Now that society's views on smoking have changed even more dramatically, prompting a heightened awareness of health and an ongoing increase in the price of cigarettes and taxes, many individuals find themselves on the road of trying to quit. 

Due to the addictiveness of nicotine, it's often the case where people find themselves struggling to quit, or simply relapse into their old ways all together. 

While the road to quitting may not be easy, there are a few stop smoking tips that you can use in order to make it a little easier.

- Key to quitting

The key to quitting often relies on knowing what your triggers are. While nicotine itself can be addictive, so are the human habits that are generally developed over time as you smoke. 

For some people, they may find that they enjoy the feel of having a cigarette in their hand or mouth, even just the sensation of inhaling can be an addictive habit.

Some people may actually be in a routine to smoke during certain times of the day such as after meals, in the morning, during stressful moments, or even while drinking alcohol or socializing. 

It's often something done as a reward or to spur things into action and is generally psychological. These routines, physical or psychological triggers are often what makes trying to quit difficult, not just nicotine.

Regardless of your approach to quitting smoking; going cold turkey, weaning yourself off gradually, or other methods, breaking your habitual pattern is important. 

Often, this can be achieved by learning to recognize what triggers you to smoke and working around it. 

For example, if you happen to be drawn to the physical sensation of having something in your mouth, hand, or likewise, you can try things such as nicotine-free, electronic cigarettes, eating carrot sticks soaked in sugar water, taking deep breaths to simulate the feeling of inhalation, having a handy stash of your favorite licorice or anything that mimics the feel of holding a cigarette.

If you have a goal or specific reason to quit, whether it's to save one money, lose weight, or just be healthy, use these goals to your advantage. 

Many people, for instance, fear quitting when they want to lose weight. While you may gain some weight due to eating more in order to mimic that oral sensation that's often associated with smoking, it's also important to remember that nicotine actually lowers your metabolic rate. 

Take moments where you have urges to smoke and make it into something productive. 

If you get angry or stressed and want to smoke, workout for ten to twenty minutes or until the sensation passes. 

Working out will trigger your endorphins, lowering your stress level and replacing it with calmness or happiness, which is similar to the affects of how nicotine makes you feel.

If you're trying to quit in order to save money or because you can no longer afford it, try to reward yourself with materialistic treats, rather than with cigarettes. 

This can be done by setting yourself a goal for a shiny new toy that you may be after, even going as far as setting up a special savings account for these purchases. 

You may also be fueled by seeing how much you wind up saving just by quitting, especially due to the continuous hike in prices and taxes.

There are numerous stop smoking tips and tricks, but the key is making sure that they coincide with your triggers. 

Even if you smoke just to smoke, often asking yourself why you're even smoking or don't even feel like it in the first place, find something to distract yourself and break the habit. 

Even placing a rubber band around your wrist and snapping it against yourself can achieve this, getting your brain to rethink instead of falling into the same routine. 

Avoid friends who tempt you into smoking and switch your patterns. Overtime, things will become easier as these habits are broken.

(Source: healthhints.org)