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I have oral fixation (sucking/chewing) issues due to a neurological condition, cerebral palsy. How can I get rid of the oral issue so it won't be a problem while trying to quit smoking?

I'm 32 yrs old, and have mild cerebral palsy. Since I was a kid, I have had issues with always needing to suck or chew on objects. I drooled (a lot) as a kid as well. I never understood why I used to do all that but as I got older, I learned to control the problems. I also learned that those habits are normal for people with cerebral palsy to deal with. As a kid, I was always sucking and chewing on the front collar of the shirts I was wearing, pieces of paper, pens/pencils, lego's, watches, etc. I quit doing those things as an adult and the drooling stopped, but I ended up replacing those items with worse items, cigarettes and food. I only figured this out recently once I decided to quit smoking. I've smoked 1 to 1-1/2 packs per day for the last 10 years. I think my oral fixations were a lead in as to why I went the path of smoking (all though, living with two parents who smoked heavily probably didn't help matters much either).

Now I want to quit smoking. Well, have to really. Money's tight and while helping the folks out, I just can't afford the habit anymore. I believe I can quit, but it's the oral fixations that will do me in more than the nicotine addiction. You know, the feel of cigarette in the mouth, the feel of smoke on the tongue and the pressure buildup from inhaling the smoke. I need a way to get around these things without resorting to falling into my past chewing/sucking/drooling habits. I know I'm pre-conditioned to these problems, but there must be a way to get around them so that I don't do them nor the smoking anymore.

Does anyone have any ideas that might help me?


FYI, doctors are not an option. Can't afford one right now and I don't have any insurance.
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1444278 tn?1416856415
Based on what you wrote, and my own experience, I'd suggest thumb sucking as a perfect alternative, given that it's free, legal, convenient, effective and more.
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Avatar universal
When I quit smoking, I chewed an endless supply of chewing gum.  Or you could try lollipops, the smallish kind.  Any kinda candy you can put in your mouth and fool with.  Also, since I chewed gum, I needed to do something with my hands.  So, I had some worry beads, which for me consisted of some long plastic beads that were a necklace, I wore them and worked on them all the time.  I also lit incense every afternoon for a while, would walk up to it and breathe it, seemed to dispell that stark reality I was facing.  After three days of quitting, the nicotine is gone, the worst is over.  The rest is psychological.  

So, anytime I wanted a cigarette, I found something ELSE I liked to do until the feeling passed...the feeling is fleeting.  At first, I felt the urge every half hour or so... eventually that spaced out to a few times a day, and after a month, just every couple months, and finally not at all.  If you pick a quit date, and you wind up not making it to the end of the day, set another quit date within a couple weeks.  But that shouldn't happen.  Also, leading up to quitting, start cutting back on how much you smoke, it'll make the transition easier.  Oh, and despite advice usually given, keep a pack in the house, that way the feelings of wanting one won't be as difficult, becuz you know you can just go in the next room and light up.  That worked for me, and eventually I threw them away.
Helpful - 0
180749 tn?1443595232
The Yog Pranayam (breathing exercises) will  help with smoking problem and other habits.Start today and do it with concentration.Come back to report your progress, so that others may benefit.You will definitely be able to quit smoking with this.It is up to you to keep doing the pranayam daily.
Build up your timing gradually. If you feel tired or dizzy, stop and resume after 1 minute.

Bhastrika - Take a long deep breath into the lungs(chest not tummy) via the nose and then completely breathe out through the nose. Duration upto 5 minutes.

Anulom Vilom –
Close your right nostril with thumb and deep breath-in through left nostril  
then – close left nostril with two fingers and breath-out through right nostril  
then -keeping the left nostril closed  deep breath-in through right nostril
then - close your right nostril with thumb and breath-out through left nostril.
This is one cycle of anulom vilom.
Repeat this cycle for 10 to 20  minutes twice a day.
You can do this before breakfast/lunch/dinner or before bedtime or in bed.Remember to take deep long breaths into the lungs.You can do this while sitting on floor or chair or lying in bed.

Bhramri Pranayam -Close eyes. Close ears with thumb, index finger on forehead, and rest three fingers on base of nose touching eyes. Breathe in through nose. And now breathe out slowly through nose while humming like a bee.
Duration : 5 to 12  times
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