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Share your quitting journey

thought triggers cravings

karenjones
Member
6 9 66

I am taking an online course in Buddhism and Psychology and wrote an essay for my midterm about suffering, this is part of it:    The buddhas diagnosis of suffering is that suffering is caused by craving. Judson Brewer from the Centre for Mindfulness in Medicine studies craving that is at the centre of addictive behaviour and has found that thought triggers cravings. People who are trying to de-toxify from cigarettes, for example and experience craving for cigarettes, think about cigarettes first and then crave them. He explains that the ordinary person who has not thought about this will react to the craving by either surrendering to the craving and smoking a cigarette or pushing the craving away, which is difficult. There is another way, to observe it until it subsides, this, according to Judson Brewer, deprives the craving of its force. When working with people who are addicted the Centre for Mindfulness advises people to Recognize a craving (be mindful that it is a craving) to Allow this craving to happen, to Investigate how it makes you feel and to Note that you investigated it. RAIN. By observing the Craving arise and fall away you are depriving it of fuel, you are not feeding it and the craving will be extinguished. The word in Pali, upadana can mean clinging, substance or fuel. By simply observing craving and not reacting to it, it is deprived of substance, of fuel and clinging . This is also called Urge Surfing in other forms of therapy to help overcome addictions.  Surprisingly, for me I got 11/12 on the essay.

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About the Author
I quit for 5 years and thought I could take one puff. Ha Ha. Obviously I have to learn the hard way.