How to get my father to use the Allen Carr’s Easyway stop smoking method
The writer said that while he was explaining how the stop smoking session seemed to work (to another family member) his father appeared to take some interest. The writer explained that he told his father and the family member that it was all very easy to stop smoking, that there were no scare tactics, or health lectures – in fact not a single mention of the C word! He explained that smokers are able to carry on smoking throughout the session until the end and how all the people on the course were all very happy. How it was almost miraculous in fact.
The writer’s father apparently already knows of several people who have also attended the Allen Carr’s London Quit Smoking Center successfully.
For Father’s Day each year the writer has purchased special “experience” gifts for his father including art exhibitions, musical extravaganzas at The Royal Albert Hall in London, and many other cultural expeditions which his father would otherwise never considered attending.
This year, for Father’s Day, he bought him a voucher to use at Allen Carr’s Easyway To Quit Smoking Center in London. To his mind he felt there could be no greater gift than the chance to be set free from cigarettes.
Having printed off some information and placed it carefully inside his Father’s Day card along with the voucher – the writer said it actually made him feel very nervous – he was not sure how his father might react. Perhaps it was a step too far?
Apparently his father was very quiet when he received the gift. It took several weeks for him to confide in his son “About that present … I’ve no interest in it at all. Not one iota. It’s best if you just get your money back.”
And that was that.
Well – the writer was more than a little devastated and was seeking our advice on how to handle the situation.
He told us how his father has actually been stockpiling cigarettes for years. He apparently goes to Europe several times a year to buy cigarettes in their 1000s, because they’re much cheaper on the continent.
It obviously has to be a person’s own decision to give up smoking, but also obvious is the fact that most smokers will have already tried several (perhaps many) times and like most smokers, will have failed. Presumably the writer’s father feels resigned to the fact that he can’t/won’t give up. He’s obviously scared and prefers to keep his head in the sand.
Apparently the stockpile of cigarettes in his shed represents a significant investment in smoking and perhaps it is also some kind of mini victory – proud defiance.
The writer begs a great question – how can one encourage someone who actively does not want to attend the programme to do so?
Our answer has always been to live your life as a clear example of a happy non-smoker. Once smokers close to you see how relaxed and happy you are about not smoking – the hope is that it will inspire them to follow you to freedom. There is certainly a lot to be said for this tactic – but it takes patience.
Some might suggest raiding his shed-full of cigarettes while he is sleeping one night – leaving a ransom note nailed to the door “Attend Allen Carr’s Easyway To Quit Smoking Center in London and your swag will be returned. You’ll be either a happy non-smoker and therefore have no need for the cigarettes any more (and you’ll make a killing when you sell them on) or the method will not have worked for you and the confiscated goods will be returned to you for your consumption. You really have nothing to lose and everything to gain.”
Although I like this idea – it does rely on the father retaining a sense of humor and fun on the issue and given his intransigent stance to date – I fear that might be unlikely.
Explaining how easy Allen Carr’s method makes it to stop smoking is great – but it does sound like the writer has exhausted this avenue – especially as his father already knows former smokers who have quit smoking easily with the method.
Perhaps, aside from living life as a true example of a happy non-smoker, there is one final throw of the dice that I might suggest.
Perhaps a card containing words to the following effect:
“Dear Dad,
I am very sorry that you did not care for the Father’s Day gift that I brought for you. I appear to have misread your level of interest in the miraculous nature of my escape from smoking. The gift voucher I purchased for you cost £240 and no doubt you might find it hard to believe that I would spend such an amount on such a service. The amazing thing about Allen Carr’s Easyway method is that they offer a money back guarantee. If you attend 3 sessions within 3 months without cancelling or arriving late for any appointments and you fail to stop smoking – they refund their fee in full. They guarantee that not only will you stop smoking – but that you’ll find it easy to do so – again – if you do not they will refund the fee in full. There really is nothing to lose.
If you attend the sessions and find it easy to quit smoking – great. You can sell your stockpile of cigarettes and make some money to add to the money you’ll be saving in the future.
If you attend the sessions and fail to stop smoking – you get a crisp cheque from Allen Carr’s Easyway for £240 – that is my gift to you and you can spend it on whatever you like – even more cigarettes.
For my part of the bargain – if you attend the sessions – whether you stop smoking or not – I will never hassle you about your smoking again! You can smoke in peace for the rest of your life without any further comment from me on the matter.
It would be a terrible waste of £240 if you don’t give it a go – or at least attend just to get your money back.”
That would be my advice in this very difficult situation – all we need to do now is wait and see what happens next…….
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Readers please note. In order to improve our search engine ranking we are obliged to use all kinds of words or phrases which we tend to avoid as part of our programme. Terms such as quitting or quitting smoking or smoking habit all have to be used in our blog text in order to score points on our page ranking. Those who have used Allen Carr’s Easyway will appreciate why these phrases are so contrary to Allen Carr’s method – hence this explanation about why we are obliged to use them outside our clinic session rooms/book texts etc. It’s all part of the mad world of search engine optimisation!
We thought it would be great to share some of these here:
Name: Maiju S Date of Birth: 7.8.1974
Lives in: Ulvila, Finland
Occupation: Pilot boat driver/seaman
Tried to stop smoking before with: Group hypnosis, self suggestion, nicotine blasters, will power, betting with friends.
Tell us about how you quitted smoking with Allen Carr’s Easyway: I think the method is Intelligent – was counter brainwashing and I actually enjoyed quitting smoking.
Approx date that you quitted smoking? March 2012
Briefly describe the impact on your life of having quitted smoking: It means everything to me. Health and peace of mind. When I smoked I couldn’t think about anything other than wanting to quit smoking – now I feel free.
Is there something special which you have achieved since you quitted smoking? Did you stop smoking for a specific reason? A burden has been taken away from my shoulder. From the first day I started to do things I never felt inclined to do as a smoker. I now enjoy gardening and similar simple things that I didn’t have the will or the energy to do before.
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For more information about Allen Carr’s Easyway To Quit Smoking Clinics and how to find it easy to stop smoking rather than feeling like you are quitting smoking click on your country’s flag at the top of this page.
Allen Carr’s Easyway Suomi Finland stop smoking clinic offers stop smoking help –
Suoritamme 5-6 tuntia kestäviä ryhmä- tai yksilöllisiä seminaareja koulutettujen Allen Carr’s Easyway terapeuttien vetäminä
Tilaisuudet pidetään Helsingissä
Did you find it easy to stop smoking rather than feeling like you had to give up smoking or sacrifice something? Perhaps you could help to spread the word?
Click here for more information about Allen Carr’s Easyway To Quit Smoking Clinics.