A lot of people within addiction cessation support groups will say: “It doesn’t necessarily get better, but it does get different”.
I have to admit when I first heard this I shook my head and muttered something about ‘psycho-babble nonsense’. But now I understand what these people were trying to tell me.
As addicted people, we (smokers) have developed an incredible psychological and emotional bond with our choice substance. In fact the desire to light up may never fully go away; our twisted love for smoking is likely to stay with us for the rest of our lives, whether we ever smoke again or not.
There will be those times, right after a meal, when you wake up in the morning, etc. when you have a strong memory of your days as a smoker and experience a sometimes powerful urge to light up.
We tend in these moments to reflect only on the perceived good aspects of our deadly habit. We think of how a freshly lit cigarette smells, and we think about the head rush we get after the first couple of puffs. But we fail to think of the chest pains, the constant fatigue and coughing, the nasty smell left on our hands at the end of the day, and all the other gruesome effects of smoking.
Rehabilitation specialists refer to this one-sided recollection on the part of addicts as “euphoric recall”, and it is one of the most difficult aspects of abstinence. In fact I believe euphoric recall is without a doubt the biggest contributing factor to a relapse in an addicted person’s life.
Back to my original statement, which is a repeat of what more experienced former smokers say: “It doesn’t get easier, but it does get better”.
After enough time passes, after you get through those tough first few months and stay on your smoke free program, you’ll notice a big difference in the way your mind automatically handles the euphoric recall. During your first couple of weeks the smell of a cigarette can be enough to drive you up the wall with a craving, but after your first year the impact of this urge will take more of a ‘background’ role.
Here’s what I mean: Over time, although your cravings still exist, you will become used to them and they will not occupy center stage in your mind. You’ll be able to acknowledge the feeling, but keep moving forward without any real desire to stop and light up a smoke.
It’s an amazingly liberating experience the first time you realize you are having an emotional craving, but you aren’t physically compelled to act on the craving by having another smoke. I sincerely hope you’ll stick with whatever smoking cessation program you are currently on long enough to experience this thrill firsthand.
