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The dangers of Vaping | Hypnotherapy Leeds

11th March 2019 Care News, Daily Health Tips, Hypnotherapy Leeds, Smoking Hypnotherapy Leeds, stop smoking hypnotherapy, Stop Smoking LeedsDannyLeave a comment

Vaping HypnotherapyThe dangers of vaping

So vaping’s not so safe after all, we’re now being told. Well,  here at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic , we’ve never advocated the use of tobacco substitutes as a means to quitting.

The main reason is that such products, and that includes e-cigs, help perpetuate the myth that smoking is primarily a physical addiction rather than a psychological issue.

Nicotine gum, patches and more recently vaping, all maintain the fallacy that quitting cigarettes is going to be hell.

Successful treatment using hypnotherapy

But that’s nonsense. I’ve successfully treated hundreds of smokers using hypnotherapy and I start by explaining to them that what they regard as their physical addiction is their minds playing tricks. They mistake the fear they feel at giving up as being withdrawal symptoms. But this anxiety is a conditioned response. Their conditioning has been reinforced over the years, not least by the marketing of tobacco substitute products, including e-cigarettes.

But surely, many people insist, vaping is safer than smoking.  I don’t disagree; yes it is – but it’s a bit like saying boxing is safer than being a Roman gladiator and then being surprised when your nose gets bust in the ring.

Just because smoking is so life-threatening and debilitating and vaping somewhat less so, doesn’t equate to vaping being safe.

And now we’re being informed that e-cigs are actually worse for you than has been generally assumed.

New statistics

New research reveals that adults who vape are 56% more at risk of a heart attack and more prone to coronary artery disease and depression compared to non-users. They are also 30% more likely to have a stroke than non-users.

Mohinder Vindhyal, Assistant professor at the University of Kansas School of Medicine who led the research using data from more than 96,000 people is quoted as saying: “This is a real wake-up call and should prompt more action and awareness about the dangers of e-cigarettes.”

The conclusion is clear: given a choice between smoking, vaping or quitting the only safe option is to stop.

Vaping or Hypnotherapy in Leeds

23rd August 2018 Care News, Daily Health Tips, Hypnotherapy Leeds, Smoking Hypnotherapy Leeds, stop smoking hypnotherapy, Stop Smoking LeedsDannyLeave a comment

Vaping HypnotherapyVaping is back in the news

Over the past few years, Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic has helped hundreds of smokers give up cigarettes.

And one question sometimes asked by people first enquiring about treatment is: “Would it be just easier to vape instead – use e-cigarettes rather than the real thing?”

My answer to this is simple: “When you really want to quit, I’ll be here and happy to help.”

I add that quitting is by far the better option.

I also add that when they are ready to quit, giving up will be a doddle. It will be a doddle because I’ll teach the client to understand their condition and integrate that comprehension into their unconscious, through clinical hypnosis.

You might conclude then, that I don’t think vaping is a great idea and as a consequence that the recent recommendation by the Science and Technology Committee of MPs that vaping be provided on prescription by the NHS is flawed.

This, though, is not entirely the case.

First of all, I am happy to accept that vaping is a far safer option than smoking cigarettes and that anyone not yet ready to give up entirely should make the switch from cigs to e-cigs as soon as possible.

But there are other factors to consider.

The most important of these is that the use of tobacco substitutes in smoking cessation programmes perpetuates the myth that smoking is primarily a physical addiction when in reality it is a psychological issue – like obsessive compulsive disorders it is rooted in anxiety and can be successfully treated. The reasoning and methodology of this treatment are explained in my book “Stop Smoking: It’s a doddle” which can be downloaded for free from my website.

It should be noted that treatment using clinical hypnosis is far more cost effective than vaping.

And with vaping you’re still shackled to a useless, expensive, socially-restricting habit. Figures as to how many vapers are also dual users (that is they continue to smoke tobacco too) are a concern too.

Health studies

Other matters to consider regarding vaping, include the fact that, as the products have been available for only a decade, no long-term health studies have been possible; there are suspicions that vaping can damage vital immune system cells. In other words while vaping can almost certainly be deemed a safer option than cigarettes it is not correct to say the practice is without health risks.

A claim made by the science and technology committee of MPs’ report into vaping that raises concern is that there is no evidence to suggest e-cigarettes provide a gateway into smoking for youngsters. I would, however, ask from what studies has such a deduction been drawn and I would point them in the direction of studies by Cardiff University and some in the USA that might challenge such a conclusion.

