support Network!!

Especially if you are addicted to alcohol, to cigarettes, or to drugs, it is important to have a physician who is very knowledgeable about your condition, and who will support you and monitor your health and your progress as time passes during your change and recovery phases. It is important to have a recent physical exam if you have been an alcohol or drug abuser, or if you are severely overweight. This way, the doctor can offer advice on any appropriate dietary supplements, as well as exercise guidelines for your specific situation. In addition, get the help of a support group which specializes in your problem if it is overweight, or substance abuse. They are usually free and can be of good support to you in the early stages of your new "lifestyle change." Friends, family and clergy are also common sources of support. A therapist or "substance abuse counselor" is also an option. Check your Yellow Pages under "Substance Abuse," "Hospitals," "Counselors," "Therapists," "Drugs," "Rehabilitation," and even the "Red Cross." Many of these agencies have either free or "sliding scale" support programs available, depending on your situation and the size of your city.

6. Start A Stress Reduction Program When You Begin Your Change.

We have all heard people say they need a drink "to unwind," or a cigarette "to calm my nerves." That is simply medical hog wash. Most people know nicotine is a stimulant, and does nothing physiologically to "calm" the smoker down! While alcohol IS a depressant, and the person will feel sedated or "calmer" for a while, after the alcohol is metabolized as sugar, it drops the blood sugar level, and the adrenal glands are stimulated, often making the person edgy or nervous again. Some heavy drinkers often wake in the night a few hours after going to bed, due to hunger (the low blood sugar is making them hungry) or an inability to stay asleep (the adrenal glands have "kicked in" and they have put some adrenaline, cortisol, etc. in the bloodstream, raising the person's pulse rate and blood pressure). And as we also know, many people say that eating food or certain foods "calms them down" or helps them "feel better" when they are sad or disturbed. It's time to start reducing the stress and tension by healthy means. The best (and most easily used in any environment) stress and tension control skills to learn are yoga, meditation, self-relaxation or self-hypnosis, and biofeedback. These can all be learned by books, video and audio tapes, or you can go see a trained professional and learn them. They will be useful to you your entire life, and will help you immensely when you get the craving for a cigarette, a drink, or a quart of "Rocky Road." The time to learn them well enough to get good use from them will vary from 1-4 weeks. The cost can be as low as $10. for a book or audio tape, to $400-500. for a month of professional instruction. Keep in mind the cost of a month of smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, or junk food. DO IT. It is well worth the investment.

7. Don't Get On The "Guilt Train" During Your Journey To Self-Improvement.

Change, and especially the giving up of severe addictions, is an up and down journey. You will have many good hours, days, and weeks, and you will have times when you are ready to quit and "throw in the towel." It is RARE for a person to quit a bad habit or an addiction without experiencing these "ups and downs." If you falter; sneak a "smoke," buy 3 Snickers bars at the Quick Trip and devour them in the car on the way home, etc. don't beat yourself up for it later! Guilt is a *non-productive* feeling humans create to handle conflict. Creating guilt will only lower your self esteem, making it harder for you to stay on course. Many behavioral scientists also believe guilt actually makes it *easier* for humans to repeat "bad" behaviors, since they have in a sense "punished" themselves for what they did, and the punishment was not all that bad! Do not accept guilt laid upon you by anyone else either. Forgive yourself. Remind yourself that what you are doing is hard, and that it is for your very best interest, and that changing or dumping a bad habit or addiction is VERY difficult. If you find quitting alcohol is too hard alone without medication, some doctors still will prescribe drugs such as "Antabuse." Be aware that it will make you *VERY* ill if even the smallest amount of ANY type of alcohol is ingested or enters your bloodstream. This includes such substances as shaving lotion and rubbing alcohol on the skin as well! Try to use this as a last resort.

8. Get Yourself Into A Routine of Physical Exercise.

Depending on the habit or addiction you are working on quitting, you may already be exercising.. Chances are however, if you are a heavy smoker, drinker, or eater, you are not exercising much, if at all. Drinking, smoking, and obesity of course affect the heart and lungs so much that anything very strenuous has the drinker, smoker (often heavy smoking and drinking go hand-in-hand) or obese person huffing and puffing in a short time. First, have your doctor examine you and give you any guidelines regarding the types and the degree of exercise he feels you are ready for to be medically safe. The exercise serves several purposes. The main two are to get your heart and lungs reconditioned if you have been an abuser of alcohol or tobacco or overweight, and to help keep your tension level under control. You will also find that you have a very hard time sipping a scotch, smoking a cigarette, or eating a Big Mac or anything else while you are running, on a treadmill, on a "stair stepper," in the swimming pool, riding a bike, or "Sweating To The Oldies" at a health club. The trick is to keep your mind on the road ahead, the speedometer, the water, or the various spandex outfits around you. Distraction and stress reduction combined will greatly help to curb any outside thoughts or cravings for most people.

9. Hit "Rock Bottom" *If You Must* To Get Motivated.

Most of the animal kingdom is smarter than humans when it comes to learning lessons or to taking care of themselves. If a fox gets buckshot in his rump trying to sneak into a chicken coup, chances are he will never return. If a young bear cub reaches into a bee hive for honey and gets his nose stung by the angry bees, he'll learn another way of getting the honey before he tries that again. For some reason, God and the Universal Laws of "Lesson Learning 101" for humans is many times more difficult. Humans often need to get "hit in the head by a brick," "run over by a truck," or almost die, before they figure out it is time to evaluate their lifestyle or habits! If it takes a doctor saying he sees a "suspicious spot" on your lung X-ray, or a "large mass" in your colon or on your liver for you to decide this is perhaps your final "wakeup call" to change a harmful habit or addiction, pay attention! You can start to work on your life ANY time. *Hopefully*, you can do it before any serious damage has been done by your habits or addictions. If not, do what the doctors recommend, and all of these hints will still be of great benefit to you in how you recover or feel.

10. Pace Yourself, Depending On Your Particular Situation.

Do not gauge your progress or lack of same based on other people's experiences, what you read, see on television, etc. You are unique, both in your body and mind. Everyone heals and recovers and changes at different rates and in different ways. Don't be fooled by the ads for "quick and easy" weight loss by liquid diets, pills, herbs, or machines. It takes a combination of *many* things,some named above, to really successfully lose weight. The same is true of addictions to tobacco. Do not think that a magic "patch" or chewing gum is going to help you quit quickly and forever. Without the motivation, the exercise, the stress control, and the other things mentioned, you will probably be using tobacco within a few weeks or months. This is documented by scientific studies. The same is true of alcohol or drug addictions and withdrawals. One needs to use a muti-disciplinary treatment program to ease off and quit and to stay away from any bad habit or addiction. Have your doctor, your therapist, your counselor or coach, and your family support you, and as long as you are making progress, even if it seems inordinately slow to you, you are on track and will do much better perhaps than those who lost 5-7 pounds a week (never suggested by experts) or who quit smoking or drinking or drugs "cold turkey." When in doubt, ask your support and professional team for guidance, and if necessary, ask for encouragement! It takes guts to quit a bad habit or addiction. Allow yourself to feel good about your decision to do it. When you have done it, celebrate life and give youself a BIG gift of some kind!

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