“If it weren’t for nicotine in tobacco smoke, people would be little more inclined to smoke than they are to blow bubbles or light sparklers” (Russell)
M.A.H. Russell, a nicotine researcher who worked for Maudsley Hospital and the Addiction Research Unit in the Institute of Psychiatry in De Crespigny Park, London (UK) insisted, “There is little doubt that if it weren’t for nicotine in tobacco smoke, people would be little more inclined to smoke than they are to blow bubbles or light sparklers.”
He was probably right.
When you think about it in a strictly mechanical way, inhaling smoke into the lungs shouldn’t be a pleasurable activity at all. Yet, smoking is one of the most common addictive habits.
If you are a smoker and have ever tried to quit, you are well aware of the vicious grip smoking has on its victims. Willpower is rarely enough. Cravings, withdrawal symptoms, mood swings and irritability can wreak havoc in your life.
The smoking habit is a fearsome opponent, and every time you quit and relapse, the habit gains a little more control over you, suppressing you even more.
However, breaking the smoking habit is definitely doable.
The study below shows that you do not need to depend on willpower alone to succeed. Willpower is a finite resource — it’s great for sprints but sucks at marathons. However, there is a tool that can keep you on track when your willpower fails, and it is scientifically proven to work.
Small electric jolts used to treat smoking habit in group of dependent heavy smokers (32 cigarettes per day)
In a clinical study, small electric jolts were used to help a group of dependent heavy smokers (32 cigarettes per day) quit their habit.
Participants were randomly assigned to one of five groups. While one group did not receive any treatment (what is usually referred to as the “control group” in experiments) the other four groups were treated with electric jolts.
Those receiving the electric jolt treatment had small electrodes attached to their forearms. While the sequence used for each group varied, the method basically involved the participants engaging in the act of smoking, and receiving small electric jolts before, after or during the activity.
Within just 5 sessions, 41% of participants stop smoking completely. By the end of the treatment, 61% of those receiving electric jolts had quit their smoking habit.
Nearly a century of data shows how electric jolts can help stop smoking and other persistent habits
When you think about how many people try to quit smoking every day, and fail, a 61% success rate is staggering. However, this figure is neither surprising nor unheard of in the field of aversion therapy.
Almost a century of research has already proven the effectiveness of this method. In another study (Russell 1970) 67% of smokers quit their habit using the same technology. These electric jolts even helped 84.2% of chronic marijuana users break habit using electric jolts.
One particular clinical study (Lubetkin, 1974) showed how electric jolts helped a young man break free of a 3-year heroin addiction.
If you have been fighting a losing battle against your smoking habit, these electric jolts could offer you the key to break free from your addiction.
Bibliography
Lubetkin, B. S., & Fishman, S. T. (1974). Electrical aversion therapy with a chronic heroin user. Journal Of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 5(2), 193–195. http://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7916(74)90113-X
Russell, M. A. H. (1970). Effect of Electric Aversion on Cigarette Smoking. Bmj, 1(5688), 82–86. http://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.1.5688.82
Russell, M., Armstrong, E., & Patel, U. (1976). Temporal contiguity in electric aversion therapy for cigarette smoking. Behaviour Research And Therapy, 14(2), 103–123. http://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7967(76)90065-6