We all have bad habits we would like to get rid of—whether it is something mundane like biting your nails or something potentially harmful to your wellbeing like smoking, drinking or overeating.
A bad habit, or a good one for that matter, is formed when you do something over and over again. You tend to stick to habits because they are a familiar part of your everyday routine. However, problems crop up when the habit you have acquired is detrimental to your wellbeing, which means you end up in a negative cycle of repetition, making it difficult for you to break free of the pattern and possibly holding you back from achieving your full potential.
If you are a perennial procrastinator, for example, chances are you will never get the job done properly because you keep on postponing it up to the last minute, leaving yourself little or no time to make improvements while putting unnecessary stress on yourself. Wouldn't it be so much better to learn how to properly manage your time instead?
Bad habits are something you do on autopilot. You do them almost without thought and they become so rooted into your every day life that you tend to continue to do them again and again without being fully aware of the damage they are doing to your life.
Bad habits can be difficult to get rid of, but the good news is they are not impossible to break. The first step to doing this is to actually want to make a change.
Once you’ve made that important decision, it’s vital to try and unpick what emotions are driving the negative behaviour cycle you are seeking to break free from. Most habits are either unconsciously performed or a response to an inner craving, and in order to break them you have to become self-aware and identify the feeling within that induces you to indulge. Once you’ve begun to identify the trigger then you can use distraction techniqes to control it.
The next thing you need to do is to understand what the consequences of your habit might be in the long-term. You may turn to smoking for temporary stress relief, but if you think about it, you are spending money on something that is potentially deadly and will almost certain damage your health. Realising the long-term negative effects of your bad habit will get you one step closer to breaking it.
Focusing on the negative effects can only get you so far and at some point in the process of habit breaking you need to embrace something more positive. Substituting your bad habits with better behaviours is one way of creating new patterns. The reason why you formed your habits in the first place is because they filled a need, but those needs can be filled in other less damaging ways.
For example if you have a habit of taking your stress out on others in anger, you might decide to go for a walk or get a breath of fresh air to keep yourself calm and composed and to temporarily remove yourself from the situation. Whatever alternative action you choose, the most important you end up feeling that you have moved a step in the right direction and are actively taking control.
Often, you develop habits as a way of coping with anxiety and stress. For example, some people drink too much to numb how they feel, not realising that they are only compounding their problems instead of looking for ways to fix them. When you indulge in a damaging habit, ask yourself: "What am I trying to avoid?" When you do this, you are looking beyond the habit and addressing your fear. With this objective mindset, you are give yourself a greater chance of breaking the pattern.
Make the choice to change. Change is hard work and there is no shortcut to achieving it, but if you want to change the direction your life is going, then you need to step up to the challenge and take that personal responsibility that helps you to make conscious positive choices, rather than being a passenger in the process. Remember, the only person who can break your bad habit is you.
Case book
Common bad habits treated in the UAE
1. Overeating
2. Smoking
3. Staying up late
4. Late night snacking
5. Spending too much time on the internet
