Hypnosis to Quit Smoking

Hypnosis to quit smoking has worked for hundreds of thousands of smokers. Many who have attempted quitting have tried nicotine patches, gums, even subscription medications, and failed.

Hypnotherapy provided by a professional or certified therapist has a long track record of success. Most who go this route do so only after being frustrated by their attempts with more 'traditional' approaches. Fear of the weight gain that often accompanies quitting is another common reason for trying hypnosis.

Self-hypnosis to quit smoking has become increasingly popular over the last decade. One reason for this rise is the Internet. For many people, the time and cost involved in seeking direct treatment is prohibitive, whereas there are many free or low-cost aids available online. This provides the additional benefit of being able to access them at home, or in the case of audio recordings, in the car - even at the beach or while walking for those with an iPod or Walkman.

Why would someone be more successful using hypnosis to quit smoking than using more popular or mainstream methods?

The answer is that hypnotism addresses the underlying psychological barriers that make quitting so difficult. It is the reason hypnotherapy has been used to successfully overcome almost every type of negative habit and behaviour.

Most of these techniques revolve around being placed, or placing yourself into a hypnotic state where the subconcious mind is open to suggestion. This is how all hypnotherapy begins, and is usually accomplished using various relaxation techniques, followed by more specific excercises.

Once a trance-like state is reached, it becomes possible to begin implanting the appropriate suggestions. In this case, these might include suggestions such as "I am not a smoker", "I do not like smoking", "I will not crave cigarettes", etc.

By lodging these suggestions directly into the subconcious mind, they can effectively overcome the physical and mental cravings common to almost all addictions. 

People who have used hypnosis to quit smoking, however, have won only half the battle. Almost 85% of all those who have quit this way end up going back to their habit.

The reason is that they cease their hypnotherapy once they give up smoking. Over time, the emotional and psychological "triggers", which were usually in place far longer than this new-found abstinence, begins to over-ride the implanted suggestions.

In other words, without some longer-term ongoing effort, most of those who have used hypnosis to quit smoking, relapse if they don't engage in some level of ongoing practice and repetition after they have initially quit.

Any good therapist or professional will tell their patients this, but few heed this advice. Because effective hypnotherapy or self-hypnosis has made it "easy" to quit, and the effects of suggestion so strong, most people are over-confident in the beginning. Therefore, they don't feel the need for ongoing treatment once their initial problem seems to have been solved.

Hypnosis can be an extremely powerful tool, and in that sense it can fall victim to it's own success. Just like those who use hypnosis for weight loss, without a plan for ongoing treatment, the failure rate skyrockets.

Using hypnosis to quit smoking can be very effective, but the odds for long-term success can be improved by finding a support group either locally or online, as well as by keeping busy. Having too much idle time allows the concious mind to overcome the sub-concious programming of hypnosis.