I used to smoke, dip, or drink as a way to "relax".

I had been doing this for a few years.

Rock bottom for me was when I noticed these coping behaviors led to more coping behaviors. I was procrastinating, unwilling to face my problems directly, and setting myself up for frustration. It was terrible.

How did I break this bad habit?

I reconditioned my positive associations to negative ones.

Everything changed as soon as I decided to quit tobacco products. I found a brand that tasted horrible which removed part of the enjoyment and I reconditioned myself to associate a negative experience with tobacco. Then bit by bit I changed my relationship with alcohol through another form of reconditioning - analyzing my mood after the alcohol had worn off - it was always worse than before a couple of drinks. It is now a social drink and is usually limited to 1.

And honestly, I saw almost immediate results.

• Clear thinking

• Saving more money

• Solutions orientated action

• Development of healthy coping methods

So, if you smoke or drink as a stress reducer, I encourage you to learn from my mistakes.

And quit your net negative coping habits - whatever they may be.