According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), more than 16 million Americans are living with diseases caused by smoking, and 480,000 have died yearly. Worldwide, tobaccos have killed 17 million people per year. The big question is, “Do you want to join them?”

But as an ex-smoker myself, I know how difficult it is to quit smoking. Even reference to the most sensitive part of our life, such as to our beloved ones and life goals, won’t occasionally work. We have to outsmart our addiction, or we’ll be forever stuck. Learn the tricks below!

Use a Substitute

Government officials have devised substitutes for cigarettes since long time ago. Nicotine gum, patch, e-cigs, and now latest one, vapes, are all intended initially to counteract tobacco addiction. Hence, you can start from there. If you learn the science of smoking, it is the nicotine that makes us crave for the cigs. If your body can get to that substance, you can maintain that unhealthy urge.

First, try vaping. It has many variants of flavor, and it can make you cool too! Hanging out with fellow vapers can be your escape from turning back to becoming a social-smoker. But nicotine juice is not cheap.

Second, using a patch will also be fine. But it won’t give you a chance to be in the crowd like you do with vapes. Besides, you may need a medical prescription for it.

Get a Dog

You can smoke because you have some spare money. By that logic, why don’t you allocate it for something more constructive to your life, like keeping a dog, for example? You will need to schedule a walk for them. You are going to shop for their foods. And you will be monitoring their health. You won’t have time left to chill out with a cig, even for only some ten minutes.

Moreover, dogs are energetic animal. They will save you from the sedentary lifestyle that usually goes along with smoking. Once you grow attached to them, you won’t dare to make your pet as a secondhand smoker. Get one and see how that cute little fella transforms you into a new person.

Punish and Reward Yourself

Quitting smoking won’t end in one go. It will be a lifelong fight with a chance of you breaking the rules you’ve set up for yourself. Therefore, you’re going to need a reward-and-punishment mechanism here.

The simplest one is to devise a system like a swear jar. If you smoke, you’ll have to pay a fine for it. But instead of putting your money in a jar, you donate it to charity programs, of which the concerns are the harmful impacts of smoking. If you violate the rules up to five times, volunteer yourself for the cancer patients. It will make a working shock-therapy for yourself.