live | kicking the habit

I don't smoke myself.  In light of what has happened to Dad (whose parents smoked, although no one is certain of the cause of his cancer), what happened to my Uncle, my Nanna and Grandad and my Grandpa who smoked, contributing to his heart disease, I have avoided cigarettes from day one.

I have been interested in habit formation and kicking habits for quite a while.

After all, it's what we do every day that ends up defining our happiness, health and life in general, not what we do once in a while.

The other day I opened my email and one of those ads came up alongside for something called 'Stoptober'.  I was intrigued, so clicked the link.

Cigarettes
I remember my Year One teacher telling us all about the risks of smoking, and then going up to her at the end of class and asking if my Nanna would be OK.  She told 7 year old me that seeing as Nanna had smoked her whole life, and nothing had happened to her so far, she would be OK.  Largely, this was true, but we will never know if we might have had more time with her, had she stopped.

As such, helping people to stop smoking is an issue that's really close to my heart.  Whatever the reasons for beginning smoking, it doesn't matter - what matters is what we choose to do about it now.

Alcohol
There's another movement happening in October, called 'Sober October' which has led me to think about this on a broader scale.  Sober October is quite self-explanatory - it's about stopping drinking in October.  I don't really drink either - never having really enjoyed the taste of it. However, I know loads and loads of people who do drink, and whilst I understand that in moderation it can be a pleasure that doesn't need to harm you, I also know that when it's abused, it can be fatal.  In my opinion, the benefits don't outweigh the negatives, given that it is, essentially, a toxin that your liver has to work overtime to flush out.  But, that is just me and if you enjoy alcohol then that's fine too.  The problem occurs, as with anything, with addiction.

Breaking Habits
This is where habits come into play.  So if you, like me, don't have problems with alcohol or  cigarettes, you can still be inspired by Stoptober and Sober October to kick your bad habits.

I have actually joined the Stoptober emailing list and also downloaded the app to my phone in order to learn more about how we can kick bad habits into shape.  It's actually a great app for any kind of bad habit that you want to eliminate from your life.

The idea is that if you stop something for 28 days, you are 5 times more likely to remain off of whatever it is than if you only stop for a shorter amount of time.

The app has useful tips too - throw away the thing you are having cravings for - get it out of the house.  Out of sight out of mind!   Avoid the places where you know there will be whatever it is you are trying to stop.  Tell people about your project - you'll be accountable and less likely to slip.  There are even rewards for doing well - making it into a game makes you more likely to keep going - your brain wants to win.  Finally, the app offers craving support which you can click on when you get that urge to indulge.

What can we do?
So, if you think this might be helpful for you, I strongly urge you to have a look at the website for either movement, and download the app.  You can pinpoint your own motivation for quitting, and keep reminding yourself of that.

The thing to bear in mind is that in order to truly make a habit go away, we've got to work out what it is that the habit is satisfying.  For example, every day at three o'clock, you might get up from your desk and go and eat a cookie from the canteen.  You don't want to keep doing it as you're putting on weight.  But you can't seem to stop, even though you don't want to gain weight.  Why?  Because you don't know what the habit is really doing.  Perhaps you are going to eat the cookie because you're hungry - in which case you need a better lunch.  Perhaps you are really bored and need some human contact - in which case you could satisfy that by going to the water cooler and having a chat with a colleague.  Whatever it is that is motivating the habit, you can find other ways to satisfy this need, and that way you can replace the habit with a harmless new habit and really get rid of that bad habit for good.

Are you interested?
I 've been reading about this for a while... so there are lots of resources available on the web!

• Check out Charles Duhigg who wrote an amazing book about habits.  
• Have a look at Gretchen Rubin's blog.  As well as being mid-way through writing her book on habits, she regularly posts new things she has discovered about becoming a more efficient and happier person, and is the author of a really popular book called 'The Happiness Project'.  A great website all round, and very inspiring.  
• James Clear is also another blogger who has fantastic ideas, really simply explained on his website.  He is great at helping you to streamline your life into something really fantastic. 

Enjoy today! (And enjoy this infographic courtesy of Charles Duhigg below!)

- rosinaviolets    x