Vaping in public

Finally, another matter certain to cause controversy is the suggestion that regulations on vaping in public be relaxed, so as to encourage smokers to switch from tobacco cigarettes. The obvious question here is why vapers should be allowed to expose others to their habit?

I’ll just stick to helping people quit and conclude with a quote from George Butterworth of Cancer Research UK responding to the report, who said that any changes to current e-cigarette regulations “should be aimed at helping smokers to quit whilst preventing young people from starting to use e-cigarettes.”

Quitting Smoking Will Always Beat  Just Cutting Down

30th January 2018 Hypnotherapy Leeds, stop smoking hypnotherapyDannyLeave a comment

Quitting Smoking Will Always Beat  Just Cutting Down

Questions about cutting down on smoking

When someone comes to Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic wanting to give up cigarettes one of the first things I propose is that he or she makes a list of all the bad consequences of smoking.
This is known as negative reinforcement and simply reminds individuals why they need to quit. While it’s a good idea to acknowledge the harm caused by smoking, negative reinforcement is actually only a minor part of our stop-smoking programme. That’s because smokers are not morons – most know that cigarettes are bad for their health. But they believe they are physically addicted. The reality, however, is that smoking is a psychological condition – or more accurately the fear of giving up is a psychological disorder.
So at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic, using cognitive behavioural therapy combined with clinical hypnosis, we enable smokers to understand their condition and change their beliefs and at the end of just one session the client leaves as a non-smoker.

Treatment works

Now this might all sound very straightforward and too good to be true but the fact is that the treatment works.
Yet for many smokers making the decision that they want to quit is a giant leap and so rather than seek treatment they flirt with the idea of cutting down or taking up “vaping” or some other form of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). While “vaping”might be less harmful than smoking, it fails to resolve the core issue regarding perceived addiction and in far too many cases ultimately fails to ween people away from their nicotine habit. And here is the crux of the problem – some smokers feel they can ween themselves away from cigs – either through NRT or simply by cutting down the number of cigarettes they smoke. They do not understand their condition. And as a consequence they remain a hostage to nicotine. Though a smoker might think that by just smoking the occasional cigarette, they won’t be doing themselves a lot of harm, they are wrong. It’s a fallacy to believe that the occasional cig is innocuous.

UCL research

This fact was emphasised in a BBC report last week citing a study by the Cancer Institute at University College London, which was initially published in the British Medical Journal.
The research revealed that people who smoked only one cigarette each day were on average 50% more likely to develop heart disease and 30% more likely to suffer a stroke than people who had never smoked. There was no safe level of smoking in relation to these diseases.
Professor Allan Hackshaw, who led the research, is quoted as saying that in some countries there has been a trend for heavy smokers to cut down but while this might result in a proportionate reduction in the risk of cancer, the incidence of the more common disorder of smokers – cardiovascular disease was not reduced proportionately.
Smokers need to stop completely, he concluded.
OK – so that’s not what a lot of smokers want to hear but the good news is that those who do stop, quickly reduce the risk of cardiovascular illnesses.

Dangerous risk

Martin Dockrell, of Public Health England said the study adds to evidence that smoking just one cigarette a day still leads to a dangerous risk of a heart attack or stroke.
Others are more conciliatory – Paul Aveyard, professor of behavioural medicine at the University of Oxford, for example, points out that reducing the number of cigarettes smoked is not entirely without merit – but , of course, nowhere near as good as quitting.
Deborah Arnott, of health charity ASH, believes vaping is acceptable* if it means an individual stops smoking.
While I can understand Ms Arnott’s contention and recognise its best intentions – my gripe is that it promotes the myth that smoking is primarily a physical addiction. Most smokers believe they are addicted and that is why it becomes so hard for them to stop.
Here at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic we treat smoking as a psychological issue and I am currently rolling out my treatment methods across the country, starting with a conference in Birmingham for fellow therapists. My aim is to reach as wide an audience as possible with the message that it’s actually a doddle to stop smoking. And with the support of other professionals I am hopeful of this leading to significantly fewer people killing themselves with cigarettes.

*Latest research, at New York University, suggest that while e-cigarettes are less of a risk to health than smoking, they are not harmless and increase the chances of a heart attack or various cancers by damaging DNA. Defenders of vaping dispute the study’s conclusions.

