A Journey to Total Human Optimization : Breaking the Chain of Nicotine
A Journey to Total Human Optimization
Note: None of the subjects I will be covering will be done in chronological order. These are the things I did do which got me from my story of "Painful Beginnings" to right now.
You can find my story of "Painful Beginnings" here :
Journey of Total Human Optimization : Painful Beginnings
Chapter #2 : Breaking the Chain of Nicotine
One of the very first things I cut out of my life was smoking.
Smoking was my first real substance addiction, so I guess that was a good place to start. Also, I think, in part, it felt to me like it was doing the least for me out of all my terrible habits. At least with doing drugs, there was the result of getting high. I didn't feel much reward from smoking. I was just hopelessly addicted to smoking.
I started smoking daily since age 13.
I almost don't remember a time I didn't smoke. The idea of not smoking first thing in the morning, after a meal, while taking a shit and basically as a conclusion to every activity seemed completely alien to me.
Life didn't seem livable without cigarettes. Yet I hated the fact that I smoked. I felt it sincerely didn't do much for me. Yet no matter how many times I try to kick the habit, I would start craving them too much and eventually cave and start smoking again.
Yet when I do start smoking again, I hate the fact that I am smoking again and feel I don't gain anything from it all while straight up burning money. I felt completely hopeless to my addiction to tabacco. I hated it so much yet had no idea how to live without it.
My turning point with smoking came when a good friend recommended me the book that would finally bring me to the light, and help me quit smoking for good. Not only to stop smoking, but to not CRAVE smoking any longer.
Even now, as I think about it, going back to when I was hopelessly addicted to cigarettes, it would seem impossible to not crave cigarettes. It was simply too ingrained in me. For if it were possible to stop craving cigarettes, I would have already quit!
I have lost count of the number of times I had managed to forcefully stop myself from smoking for a period of a few weeks to, if I was with much will power at the time, up to a month or two. But eventually, I always caved. Always. The cravings never ever went away, it didn't matter how long it had been since I last smoked.
So profound were the teachings within this book, that I can confidently say, that if any smoker were to pick up this book, read it and fully comprehend the lessons within it, that there will be no turning back. I am absolutely certain of the contents of this book that I would recommend every single smoker that has an inkling to want to stop smoking to read it and take it seriously.
The point of this post, is to also go over the few core principles of the book. So that I may hopefully enlighten some poor souls out there who feel completely beholden to smoking, just as I was.
For it is, to me, the definitive way to stop smoking, and I am utterly convinced, with my heart of hearts that it can help every smoker quit smoking.
So what is this miracle quit smoking book I am talking about?
Alternatively, you may also go to https://www.allencarr.com/ to find out more.
I endorse Allen Carr's method 100% and am certain it will work for every single smoker alive.
Why?
Because it isn't even a method! All the book teaches you, is what exactly the phenomenon of smoking and how it is keep you trapped! Once you understand how you are being trapped, you can very easily untangle yourself from the trap!
Think of it like this. If I were to drop you into a maze of which you have no idea how to get out of, you would very much find yourself completely stuck and hopeless to get out!
Now what if I gave you a map of the maze? Not that it wouldn't require effort or time once you have the map, but you sure as hell wouldn't be stuck anymore would you?
So here are just one of the tenents of Allen Carr's book that he will teach you, to get you out of the smoking trap, of which I have experienced exactly myself, and which I have applied to stop smoking permanently.
Using willpower to stop smoking does not work
This point, as I have described earlier, is what I experienced myself.
Using my will power to stop smoking was the utter most draining process that I have put myself through, it taxes my very soul, utilizing all my power within myself to stop from picking up another cigarette. Worse of all, it does not work.
Time after time, after going through the sheer punishment of restraining myself from smoking, I always caved.
That is one of the most defeating moments I have felt in my life. I feel like I wasted all my effort and hate myself for smoking again. All while feeling the hopelessness of me ever quitting smoking set in.
What Allen Carr teaches you is that you first need to solve a fundamental conundrum in your head.
You have never enjoyed smoking, EVER.
That's right, completely regardless of how long you have smoked you HAVE NEVER felt pleasure from doing so.
Not even from a logical stand point, being things like for your health, the money, the fact that you smell like death all the time.
