How VIDEO GAMING Helped Me Quit SmokingPosted by Orr Juhl on May 28th, 2021 In somewhat recent years, there was a campaign of anti-smoking commercials from BecomeAnEx.org, and I loved them. It had been the very first time I felt like someone really discovered the secret to quitting smoking, and offered it from the sympathetic perspective, with a sense of humor and a sincere need to help smokers. I have seen many commercials against smoking over the years. Somehave tried fighting cigarettes by unveiling statistics about smoking and its own industry, with this particular self-righteous "look how clever we are" approach that is rather alienating. It's like being told to quit smoking by a person who is more invested in their marketing pitch compared to the problem at hand. And then there have been the deluge of "scare tactic" commercials that show you blackened lungs and people coping with tracheotomies. While I think these commercials hold some worth, they're more likely to give a smoker pause, instead of actually helping them to quit. Our selective memory kicks in, and kicks out the bad ones. The aforementioned campaign, however, nailed the essence of the smoking problem in several brief moments. It pointed out that smoking is strongly linked to habitual behavior; you smoke with your morning cup of coffee, during your morning routine, or during happy hour at the bar. These commercials suggested that you could relearn all of these activities without a cigarette. The main one about happy hour even suggested you "keep a beer in one hand and not a cigarette in the other". That is smart advice. Physical addiction of nicotine is nothing when compared to the mental addiction of smoking. Because of Additional hints , wearing a patch doesn't instantly repair the problem; a smoker still really wants to hold and smoke a cigarette. Mental addiction is king. I was quite lucky; I gradually gave up smoking simply because I had not been enjoying it anymore, and that managed to get far easier to walk away. But some of this habitual smoking through association was still rearing its ugly head. Eliminating those last few lines of defense can be the hardest. Once you quit cigarettes (or are along the way of doing so), you might notice certain new habits overtaking temporarily. Once of them may be the famous one: eating. And other ones pop up, like chewing the caps from pens (until they are completely unrecognizable). However, one activity that interfered with my smoking was entirely by chance, yet so able to keeping my body and mind off of smoking, it ought to be recommended in support groups: playing video games. It is probably arguable that the full total sensory connection with playing a gaming contributes in distracting the ball player from alternative activities like smoking (or socializing... kidding!), but I believe that the controller is the key. Keeping both of your hands fully occupied and working hastily makes you forget about holding a cigarette. And why not? People have a tendency to smoke the most when they are unoccupied, bored and feeling lazy. People smoke on the breaks. People smoke at their laptops and during a football game on television. It's down-time, time and energy to drink a beer, have a smoke and watch a movie! Video games are down time too, but do not let for a half-hearted relationship with them. I remember when I'd play games like Halo 3 online, discussing strategies with friends and controlling my Spartan Soldier. I was much too engaged with the overall game to smoke (or utilize the bathroom, for example!). In fact, when I would light up a cigarette between matches, I'd take my first puff and put it down, as we would already be back in the firefight. By enough time I reached for my cigarette again, nothing remained save an extended log of ash, burning away in the ashtray. That is clearly a powerful moment to note; I had made my choice. That wouldn't function as last cigarette I ever had. But it wouldn't function as last time I ignored them in favor of playing video games, either.Like it? Share it! More by this author |