How to Overcome Smoking and Shisha Addiction

Let me share straight away with you that I used to have a smoking addiction and did hypnosis in Dubai. Thankfully after several attempts to quit smoking, I was successful 13 years ago. It was easy because I used hypnotherapy and released my negative self-talk and stress I had first. In fact, being able to overcome a smoking addiction so easily using different tools, was what led me to become a certified hypnotherapist and then to go on an be a certified trainer of hypnotherapy, so I could teach others in my method. Smoking for me started out as an escape and coping mechanism for stress in my teens and then twenties. Stress at home, college, work, I believed it helped me to be calm and at work it was the way to have a break from the pressured sales environment I worked in. By the time I was ready to quit, a big part of me absolutely hated it. I could feel it affecting my health in many ways: I used to run and do aerobics and I was often choking and coughing. Having a common cold, flu or sore throat was the worst, as I still smoked.

 

I also hated the smell, especially the morning after I felt disgusting. I’d always promised myself after university I’d quit and it had been several years since finishing and I felt like a failure.  As a hypnotherapist in Dubai I see first hand how it shisha addiction and smoking cigarettes can come between a couple. I will explain further how and of course share some insights and tips at the end. Ironically smoking was a big factor in one of my romantic major relationships ending in my late twenties, not because he rejected me but because he did not respect my boundaries and I felt like I was dying. My boyfriend used to smoke 40 cigarettes a day in the home, he would chain smoke. I said I could no longer live together like this as it made me feel sick in the morning and I could feel it in my chest. He agreed when we moved to a new apartment only to smoke outside, then winter in Dubai came (which is actually not very cold at all) and he broke it. Weeks went by of me begging and him saying that he will try and air out the house etc. It was not the only factor in the relationship that was not going great, as I’ve mentioned before he liked to watch TV until 3am or 4am and we lost our connection, but it did affect our closeness and I felt hurt by the broken promises, trust and being lied to. Of course he did not intend to lie to me, he was addicted and enjoyed working and smoking all day on his laptop. He had always been like that and it was in his words “too difficult to change” he feared his work and business would go down without him following his habit.

 

That’s my story and share it, to show I have no judgment if it is working for you, your life and relationship, carry on. If it is not, I am here to share some tips and tools to help you. I do also help many people weekly with weed addiction but I will not focus on it here, as can be very different things at play.

 

As mentioned, I see it impact many other relationships sometimes it destroys the physical attraction due to the smell and taste. Other times it can affect the mental attraction where someone does not respect and admire someone who smokes. Other times it can affect the time a couple spend together, for example I had a lady share once that she hated her date nights as she would spend the night waiting 10-15 minutes every hour or so whilst her husband nipped out for a cigarette.

 

Shisha addiction I work with a lot in the middle east, as a popular in this culture. Shisha addiction  can cause a massive gap between the couple if the smoker wants to go to Shisha Café’s 3 to 5 nights or more a week. I’ve had the non-smoker complain that they are living separate lives and don’t have any special activities to do together, because one wants to sit in a shisha café most nights or weekends.

 

A lot of clients who book me for hypnotherapy in Dubai and are seeking to give up smoking cigarettes or shisha because it is deeply impacting their relationships. I send them away if that’s their only motivation to please a romantic partner, as for success the person needs to want to quit for themselves. They don’t need to know how or if they can do it, but they do need have some desire.

 

So I’ll share some insights, about couples I have helped and some tips so if you are looking for motivation or inspiration to change this.

 

To start, here are the most common reasons that individuals come to me for hypnotherapy in Dubai to quit smoking

 

• Hair and clothes capture the smell of smoke
• Nails are stained
• Breath has a distinct smell they dislike and so does their partner
• Low Energy levels
• Lung capacity is less, and this impacts how easy it is to do cardio vascular activities
• Health of those around them are at greater risk of developing health conditions like heart or lung disease, cancer, etc
• Is linked to erectile dysfunction, reduced sexual libido
• Infertility
• Feel weak as tried to quit and didn’t manage it
• Conflict in relationship as partner annoyed at time spent smoking or finds them less attractive
• Setting a bad example to their children
• Financial impact, money wasted
• Irritation when it is not possible to smoke
• Time spent smoking which could be put to more productive use

 

Here are two case studies of couples I worked with to overcome smoking and shisha addictions and reduce the conflict as a result of this.

 

Case Study 1 –

 

Kyle contacted me as he saw that I facilitate counseling in Dubai with hypnotherapy and wanted to find out how hypnotherapy can help a person overcome their smoking addiction.

 

Kyle has been married to Chloe for 3 years and initially he quit smoking for Chloe but he went through a stressful period at work and ended up smoking again, and started smoking behind her back. When he started smoking again, he was quite careful to cover his tracks with mouthwash, change of clothes and hair gel but it got to a point where he started to slack, and Chloe was picking up on the fact he was smoking again. She couldn’t handle the smell of smoke so wouldn’t want to hug Kyle until he had showered and refused to kiss him because of the smell on his breath. It was also an extremely upsetting for Chloe because her own father was a heavy smoker and died of lung cancer. So she was extremely hurt and distressed with Kyle for smoking again.

 

Read About How to Stop Obsessive Infatuation with Others Addiction Counselling Dubai here

 

They were trying to start a family also and she knew smoking can affect fertility. Two months before Kyle reached out, she found out that she was pregnant and didn’t want Kyle to pass on his habits or passive smoke to the baby. This was the wakeup call Kyle needed as he wanted to quit and be there for Chloe and the baby. He quit the day he found out, but found himself super aggressive, snappy and missing it, and ended up falling back to it. He had heard that the subconscious mind is the area that controls all behaviour and booked 2 sessions with me to do the hypnotherapy in Dubai. 7 months later, he shared the photo of his beautiful daughter Rosie with me, saying that he hasn’t touched a cigarette or vaped since and had no urge to.

 

As with Kyle and Chloe for some couples there is also broken trust if the smoker is hiding or lying about smoking or promised to quit when married and have not managed it yet.

It is so important to remember that when it comes to healing from addictions, hypnotherapy alone may not be effective because the triggers are not addressed and people need new healthier replacements to be fully motivated. So for all addictions I include coaching, releasing emotional blocks and hypnotherapy in Dubai and online.

 

Read About Hypnotherapy as a form of Addiction Treatment Services here

 

If you are interested in finding out more, do check out my website for information, prices and programs. Or email me nb@nicolabeer.com or Join our Facebook group.