No no, deeper than that, the fundamental truth that, smoking has never and I mean never ever brought you any semblence of pleasure.
**It ever had, never will. **
When I read that for the first time, I was immediately skeptical and unbelieving of the statement.
Are you to tell me I am a complete idiot who does not understand the sensation of pleasure? Because it sure as hell felt good to me the last time I smoked a cigarette.
But after elboration, it actually made much more sense.
The way Allen Carr's paints it is like this.
The feeling of 'pleasure' you get when you smoke, is akin to the feeling of the 'pleasure' you feel by firstly, tightening your shoe around your foot to the point that it hurts, then undoing it.
Would you really consider that sensation pleasure?
It isn't the sensation of 'pleasure' you feel when you smoke. Rather it is the sensation of relief.
Relief from the nicotine craving created by the cigarette before.
This theory adds up in science as well.
The nicotine molecule is shaped like a neurotransmitter Acetylcholine, a molecule your brain naturally produces for the normal bodily functions including memory, learning, heart rate regulating, muscle movements and breathing.
Upon consumption of nicotine, your brain mistakes nicotine for Acetylcholine and your brain stops the natural production of Acetylcholine.
As such, the feeling of craving you get after not smoking for a couple of hours, is actually your body feeling that lack of, Acetylcholine and NOT nicotine.
To make matters worse, the further consumption of nicotine then signals the brain that Acetylcholine has been replenished and as such, the production of Acetylcholine is not required, making your body have a complete lack of a essential neurotransmitter for normal bodily functions.
Quiet simply, the very feeling of 'craving' nicotine, is not a craving for nicotine at all!
It is nicotine tricking your brain into thinking you are consuming something that is essential to your body's function and thereby stopping the production of Acetylcholine which then cause a lack of Acetylcholine in your system, which is what cause the sensation of craving.
Lastly, upon the cessation of nicotine consumption, regular production of Acetylcholine by your brain resumes to regular levels in about 3 days and from then, regular function and production of Acetylcholine is resumed.
In conclusion, any form 'pleasure' derived of smoking, is really just you causing utter chaos in your own brain's regular function, with the additional consumption of nicotine to be of no relief, rather further problems as your brain never receives what it was craving for in the first place, and not to be confused with any form of 'pleasure'.
If that is the case, then why the hell do I still crave smoking so much after 3 days? If Acetylcholine production in my brain resumes after 3 days, shouldn't I not want cigarettes any more after that point? And how does this relate to using will power to quit smoking not working?
Here is the KEY POINT you need to keep in mind.
When you use will power to quit smoking, you THINK you are depriving yourself of something.
And because you think THINK your brain registers the stopping of smoking to be of LOSS VALUE.
However, as you now understand, there was absolutely no value lost. Addiction to nicotine was never about cravings from the deprivation of the chemichal nicotine. It was PSYCHOLOGICAL conundrum. Once you realize this key point, you will be able to break the first chain from nicotine addiction.
Case in point
Using will power to quit smoking will never work, as your psyche is being lead to believe it is being deprived of some sort of value. Where the fact of the matter is, THERE WAS NO VALUE TO BE HAD TO BEGIN WITH.
You were just sadly, caught in a trap.
When I finally understood this, there was no cravings left to be had. The shackles of nicotine addition started to wither away.
Nicotine addiction for me, once upon a time, was such an immense issue hovering over me, leaving me on my knees in utter hopelessness to ever stop smoking. Feelings of being doomed to my addiction.
To think that the solution was as simple as change in the fundamental concept of smoking seems almost magical to me.
I absolutely recommend Allen Carr's Easy Way To Quit Smoking and attest that what I have covered here is a mere fraction to what it is about. It has helped me break the first of my many habits which I did not want in my life, and taught me extremely important lessons about addiction which I applied to my other substance addictions to wither away my many other shackles.
I hope this information may open the eyes of just one person who feel utterly hopeless in the face of their addiction to smoking. If this post leads to just 1 person being able to overcome their addiction, it would be a complete win for me as is.
Please let me know in the comments if you made it this far and if you found this post useful. I would love to hear from anyone who found this information useful.
Read about my story of a "Leap of Faith" that I took with Steemit here!