Ten years since smoking was banned in public places in this country

6th July 2017 Care News, Daily Health Tips, stop smoking hypnotherapy, Stop Smoking LeedsDannyLeave a comment

Ten Years of Stopping Smoking in Public Places

Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic notes that it is now ten years since smoking was banned in public places in this country.
The ban came into force on July 1 2007.
From that date smokers were no longer allowed to light up in such premises as pubs, bars and restaurants. It’s now quite hard to imagine just why at the time the move seemed so controversial. Yet, now, most people – including most smokers – accept that no-one should have to suffer second-hand tobacco fumes. And happily, the ban prompted many smokers to quit and continues to this day to encourage smokers to stop. The new law changed the culture of smoking forever.
Pleasing, too, are the statistics that prove the effectiveness of the ban.

Fantastic results from the smoking ban

Quoted in The Guardian newspaper, Duncan Selbie, chief executive of Public Health England, calls it “the single most important public health reform in generations.”
Smoking is now at record low levels, according to NHS Digital with latest figures showing that in just the past year the proportion of the population smoking has dropped from 17.2% to 15.8%.
And Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic is determined hopes to do its bit to help bring down those numbers further.
For anyone doubting the benefits of quitting, a quick study of Public Health England statistics cited in The Guardian reveal that deaths from heart disease attributed to smoking in 2007-09 were 32,548 while for 2013-15 the figure dropped to 25,777 – a fall of 20.8% thanks to the reduction in smoking following the ban. Figures for the same periods relating to deaths from strokes attributed to smoking were 9,743 and 8,334, which is a 14.5% improvement.

Stop Smoking in Leeds: It’s a Doddle

Ultimately, though, regardless of statistics – the decision to quit remains the responsibility of the individual. But for those smokers who choose to ignore all health facts and figures because the prospect of giving up seems just too daunting – here are a few words of comfort: “quitting really doesn’t have to be hard.” Please take a moment or two to look at the Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic website for an explanation as to why giving up can be easy. And if you’re still not convinced, click on the video testimonials of just some of the hundreds of smokers I have helped quit. Their message is: Stop Smoking: It’s a doddle.

Stop Smoking in Leeds Public Places

20th May 2017 Care News, Daily Health Tips, stop smoking hypnotherapy, Stop Smoking LeedsDanny1 Comment

Stop Smoking in Leeds Public Places

Smokers face a “crushing new blow,” Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic has learned. That’s according to the Daily Star in a report on the Royal Society for Public Health who want smoking to be banned in all public places – including beer gardens.

Many smokers will be “shocked” or “outraged” (depending which newspaper you read). Doubtless many will regard such a curb as an assault on personal liberty. Well, yes, it is – except that non-smokers have personal liberties too – like the right not to breathe in someone else’s fag fumes.
The answer is simple – if you want to smoke do it in private. Or better still, come to your senses and realise it’s time to stop now.
The Royal Society for Public Health feels a public smoking ban will encourage more smokers to switch to e-cigarettes. At Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic we don’t dispute that such devices are preferable to conventional cigarettes. But that doesn’t make them safe either. We advocate that the best solution is simply to quit.
And it is simple to stop.
Once a smoker has decided he or she wants to quit, Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic can make that an easily-achievable reality.
Taking that step will not just save you money, it will most likely save your life too.
So rather than worrying over what bans will be made next and whether you’ll be allowed to light up in a pub car park at 2.00 am or wherever, just step away from the whole issue… and become a non-smoker with immediate effect. Check out the Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic website for details on how to stop.
The second-edition of Stop Smoking: It’s a Doddle will soon be available to download FREE. If you’d like to receive an alert once the book is available on line, sign up

Now Is The Time to Stop Smoking

16th January 2017 Care News, Daily Health Tips, stop smoking hypnotherapy, Stop Smoking LeedsDannyLeave a comment

At Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic our ongoing message to all smokers is: “now’s the time to stop smoking.”
Of course, the same call is made constantly other health professionals and organisations.
And, happily, the plea has not gone unheeded – at least not in the UK where over the past few decades the proportion of smokers has declined considerably.
For example, in 1974, 51% of men and 41% of women smoked, while that proportion today is down to 20% and 17%, respectively. However, those statistics still equate to there being 9.8 million adult smokers in the U.K., so clearly there’s still some way to go.

Worldwide stop smoking figures

Worldwide, the figures are more depressing – the World Health Organisation (WHO) this month predicted that, globally, the number of deaths due to smoking will rise from 6 million a year at present to 8 million a year by 2030. It states that tobacco use is the largest cause of preventable deaths worldwide.

