The Reiki Cafe 

Ahh, as usual i'm kicking myself daily for not quitting smoking, but fail horrendously everytime i try. Then seem t punish myself to a degree for not being able to quit.

I am looking for suggestions on areas to focus on with Reiki to help ease the difficulty of the addiction. So any suggestions are welcome. I do daily treatments on myself but am wondering if perhaps there is more I could do for this specific problem. And just to say I said it I don't expect Reiki to do all the work for me. Just suggestions that my prove useful.

Well Dave
I have now not smoked for 5 weeks. 6 days, 14 hours and 25 minutes. And I don't miss it one bit (LOL My other name is pinochio )

The main effects to me seem to be felt in the throat and chest, that is where the lack feeling manifests. Infact the lack feeling comes from the brain.
Giving up smoking is just as hard, if not harder than giving up heroin apparently.

I would treat the heart region. after all I think that smoking being self destructive, probaly shows that we don't love our selves as much as we perhaps could, also the lungs with intent of clearing the gunk that tobacco leaves in them.
Other things that you can do. Plenty of b Vits and fresh fruit for the c vits. Your taste buds will start to come alive and you will smell things better.

Best of luck

Rob

Hm, not sure how much I can help its been 2 days - of course this is the 114th time I've quit (approximately). I have found that brushing my teeth whenever I get the urge to smoke helps. Plus, avoid the triggers if at all possible, I either go for a walk or meditate after meals - which is my worst craving.

Good luck,
DesertWolf

I think being awake is my trigger LOL. Should I sleep the whole time then?

LOL Rob. Seeing you list the time down to the minute is not encouraging me ehehehehe.

LOL
So how many times a day are you brushing your teeth and are you sure your not addicited to the toothpaste (LOL)?

Best of luck to you Desertwolf. It does get easier.

Funnily enough so many of my freinds who smoke are giving up all at the same time and independently of each other. I.e no verbal communication between them.

Rob

That evergrowing wave of non-smoking and health passing through the world mr rob. : )

Dave, I can't give you a suggestion. I was unable to quit myself. I would quit for a while then be around someone smoking and start back up again. I felt really weak-kneed about it. Then one day, I heard a sound in my lungs that said smoking was causing damage. I quit instantly and have never , ever been tempted again. I just quit.

finality

Crest Cool Mint - I can buy it on the corner for just a few bucks....do you need a contact?????

I actually alternate with mouthwash. This is mainly because I've never like smoking after brushing my teeth or using mouthwash. How much alcohol is in mouthwash.....

Lets hope it lasts this time...Good luck to you as well. I quit while I was pregnant too, of course I started up again - but I did go a year and a half.

Getting pregnant as incentive to quit may be a bit on the extreme side though - plus it only works for half the population.....LOL

DesertWolf

One time, I tried to quit while on a two week backpacking trip - can't buy cigarettes when you're in the middle of nowhere. My poor hubby......

This time he's back in PA going to school - hm, maybe he's my trigger...LOL

DesertWolf

The problem with mouthwash with Alcohol in it that after a drink I want to smoke (LOL).
Must admit I havn't tried getting pregnant, but then of course I can't LOL having the wrong equipment and all.

Rob

Yes, very interesting that so many people are considering quitting. Me too! My arsenal of advice for myself came from several sources:

1. In Diane Shewmaker's book "All Love" she mentions quitting with the help of her Reiki Master. It involved setting quit date, with daily affirmations (I will be free...on X), composing affirmations for the withdrawal time, having Reiki sent to her both prior and during this time (several times a week). There may be more, but these are what I remember. I would think the second symbol would be useful, too.

2. There is a SmokEnder's book about how to quit. Very good. "You Can Stop:..."by Jacquelyn Rogers, SmokEnders, inc. Just checked, there is one on half.com. It is a 1978 book, but is really good. It goes into great detail about charts, methods, motivation, reasons for smoking, Takes a while to get through the book because of self-work and journaling prior to quitting. You get to smoke, too, when you read it! Recommends 2 weeks prior to quitting you buy cigarettes with half the nicotene usually used. Recording when and why you lit up, etc. so you can see patterns of habit, develop self-awareness (the watcher) ; it is not just about physical addiction. It allows time to develop alternative behaviors, thoughts, etc. prior to the quitting.

3. To deal with guilt, fears, and stuff, there is the practice of tapping certain meridian with affirmations. There is an entire protocol for addiction. I had checked this out of library, copied relevant exercises. Do not know of name of book but I believe it was thought field therapy. A google brings up many resources.

