My son in law has decided that it is time for him to quit smoking. I know yoga can help him but I wonder what the experts here can recommend. I think he will feel much anxiety when he starts to stop and wonder what advice all of you would have for him. He has been smoking almost a pack a day for six years. He has never done yoga before but would like to start.
Is he in Mumbai or here in the States?
If it is the former then I’d suggest locating Jehangir Palkhivala and working directly with him.
If he is here in the States then it would be helpful to know where he is located.
gordon
The vast majority of smokers are self medicating. They are medicating themselves so that they don’t have to deal with underlying issues and usually emotional ones at that. This is why you so often see people who quit smoking turn to some other form of addiction or means of numbing their pain. Whether that be food, extreme exercise, alcohol, it doesn’t matter.
Properly deal with the underlying emotional issues as they arise and stopping smoking will be infinitely easier.
An answer, David, that could be offered on all of the therapeutic questions on the forum.
gordon
[QUOTE=InnerAthlete;61546]An answer, David, that could be offered on all of the therapeutic questions on the forum. [/QUOTE]
Indeed.
Yet how often is the proper integration of emotions brought up on this forum or in yoga classes? 
[QUOTE=InnerAthlete;61372]Is he in Mumbai or here in the States?[/QUOTE]
He is near San Antonio, Texas.
Once the mind reaches a stability smoking as a habit can no longer exist
The same apply for eating meat and fish
[QUOTE=David;61552]Indeed.
Yet how often is the proper integration of emotions brought up on this forum or in yoga classes? :)[/QUOTE]
Daily!
[QUOTE=InnerAthlete;61604]Daily![/QUOTE]
Then sign me up for YOUR class please! (And move to Florida, thanks).
[QUOTE=David;61605]Then sign me up for YOUR class please! (And move to Florida, thanks).[/QUOTE]
You’ve had better than my class 
And I’ve moved FROM Florida.
[QUOTE=Ramanuja;61352]My son in law has decided that it is time for him to quit smoking. I know yoga can help him but I wonder what the experts here can recommend. I think he will feel much anxiety when he starts to stop and wonder what advice all of you would have for him. He has been smoking almost a pack a day for six years. He has never done yoga before but would like to start.[/QUOTE]
I used to smoke, never a pack a day, but I smoked anyway. As I didn’t smoke a lot, I never really tried to quit. The thing is, when I started doing Kundalini yoga, I didn’t need to smoke anymore, in about 2 weeks I started smoking less and less…till I quit. I didn’t start yoga in order to quit smoking but I realized that yoga made me feel so good I just didn’t feel like smoking anymore 
Now, I used to smoke out of anxiety, maybe if the person has different reasons to smoke, yoga will not have such a sudden and strong effect as it had on me.
*Note: I’m new on the forum, so please excuse me if I’ve made any mistakes in posting this.
Hi,
It is side that yoga is a miracle cure to quit smoking. The different aspects of yoga are best techniques for quit smoking. The best thing is that is it helps to improve or repair the damage, which is cause by smoking. It improves the lungs capacity and strength .The best thing is that it helps to quit smoking with any side effects.
RayMeds. Com
I’m a recovered alcoholic, drug addict, you name it. Smoking was the one last thing I just couldn’t shake. Finally I realised I had to develop my Yoga practice and hope that the improved spiritual discernment would , as has been suggested already, make it impossible for me to continue smoking. Thankfully this has proved true. After upping my classes to 3 or 4 a week and trying to do a bit at home each day I finally put them down without too much grief. I had a bad headache for 2 days but no cravings. I was a hardcore smoker for a long time and I finally feel free. I am noticing it’s getting easier to maintain better eating habits too.
Yoga is freedom!