Control Cravings Instantly: 3 Simple Ways

Creme Puffs - Photo by Steve Woods

One of the most irritating problems I have run into when trying to change my habits and behavior is the craving that tends to arise, pushing me to continue that old behavior.

The following three techniques are almost certain to help you to quickly move beyond cravings and impulsive desires, and they only get better the more you use them. You don’t have to stick to just one–use them however and whenever you wish!

The Techniques

1. Become aware of the body. When you feel a craving, thoughts and images of the behavior or desired object often race through the mind, catching us in their seductive grasp. Instead of reacting or resisting, take a moment to move your awareness down from your mind into your body. Feel the emotional sensations in your belly. Observe where you are holding tension in your muscles, and relax them. Feel the expansion and contraction of your chest and stomach as you breathe. Maintain your awareness in your body, and the craving will melt away.
2. Take 3-5 deep breaths. As the craving arises within you, move your focus to your chest, and take three to four deep, slow, purposeful breaths. Do nothing with your mind–do not attempt to stop the craving–but simply take four deep breaths. Very often, this will break the spell of the craving quite easily.
3. View your thoughts outside yourself. This method involves your ability to observe your mind in a third-person view. As you notice that you are involved in a craving, allow your mental perspective to move outside the thoughts. Just step aside and notice the craving, and observe the thoughts and feelings that are arising as if you are a scientist cooly studying a natural phenomenon. Very often, not only will the craving eventually subside, but you may learn something about the nature of these obsessive thoughts that will help you recognize them next time.

BONUS: Instant stress relief

Any of these techniques can be used to dissolve stress and worry as well! Any ‘obsessive’ thought process can be effectively cleared using these techniques.

How these work

Each of these techniques work in two ways. First, they remove your identification with the craving or obsessive thought by having you move your attention somewhere else. When you are identified and focused on the craving, that keeps it in motion and gives it energy. Second, each technique asks you to hold your attention separate from the craving for a period of time which will allow the craving to expend its reserve energy and fizzle out. Each time you perform one of these techniques on a craving or obsessive thought, you will increase your ability to bring awareness to them sooner and more efficiently.

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