4. I have met some smokefreers who used Zyban or the patch.

And yes, I am getting ready, too! The last time I tried to quit, I used hypnotherapy, but I became very sick from the stress of withdrawal. I do remember the reiki became crystal clear, colored sparkles all over, sensitivity increased. Like a cloud had lifted and there was a whole new world of energy.

Unfortunately, I had quit prior to Xmas (several weeks before), and that in itself is a stressful time. Then the stress sickness came, just have a half.......I can handle it! Not so. I also had quit coffee at the same time.

This time I will schedule reiki and acupuncture to get me over the worst: also I will use the patch, Rescue remedy, herbs, and all these things mentioned above. It is too hard to go through withdrawal, only to do it all over again. I trust the rewards will be greater, which is what I have to remember. I also have read that addictive entities like to hang around smoker's. And when one transitions, one will take the addiction with them and gravitate to smokers. That can have some undesireable scenario's!

All people I have talked to said it was the best thing they ever did for themselves. One said it took 6 months to not really think about it. And after a year, they were glad they did not smoke, felt so much better (looked better, too) and would never do it again. However, I remember one woman who had quit 25 years ago, and still liked the smell, although she never picked up the habit again.

Good luck to all of us!
Robin

Dear Conflagration,

Pat yourself on the back for wanting to quit smoking! I quit and it's been over 2 years. IF you can find a 12-step group such as I believe it was called nicotine anonymous that would be great as it helped me alot and I only went a few times and ought to go back to share my success! There is a n/a group called narcotics anonymous which I also went to but didn't feel qualified to speak of cigarettes when ones where talking of heroin and meth. Anyway, Knowing that I could go 1 hr. without smoking and given a token and was clapped for was kind of fun for me. I kept my wooden token on my keychain.

I can totally relate to what you said about waking up being your trigger as it seemed the only time I didn't crave was when I was asleep. It's those chemicals I believe that they put in the cigarettes which I'm assuming you're addicted to. I also smoked the chemically free cigarettes for awhile here and there which also seemed to lessen the craving. It's the phenomena of craving for sure.

Also homeopathic rememdies are good which I did and I used some supplements of whole dehydrated fruits and veggie capsules. I believe it was a combination of things including the drug that I took (Wellbutrin) for a few weeks as well as the 12-group, which I believe was very powerful as you pray to a higher power. And of course the reiki and hanging around with non-smokers, & remembering to breathe.

Good luck to you,

Prosperity

A website that may be of interest has been posted on Resources.

Robin

When my father-in-law quit 30 years ago, he bought one last pack of cigarettes and put it on top of the refrigerator, never opened - he still has that pack. Of course, he says that even now there are occasions when he craves a cig., but that it passes quickly. He took quitting as a challenge, and since he's a stubborn old **** it worked.

My doc prescribed nicotene inhalers for me, but its $175 a prescription - ouch! So I'm waiting to see if I can go without it.

Good luck
DesertWolf

LOL We should start our Reiki Stop Smoking Support Group. Everyone quitting sends reiki to the group for as much times as they can muster so we're all fueling each other's desire to quit.

Really my main prob is my girlfriend. Not that she is a "trigger" mind you. But when we both tried smoke away i was smooth sailing hit like 5 days without a cig , she was having a hell of a time. So when she got cranky i'd get cranky, by the end of those five days i had to buy her a pack of cigs so we'd stop pointless bickering and then i was like oh i'll smoke one too and it was all over. As of right now she has no plans to quit. Which means that I have to see her smoke and smell it when she's around and well since we live together that's alot.

I need the buddy system damnit ehehehehe

Hi Conflagration,

If money is also a concern during this, there is a website that will calculate how much money you save by not smoking. You just put in the date you first quit, the cost per pack of cigarettes, and quantity you smoke. It also calculates how many cigarettes you have not smoked over a period of time, as well as how long you have gone without cigarettes (weeks, days, hours, minutes and seconds!). You only need to enter your information once, and it will keep it current. You can check it every day, or once a month, or once a year, and it will still have it calculated to the current date & time. I have posted the link on the resources board.

Hope it helps!

With light and love,
Featherpoint

Hi Featherpoint

I was only talking to our Mr Dave (Conflag) the other night about burning money (LOL).
If $30 a week is spent on smoking, in 10 weeks you will have a enough money to get a half decent digital camera or brand new graphics card.
So quitting does have finaicial implications as well as health ones.(Dave like computers, so I am using imagerery to help him (LOL))

I had a 2 reasons for wanting to give up smoking
The first and most importent was that it was effecting my health. the second and the main driving force was that I have no money at the moment, so even if I did want to smoke I can't, cos I can't buy them (LOL)

Namaste

Rob

conflagration,

Hi.

