Lucas NULL

How do you drastically reduce chances of a relapse? This question has been on my mind for quite a few days and i've been looking for solutions to add to my program I wanted a solution that provides immediate result, is easy to teach, easy to practice and can be used as a system by anyone at anytime This is one solution i've found that ticks all boxes : An experiment was conducted in Columbia university in the early 2000's Kids & adolescents aged 6 to 18 were split into 2 groups and were asked to partake in a visualization sequence This involved asking one group to imagine appetizing food was close to them & focus was on close effects i.e, its taste, smell, heat and the other group imagined food to be at a distance & focused on far abstract effects i.e, the color, shape and texture Brain images showed that their craving decreased for the latter sequence with activity in the brain regions involved in craving significantly lower when it's perceived to be far Similar test was run on cigarette smokers. Split into groups they focused on near effects, nicotine buzz, feels good, taste, smell Vs far effects raspy throat, bad breath, smokers cough, stained teeth, cancer When heavy cigarette smokers focused on the long-term consequences of cigarette smoking they significantly reduced their cigarette cravings. How can we use this? We can use simple cognitive strategies to regulate your cravings by shifting time perspective from “now” to “later.” You can then leverage delay discounting (value of reward deceases hyperbolically when you resist giving in for 5 - 15 mins) and combine the both with frontal cortex activation to create a system you can use when you have any craving What does this look like? When you have a compulsive habit that you engage in repeatedly, you are stuck in a thinking pattern that is always CLOSE. This means if you are a drinker, a smoker, a porn user or any other - when you think of a drink or a smoke your immediate reaction is to think of the close effects. This happens via repetition over months or years You first need to break this thinking pattern and this will only happen again, with repetition This is how you can do it, When you have a craving, first step is to stop anything that you are doing, stop your brain from any rationalizations and thoughts on why you should do it and hit pause for a moment Now in this brief moment of solitude you will combine FAR thinking with delay discounting & frontal cortex activation You will first think about 5 reasons why this habit is damaging your health, relationships or time & then you will negotiate with yourself to only give in to the craving after 10 - 15 minutes. Now, you cant just stay idle for these 10 - 15 minutes. You will indulge in a task that engages your frontal cortex (logical mind) This means, - Open a notepad and write a positive future story; optimism is associated with rising levels of dopamine which engages the brain. - Move your body ; A walk, a set of pushups burpees or squats - Listen to some music (no lyrics, instrumental is best) - Play a logic oriented game (sudoku, chess.. any will do) - Practice juggling Once the 15 minutes are elapsed, you will find your cravings to be significantly lower or non - existant Why does this work? 3 concepts involved like we've discussed FAR thinking changes your perception of the habit you are going to indulge in - Visualizing yourself as a cancer patient being prepared for the next radiation treatment is anything but fun The time lag between craving and indulgence serves as a pit stop for delay discounting to kick in The activities that you do will re-start the frontal cortex that usually goes to sleep during cravings. This means your willpower comes back online and you can make better choices This is the simplest 3 phase solution you can implement and use as a system. Now all you have to do is turn it into an IF - THEN system and automate it This means anytime your cravings hit (IF) you will automatically run this 3 phase loop (THEN) Until it becomes your go to approach with repetition This will require some effort at first, but in time it becomes automatic. How do I know this will work? Because i've used custom systems like this 100's of times with my clients and helped them beat every habit you can think of Try it out, it works