STOP Smoking 🚭🔥

If your client has a history of trauma, smoking often works like a short-term emotional coping skill. It becomes:

Hypnosis helps by:

• A break from stress
• A tool for emotional regulation
• A ritual that gives comfort
• A distraction from pain
• A way to feel in control

Some clients also have what’s called oral fixation, which often comes from early attachment wounds. In simple terms, it’s about unmet needs for comfort, safety, and trust during childhood. When those needs go unmet, a person may turn to oral habits like smoking, vaping, chewing, or snacking as a form of self-soothing.

You don’t just help someone stop smoking. You help them replace the habit with something more meaningful and healing.

Ask your client, “What do you get out of smoking?” This opens the door to understanding the emotional reason behind the habit. You might discover that smoking gives them space, comfort, or a sense of control when they feel overwhelmed.

Habits like smoking are usually built on strong routines. So instead of just removing the habit, give them a new one. Maybe they take a calming breath, sip tea, or press a grounding anchor into their palm. It’s about finding a new rhythm that still gives their nervous system a sense of safety.

Through hypnosis, you can help clients start to see themselves as someone who doesn’t need cigarettes anymore. “I am a non-smoker” is more powerful than “I’m trying to quit.” It’s a shift in identity, not just behavior.

Most people don’t realize this, but nicotine changes how the body handles blood sugar. When clients stop smoking, their blood sugar can crash, and they may feel shaky, moody, or anxious. If they’re not prepared, they might think they’re having a panic attack. Really, they just skipped breakfast and had two cups of coffee. Remind them to eat real food, stay hydrated, and get sleep during this process. I often tell my clients to buy a bag of their favorite hard candy to suck on to help with the oral fixation as well as to supplement their sugar crash. Bonus if you can get them to switch to fruit!

If you sense that smoking is tied to something deeper (like an attachment wound or unresolved fear) use parts work, somatic techniques, or regression. Often, the part of them that smokes is doing its best to help them feel okay. It just needs a better job.

When you bring them out of trance, give suggestions that affirm strength, peace, and clarity. You might say:

• “You feel calm and steady.”
• “You are strong enough to care for yourself now.”
• “You’re beginning to feel freedom in your body and mind.”
• “Each day, you feel more clear about your choices.”

If that doesn’t work, you can always use the method of creating the suggestion that smoking will be disgusting and aversive. I am frequently reminded of the suggestion that Zac gave one of his clients where he had the client visualize taking a long drag on a cigarette but as they did, a bird pooped on the end causing them to breath in the fumes of bird excrement. 🤣🤣🤣 This is not recommended, but CAN be effective. It should definitely be used with discretion. Sometimes making the old habit less enticing can be a very powerful strategy.

Relapse isn’t failure. It just means something inside still needs your attention. Be curious. Go back to that part and ask what it still needs. Then help your client meet that need in a new way.

Keep doing the good work. You’re not just helping people quit smoking. You’re helping them learn how to take care of themselves.

You could be getting the full training where we give so much more than just these weekly tips. What are you waiting for?

👉 https://tfh.podia.com/trauma-focused-hypnotherapy

Come chat with us and get case feedback in the Discord:
💬 https://discord.gg/CQRMufZVKX