Smoking cannabis despite what many people may say can be very addictive to certain personality types and people in certain situations. There is no chemical dependency associated with marijuana like there is with cigarettes or harder drugs like heroin but consistent use can create a very strong psychological addiction to the substance. How to give up cannabis therefore does not come down to riding out physical cravings like cigarettes but instead understanding your own thinking and reasoning when it comes to smoking pot.
To do this you must a certain level of self analysis which you can use to uncover the fears you have in relation to giving up cannabis which can then be eradicated by a method known as Neural Linguistic Programming or NLP for short. NLP basically means this:
- Neural – Refers to how we think, and how it interacts with our body.
- Linguistic – refers to the scientific study of language and here it is how the use of language can influence how we think and act
- Programming – Programming in this case refers to our behavioral patterns we use in our daily lives.
So when combined we have a system that through language we can train our mind to behave in different patterns and have different reactions to situations that do not follow our old programming. What does this mean for when trying to figure out how to give up cannabis?
There are many things you say and think in your daily life that have a negative effect on quitting smoking weed that have programmed you to fail and will continue to do so unless you can change the way you unconsciously react to situations. By using NLP to change your thinking you will find these negative thoughts and phrases that have caused you to fail at stopping smoking marijuana will change to positive things that will not drag you down and incite a fear or depression response in yourself.
For example, instead of saying:
I quit smoking cannabis try saying I prefer not to smoke cannabis – What is the difference?
The difference is one is a phrase you have probably used before and have had a bad experience with, it is also a negative phrase while the other is a positive phrase. Quitting sounds like you are forcing you do to something against your will but preferring not to sounds like it is your choice. Continued use of these changes will bring about a change in attitude and programming in your own mind that will help you give up cannabis.