Still around! Hello Steve and everyone!
I have been working on how my body does react when it is time for that
little nictine fix! And yes I start getting tense all over, anxious,
heart beating fast, I have been holding off on smoking. Because if I
don’t I will just grab one up before I even think about it. And I’ve
realy been working on the breathing the same as I do for an anxienty
attact. I Just close my eyes and count back from 100 and,I exhale I try
and focus on my body just relaxing more and more. I went out and bought
my timer last week and I’m going to start that exercise soon! So I feel
as if getting a good start. And when my quit date gets here I will
refer to my self as a non smoker. I know I’ve still got alot of work to
do. But I also notice this morning I woke up telling my self you really
dont have to have that cigarette! And to me that felt great! Take Care
Rhonda
June 15th, 2007 at 3:05 pm
Hi Sandra,
You may very well not have ‘pain’ of the type that comes from say… an
injury. Or the sort that would result from repetitive motions. But if you
sit at a computer all day, there is definitely some sort of muscle fatigue.
And unless you maintain perfect posture as you sit, all the time you’re
sitting, then your breathing is probably impaired simply because a bit of
slouch means we don’t inhale deeply or completely. And then there are the
body cues that come with hunger at some point during the day or maybe the
normal stress of ’social’ issues that may arise in the workplace. All of
this produces physical signals that we’re in the habit of automatically
dealing with. Whether it’s a shifting in your chair, or a rolling of your
head because of some neck strain, or a yawn or sigh because your breathing
has been a bit shallow… these are the sorts of things we do
automatically. And it’s just these sorts of physical sensations/needs that
are also triggers to smoke.
Having said that, there are certainly routine situations like getting home,
saying hello, and heading out to the back yard for a smoke that are tied to
patterns of behavior. Still, those pattern are involved with body cues. But
when you light up that ‘just got home’ cigarette, how do you inhale? Are
the first couple of drags deep down to your toes drags? Are you
intentionally creating a physical change that’s called ‘relaxation’? What
exactly are the characteristics of that change? And if you were aware of
the physical state you’re trying to create, might it be created in a non
smoking way almost as easily?
We experience our day, every day, in body terms. Everything from getting up
to work through the day to coming home and spending the evening all include
a physical element. And most of the time we’re completely oblivious to that
element. The times when we are aware of it are when there is something
intense either pain we can point to or something that’s ongoing and while
not necessarily painful, persistent and thus obvious. Otherwise, we tend to
move through a day without being aware of the many subtle body sensations
and of our automatic responses to them.
The first things you may notice are some tension in your neck and
shoulders. I assume you’re sitting through much of your day so look for
back, buttocks, and leg discomfort too. It’s very very common for us to
not be aware initially. But once we start to pay attention, it’s surprising
what we notice.
Steve