I think that the NHScampaign encouraging people to stop smoking just for the month of October – Stoptober – is an excellent idea. It is certainly the case that if you can give up a habit for a period of 4 weeks, then it is much more likely that you are going to be able to give up that habit for life.

The first few weeks of giving up are sometimes the most difficult, as it seems strange and alien ‘not to be doing that thing that you do’, and there are times when the urge to give in is really strong. The reason for this is that your subconscious is still telling you that you want, and need that cigarette, even though your conscious mind has decided, very sensibly, to give up this habit.

However, with hypnosis, it seems that people do find it easier to give up, as the subconscious is given very strong suggestions during the hypnotherapy session, which mean that all parts of you are in agreement about stopping smoking, not just the conscious part. Very often I find that clients who have experienced my stop smoking treatment tell me that they find that they do not have any cravings at all, and the wonderful thing is that this feeling lasts, so giving up is actually much easier than they thought it would be. An added by-product is that they feel much calmer, and less stressed generally after the treatment.

If you are thinking about giving up for ‘Stoptober’ but feel that you need a little help in the process, do please contact me on 01449 780352 or 0781 7158429, or email me on wendy@wendychalk.co.uk.

Wendy x