Hypnotherapy for Smoking – Case Study
Read Peter’s account of how hypnotherapy helped him quit smoking. Thanks to Peter for sharing his smoking hypnotherapy success story.
Peter Ashford – Mechanical Engineer – aged 40
I had been a heavy smoker for 10 years and really wanted to give it up. I hated my dependence on cigarettes as it made me feel like a loser in spite of being successful in other areas of my life. I just didn’t have the willpower to quit smoking. On occasions I attempted to stop, but within a few days the smoking urge got the better of me. I even visited an acupuncturist but this treatment didn’t stop the smoking habit. A friend suggested I see Alix as she’d helped him to stop smoking. I went along feeling unconvinced that she would be able to motivate me. I was very surprised how the session went. Under hypnotherapy Alix asked me to imagine the part of me that wanted to stop smoking in one hand and the resistant part in the other hand. Alix initiated a discussion with the two opposing parts of my mind. What came out of my mouth amazed me.
The resistant part felt that it would die if I gave up smoking. I had always been rebellious from an early age and I was often in trouble at school. My father had been very strict and had tried to control me. It clearly had not worked, in fact it made me worse. My rebellious behaviour had a negative effect on my life. It had even got me into fights as a teenager and had to appear in court. This shock stopped most of my rebellious behaviour but I had kept on smoking heavily. My family begged me to give it up but I kept clinging to the smoking habit. Alix helped me to negotiate with this rebellious part and I was able to make a commitment to myself to quit smoking forever. It was either the rebel part of me dies or I would die because of the deeply ingrained smoking habit. I no longer feel any desire to smoke and am now feeling fitter healthier and in control of my life. I don’t feel in conflict with myself any more.
Alix’s Comments on Hypnotherapy for Smoking Cessation
Inner conflicts exist in most people who want stop smoking and cannot kick the habit. It is no secret that smoking can wreck your health, but so many smokers go into denial. The unconscious mind convinces the smoker that the habit will help them to relax, feel more confident or provide some positive benefit to them. The consequences of smoking are denied and they believe that nothing will happen to them. However, once a person has decided to seek help for quitting smoking, hypnotherapy is a fast and effective treatment. The process can get to the root cause of why a person has difficulty giving up. A variety of techniques are used during the session to change old belief systems that keep the addiction running. In most cases this can be done in one session. The unconscious mind is reprogrammed so the feeling of dependency disappears for good. The client gains a sense of their own power and greater self worth as they are finally able to let go of their smoking habit. New positive ways of living are programmed into the client’s unconscious mind so they can make healthier choices in the future.
Further Reading on Stopping Smoking
How Online Hypnotherapy Helps with Unwanted Habits
How to Break Bad Habits with Hypnotherapy
Hypnosis to Stop Smoking – A New Way to Quit
How to Stop Smoking with Hypnotherapy
