by Emily Hunter

Created on: March 14, 2010

Congratulations! You've made the decision to stop smoking and this time it's going to stick. You've smoked the last one in the pack, and cleaned out the car of all the empty boxes and now all you need to do is revel in the fact that you're smoke free. Three hours in, and you've just finished a great meal. Instead of lighting up, what do you do?

Chew gum

Chewing gum is one of the most effective ways to satisfy the craving for a cigarette. The oral fixation is taken care of, and instead of having your breath become clouded, it becomes fresh with peppermint or spearmint. Recapture your childhood by trying to chew the whole pack at once and blow a bubble.

Take a walk

Unless they're fortunate enough to have a smoking household, most folks go out to their porches or balconies to smoke. The habit is used to take a break from the situation, to get away from the boss, to provide an excuse to get away from the endless emails and drive to figure out 'what's next'. Instead of lighting up, take a walk around the building in the same length of time. Walk, or walk in place. That way, you're doing everything except for smoking.

Eat a carrot

Carrots are high in vitamin A and they make a satisfying crunching sound when they're bitten in to. These orange gems are low in calories and appease the oral fixation that was developed over time from the cigarettes. Most entertaining is that the adult carrots can be held like a Marlboro and others can be efficiently confused with the low calorie treat.

Sing

Sing aloud. It's hard to smoke and sing at the same time. If you're singing along with your favorite song, pausing to take a drag is just a bummer because the moment is lost. Make up new words to lament about the fact that you're not having a cigarette. Create a song to rejoice in how powerful your willpower is. If you're quitting with other people, make a barbershop quartet to croon about the uses of recycled filters.

Make a bet with a money grubber

Everyone has at least one friend who is entrepreneurial and money grubbing. Make a bet for an obscene amount (to you) of money which says that you will stop smoking. Tell that person that if they see you smoking, or if you are caught smoking, then you will give them a lot of cash. Make sure that this person is the type who would hunt you down just to catch you and collect on this wager. When you start thinking about having the cigarette, ask yourself if it is worth that obscene amount of cash.

Again, congratulations on deciding to stop! Smoking's a tough habit to break, but it can be broken if you distract yourself long enough from the craving. Sure, you want the cigarette now, but just think about how much better it will be after you've waited. Maybe you can get around to it after singing an aria, or making a million dollars.

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