“What if I cannot make it? What if I relapse?…” these are the questions smokers usually ask themselves when facing difficulties trying to quit.

The thing about smoking is it's addictive, and when you are trying to give up, the addiction casts doubts on your mind; making you wonder whether you can quit smoking completely or not.

Fear of failure

In fact, relapse is normal. Smoking is somehow similar to learning something new. In this case, you learn how to control your body better and how to stay away from the cigarette. It takes time and practice to make this work. You may relapse, but that's okay. A smoking relapse is not something that has a permanent effect on your progress. If you fall, pick yourselves up and try again, until you accomplish what you set out to do.

(Read also: The best way to stop smoking: stop trying)

Smoking feels good

It is understandable that people use smoking as a way to obtain a sense of highness, to feel more upbeat. Moreover, smoking occurs during social events like party and thus you associate smoking with socialising. When giving up smoking, you may feel the nicotine cravings saying that you need to smoke to have fun. In fact, you don’t need to. Smoking or not, the “fun” moments with your friends will be still there. Plus, there are a lot of things you can immerse yourself in which totally occupy your mind long enough for the cravings to go away. Smoking is not the only thing that feels good.

You feel like you are not ready yet

Most of the time, the idea of giving up smoking may sound a little bit strange to you as smoking has become a habit. Like a swimmer before jumping into the pool, they dip their toes in the water first. With smokers, you can try finding out what it's like to not smoke. Do some research, ask for opinions and so on. And of course, you need to understand what is holding you back from quitting smoking: is it your job that is quite stressful and you feel the need to smoke to feel better? Recognizing the obstacles and trying to find another way through them is the key to quitting smoking. Amusingly, if you still feel you are not ready yet, look at what prolonged smoking has done to others, and imagine that it is going to be you one day, then decide for yourself.

(Read also: Eight methods to quit smoking: How effective are they?)

Prolonged smoking

Speaking of prolonged smoking, some may find it pretty hard to give up the habit given that they have been smoking for decades. It will certainly not be easy. Therefore, a few adjustments to your plan to give up smoking may help. If you find yourself consuming 20 packs a week, then you could and you should cut it down one by one weekly. Or, you can try to not smoking for a whole day to see what it is like. Invest some fun into your progress, do some experiments, etc. These things will help keep you motivated. If completely quitting is difficult for you, perhaps nicotine replacement therapies like pills or pads may work.

It is normal to have some occasional thoughts about your smoking behaviors. What matters is that you are at least aware of how harmful smoking is and you are trying to quit it. Don’t beat yourself up just because you happen to relapse. Try again next time and put more effort into it. Whenever attempts are being made, they are steps closer to the finish line. (kes)

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