I know several who have quit - a couple with reiki involved, a couple not

- but in each case the person made physical fitness and wellness a higer priority than smoking and undertook a regular regimen of activity that is, I would say, essentially 'incompatible' with smoking - stuff like biking and jogging\running\swimmming

- all but one of these folks needed at least 6 months before the smoking stopped (but the aerobic activity did not)

- I do not know anyone who quit "passively" with such things as The Patch or other gimmics.

Cheers (gator ade for all)

RC

My sister has also had a heck of a time quitting smoking, despite the fact that our father is dying of smoking-related heart and lung diseases.

She discovered that it isn't so much the nicotine addiction, but that she has an oral fixation. She is now smoking these funky, newfangled "cigarettes" that supposedly are safe, and they actually don't smell. (IMO, there is no safe cig)

What this means as to where to Reiki yourself, I'm not sure. The closest chakras to your mouth are the brow and throat. Perhaps a bit of research is in order, to find out what part of your brain relates to your mouth - the part of your brain the "gets happy" when you have a cig in your mouth. Maybe it's the same part that gets happy when you're eating Ben&Jerry's ice cream? :)

Good luck,
Celt

Sitting here, having my morning smoke. Have set my date and made my plan. Spent a lot of time giving thought to how to do it. Asked myself a lot of questions. Why do I smoke. How much is physical addiction, mental, behavioral and medicinal?

Been smoking since I was 8....40yrs. Thirty years of 3 packs a day. Down now to one pack. From the very first smoke I liked it and found it helped center my thoughts and calmed me.....gave me a sense of peace. Parents and friends smoked s it was part of learned behavior. Sometimes I catch a glimps of my self and realize that, " I am standing and holding a cig in just the same way my mom did when she was doing this activity". The chemicals in the tobbacco are powerfully addictive. Been smoking organic pure tobbacco for a year now. Noticed withdrawl symptoms when I quit smoking my favorite brand of ready rolled. Noticed too, that many of the cigs I smoked was done without thinking. Just grabbed and lit by habit. Saw my blood and Ivans under a darkfield microscope. We eat the same foods, he smokes 6 cigs a day. His red blood cell walls are strong....mine are very thin.

Have cut back to one pack. The end of September is my quiting date. This is my 2 week vacation. Won't have anyone to bum one from. Have started smoking every other cig. Been doing tapping if I really desire that second smoke. Each time the urge gets less powerful. I roll my own and have started thinning out the tobacco with sage, mullien and clover. Have also made most the rooms in the house off limits to smoking. The longer I wait in the morning to light up, the less powerful the urge is during the day.

As the quiting date draws nearer: will make house off limits, give up the after eating smoke and replace it with a mudra. This will give my hands something to do and calm me. Will also take lots of epson salts baths to remove the toxins faster.

Have found that replacing smokes with muras, Reik and Chi Gong excersizes reduces the urge and strenthens my energy. Often I find that if I have done a tapping for a paticular time....say, a resident falls, if instead of going ut for a smoke I go out for a tapping, the next time a resident falls I dont have the need to go smoke.

Most important, you really have to have decided to quit. For me it as looking at my blood cells. I am healthy, compred to most people my age. But I know I can be healthier. With such poor blood cells I am prone to infections and my body cells are being starved. This effects every organ and the integrety of the cells. How can they reproduce properly if the are deficient. Cells that mutate are called cancer. Thanks but no thanks. My mind is made up and for me there is no turning back.

Good luck and Blessings to you
blackearth

Otoharo!

Robin, before I had reiki, I was on a spiritual path with IPM. Coll, our teacher, said his guides told him that smoke interfered with the ability our guides have to communicate with us. We were not allowed to smoke within the room, were given breaks where smokers went outside to smoke. That in itself is motice enough for me! I do not recall symptoms arising from quitting. I just quit.

finaltiy

Rob, I think one thing that helped me to quit when I did, was that even if I tried just one more cig. it made me sick, the smell and taste was terrible. My body helped me quit.

finality

There got to be one factor in my quitting smoking. I tend to punctuate the events of my day by sitting down to do somthing different briefly, then begin the next activity. Like drinking a bit of coffee, or read a bit in a magazine, lie stretched out on the floor, anything. Now I am off caffeine also, so no coffee. A drink of water, though. Now, I check out this cafe, often as a brief respite. Anything fun to sandwich into the day's routines. When I worked, I took breaks, so now that I don't work, I take breaks. These breaks are the times when addictions rear their heads. So far as I can tell, I have no addictions and have stopped habits also. Smoking was a perfect punctuation.

finality

LOL Umm how many weeks do i have to go for a virtual reality system?