"When I was a kid, I used to see adults around me smoking. Quite a few members of my family were chain-smokers and I had to bear with the smoke, the foul odours, the coughs of my family members, etc… All this made smoking for me repulsive. Even when I was in high school, and my mates were starting to lit their first cigarettes, I would go away from them.

Yet, when I went to India to pursue my Bachelor, I believe it was the change of environment, but I began smoking my first cigarettes. At first, it was occasional, then every weekends, then one a day and it just kept increasing as days, weeks and months went by. At some point, I was smoking 30 cigarettes a day.

With my increasing cigarette consumption, I also lost much of what I believe made me who I was. I was quite athletic and energetic in high school, playing tennis, basketball, running and even gyming. I was very conscious of what I was putting in my body, I followed a diet, etc… Then, as I spiralled down the nicotine addiction, I began losing focus on my health and wealth. Nothing mattered so long I had my cigarettes.

Weeks, months and years went by so quickly, and although I tried and failed a hundred times to stop, I could never get rid of my itch of smoking. While I was still a bachelor when I picked up my nicotine addiction, I was still smoking when I graduated, still smoking when I got my first job, still smoking when I dated the one who would later become my wife, I was still smoking when my wife was pregnant and still smoking when my child was born.

It felt like I had a incurable disease and I even resorted at times to the idea that I would eventually die a smoker. Thankfully though, I met Shameemah last year who talked to me about the benefits of hypno-therapy. I did some research on my side and I did see that many past-smokers used this technique to give up addiction. We then had two sessions, I was quite stressed to be frank, cause for me it was like breaking up with a 10-year girlfriend. The first session was mainly an introduction about my addiction.

The second session was a roller coaster of emotions where I realised that the relationship I had with the cigarette was actually very toxic, maybe my most toxic relationship. On that night, I also had the most relaxing sleep ever and I kind of felt like I was in a trance-like state for almost 24 hours. Afterwards, I didn’t really feel the itch to smoke again and my withdrawal symptoms were barely noticeable. I would recommend anyone struggling with an addiction to attend Shameemah’s hypnotherapy session because they actually work."