Day 19
No journey is ever complete, it is ongoing.
Now that you have made it this far, it is time to think back and ask yourself or others who have recently stopped smoking to think back to those kind of situations that might cause some difficulties in the future.
• If you were to go back to smoking, what kind of situation would trigger it?
• Where would you be?
• What would you be doing?
Many people don’t think ahead. They enjoy their feeling of success and really don’t want to feel as if it is possible to run into trouble. Yet there is a big value in being able to look into the future. You can prepare yourself for those “trigger” situations.
Experts recommend the idea of looking ahead. The goal is to put yourself into the future situation before it happens. For example, a week before a big party, you sit and picture yourself already there. You see the people, the drinks and food, and, of course, the smokers. You begin to feel the urge to smoke. Now, you begin to imagine yourself beating this temptation. You can see how, for example, you decide to go outside for a short walk or go to get a glass of ice water when the urge comes over you. This kind of looking ahead can be very helpful once you are in the real situation.
The only way to be sure to remain free of the old habit is to decide, once and for all, never to smoke that next cigarette. When you get to this decision, you’ll know that you’ve got it licked.
Think, Think, Think