The report, produced in conjunction with the US National Cancer Institute, says: “The science is clear; the time for action is now.”
Clearly, any initiative, that helps reduce the number of smokers is to be welcomed and in the UK we continue to take steps to curb tobacco use, such as the forthcoming introduction of uniform packaging on cigarettes with explicit pictures detailing the harmful effects of smoking.
Sadly, many governments are reluctant to take measures that counter smoking, fearing, says the WHO report, that any restrictions might “have an adverse economic impact.”
Statistics provide evidence that the opposite is actually the case.

Abolish smoking advertising

Economics aside, though, the reality is that every death caused by smoking is an avoidable tragedy.
The best way to be a non-smoker, of course, is never to start in the first place. So prohibiting promotion of tobacco products that lure people into tobacco usage is a priority for any government.
For those people who already smoke, though, the message remains: Stop now.
Sadly, the prevailing belief, is that quitting will always be a tortuous struggle and this proves too much a disincentive for many smokers.

Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic’s Stop Smoking Mission

At Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic, though, it’s one of our missions to convince smokers that giving up tobacco is in fact a doddle – and it’s a doddle because the smoker’s perceived addiction is all in the mind – his or her smoking is primarily a psychological issue and not a significant physical addiction.
Using cognitive behavioural therapy reinforced by clinical hypnosis, the chains that bind the smoker are easily broken.
All it takes is one session and clients who arrive at the clinic truly wanting to quit leave as non-smokers with immediate effect. Their previous urge to light up is eradicated..
We know our treatment works. And at the moment we are trying to spread the word in the hope that our techniques will be adopted by more and more therapists which will mean more and more people being able to lead healthier and happier lives.

Fewer Smokers in England | Stop Smoking in Leeds

5th October 2016 Care News, stop smoking hypnotherapy, Stop Smoking LeedsDannyLeave a comment

LATEST FIGURES REVEAL FEWER SMOKERS IN ENGLAND

We’re always cautious here at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic of new statistics (especially any to do with smoking) because we know figures can all too easily be interpreted in different ways and therefore be hijacked to support contrasting causes.
However, news that the proportion of smokers has fallen in England is heartening.
The Guardian headline was ‘Number of smokers in England drops to all-time low.’
This is to be welcomed but details behind the statstop-smoking-its-a-doddle-for-website-mobileistics still merit careful analysis. For example, while the percentage of smokers has fallen in the past five years the population as a whole has risen in the same period and so the number of smokers remain higher than might at first be imagined – there are still 7.2 million smokers in England. Even so this is less than half the number of ex-smokers (14.6million) so this is encouraging. It seems that combined efforts to convince people to quit cigarettes are having a positive effect.

FATAL CONSEQUENCES OF LIGHTING UP

The medical profession welcomes the latest findings, of course. But it points out that about 200 people still die prematurely every day in England as a consequence of smoking-related symptoms.
Professor Kevin Fenton, national director of health and wellbeing at Public Health England warned that although the “diminishing appeal of smoking” was “amazing” the number of people still lighting up remained a matter of concern.
There are other factors to consider, too. For example, regional differences are worrying. The North East and Yorkshire still have a significantly higher proportion of smokers compared to the South East and, in particular, the South West, which boasts the fewest smokers.
Other variants to be noted include wealth disparities with far more poorer people likely to smoke compared to the better off; people of Asian background are less likely to smoke (though 10 per cent do so); smoking is most prevalent among those of mixed race. The breakdown of the statistics goes on but among the many quotes generated by the issue, one of the most pertinent, we thought at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic, came from Rosana O’Connor, Public Health England’s director of of drugs, alcohol and tobacco, who said: “The more ex-smokers there are among your friends and family, the more likely you are to quit for good and the less likely your children are to start.”
Her words reflect the importance of others in our lives and how we all have responsibilities not only for ourselves but for those around us.
It is such sentiments that inspire us here at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic.

Stop smoking hypnotherapy in Leeds or E-cigarettes?

31st December 2015 Care News, stop smoking hypnotherapy, Stop Smoking LeedsDannyLeave a comment

Stop smoking hypnotherapy in Leeds or E-cigarettes?

Stop smoking hypnotherapy Leeds e- cigsSo E-Cigarettes Might Not Be That Safe After All.

When I wrote the book “Stop Smoking: It’s a doddle” as a guide and accompaniment to Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic’s stop smoking hypnotherapy programme, I felt it only fair to include a mention of e-cigarettes.

