Quitting Smoking Behavioral Analysis

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A behavior I have wanted to modify for a long period of time is to quit smoking. Smoking has taken over my life for far too long now and I have gone through moments where I have quit and then started back up again. It almost seemed as if it was pointless to quit because everything I have tried eventually took me back to square one. Sometimes it’s easier said than done to quit when I bartend five nights a week and the majority of my friends smoke cigarettes. When I was given this assignment, I viewed it as a great opportunity to try again. I have never been the type of person to smoke two packs a day, one pack a day, or even half a pack a day. It always ranged for me. One day I would smoke half of a cigarette and the next day I would smoke half a pack. I’m also what society would classify as a “social smoker”. There have been times when I’ve chain smoked so much on a Friday night that I would just feel sick the next morning, even if I didn’t drink too much. For me, smoking, drinking, and socializing have always gone hand in hand. Instead of focusing too much on only quitting smoking or cutting down, I took a different approach. Of course, I cut down on smoking cigarettes on an average per day, but I also monitored how I would feel when I wanted a cigarette if I was out with my friends. During the self- observation period, I realized I smoked more on my way to work, at work, and when I was out with friends. I rarely smoked a cigarette when I was at home or by myself. This began to open my eyes more as to why I should take this project to heart rather than just a school “trial” or assignment. I wrote down questions to ask myself during the actual trial period such as, “Why am I doing this right now?”, “Do I really need a cigarette?”, and “Would I be okay if I didn’t have one?” Most of these questions had common sense answers. “No, I don’t NEED a cigarette.” and “Yes,

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