I wasn’t a fan, even if popular opinion seemed to be that “vaping” was an acceptable way of helping people to quit smoking.

In my book such substitutes reflect a failure to address the real issues; e-cigs help perpetuate the myth that so-called nicotine addiction constitutes a physical dependency when in reality smoking is almost entirely a psychological condition.

Times have changed with regards to how to stop smoking

But less than a year ago many politicians and some health professionals were prepared to laud vaping products as lifesavers because it was assumed they were less harmful than cigarettes even though no research had actually deemed them harmless.

Am I just a biased stop smoking hypnotherapist?

Some cynics might say that my lack of enthusiasm for vaping is hardly a surprise – after all aren’t e-cigs in direct competition with treatment at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic? Well, not really because I now have people coming to the clinic wanting to give up vaping as well as smoking. In addition, smoking cessation is only one of the programmes offered at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic where treatment for a wide range of conditions is available.

So, I feel I can remain objective and professional in my opinions regarding smoking.

And I remain convinced that hypnotherapy combined with cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is the most effective way to help people in the UK, or wherever, to quit smoking.

Now new research coming from America says that vaping could be linked to cancer.

This comes just as the UK government is rolling out the idea that vaping is a useful aid for those who want to stop smoking.

Victims of the tobacco companies who don’t want you to just stop smoking.

Worrying, I would say, is the involvement and influence of some tobacco companies in the vaping business. There are now an estimated 2.6 million e-cig users in the UK – so the market is huge.

The real dangers of smoking e- cigarettes instead of stopping smoking.

The latest medical research regarding vaping has come from a team of scientists in San Diego with results published in the medical journal Oral Oncology.

Dr Jessica Weng-Rodriguez, chief of pathology at the San Diego branch of the US Department of Veteran Affairs, who co-authored the report, said: “Vapourised e-cigarette liquids induced increased DNA strand breaks and cell damage.”

She added that many earlier studies had shown that nicotine could damage cells, however, her team’s study indicated that other components in e-cigarettes may be cancer causing.

Her conclusions are that the tests “strongly suggest” that e-cigarettes are not as safe as their marketing makes them appear.

In addition to this, recent research from Harvard University on 51 e-cigarette liquids found some of the components can cause a condition called “popcorn lung” – a narrowing of airways, which is life-threatening.

My attention to both these reports was initiated by articles in The Independent newspaper.

And so the debate goes on – the shuffling of statistics, the claims and counter claims.

But if you are a smoker, my advice is simple.

Take responsibility.

Don’t be a victim.

Make the only sensible choice.

Quit.

When you decide to do so the doors at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic are open.

And it really is a doddle to stop smoking with hypnotherapy in Leeds.

Stop smoking hypnotherapy in Leeds in 2016- Coughers fill the coffers

30th December 2015 Care News, stop smoking hypnotherapy, Stop Smoking LeedsDannyLeave a comment

Stop Smoking Leeds Hypnotherapy ClinicStop smoking hypnotherapy in Leeds in 2016- Coughers fill the coffers

If you a smoke then make 2016 the year you quit smoking – that’s not just my New Year message, on behalf of Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic, but it’s at the heart of a new campaign by Public Health England.

The government body has released a short film for TV and the Internet warning people not to ignore what is sometimes known as smokers’ cough. They say there are many people in England unaware of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which is a narrowing of the airways that leaves people struggling to complete even simple activities because of “shortness of breath”.

Stop smoking hypnotherapy at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic

At Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic we collate a lot of statistics about a range of conditions and none are more shocking than those relating to the effects of smoking. It is particularly distressing primarily because all smokers are capable of quitting – as I explain in my book Stop Smoking: It’s a doddle.

COPD is an umbrella term for a number of illnesses, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

England’s Chief Medical Officer says: “COPD is a serious lung disease and is not particularly well known. The single best thing a smoker can do to reduce the chances of developing this devastating disease and prolong their lives is to stop smoking.”

This latest government campaign features former Olympic champion athlete Iwan Thomas whose own mother was recently diagnosed with COPD after years of smoking.

She has pledged to make 2016 the year she quits.

I would urge every smoker to do the same.

Stop smoking hypnotherapy

Our doors, here at Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic, are open to all smokers who want to quit. I am also offering my book – Stop Smoking: It’s a doddle for less than half the retail price. You can order a copy from this website or from Waterstones stores. It is also available as an e-book.

A Happy and a Healthy New Year to all from Leeds Hypnotherapy Clinic.

 

 

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