Many of us have bad habits we would like to break. It can seem daunting or impossible to reprogram our brains to change bad habits we have grown accustomed to. The truth is, whatever your bad habit is, you didn’t develop it overnight, so you can’t expect to change it overnight. Do not be discouraged, though, because breaking a bad habit can be done! Research shows it takes at least 3-4 weeks of repetition to create the new pathway in your brain that will lead to developing a new habit. I’ve outlined some steps you can take that will help you retrain your brain to break a bad habit:
1. Decide to Make a Commitment
In order to break a bad habit (such as overeating, overdrinking, smoking, or staying in an abusive relationship), you first need to decide that you don’t want that habit any more. Make a commitment to yourself.
2. Be Aware of Your Motivation
You need to keep in the forefront of your mind the reason(s) why you want to change this habit.
3. Be mindful of your feelings and needs
Pause several times during the day. Ask yourself how you feel and what do you need. Research shows that mindfulness activates the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain that controls executive function. The prefrontal cortex allows you to use your will for self control and emotion regulation. Mindfulness also grows the hippocampus, the area of the brain involved with learning and memory. Pause and recognize that you have the choice to make healthy decisions that result in creating new habits.
4. Identify Emotional Triggers That Encourage the Bad Habit
You need to retrain your brain by staying conscious of what you are doing. Be alert and try to identify emotions that trigger your bad habit. By being aware of your emotional triggers you can break the association between the painful emotion and the bad habit you are trying to change.
5. Substitute Healthy Behavior
Your brain has developed a well-worn “groove” (hence the axiom: “Neurons that fire together wire together.”) You need to mindfully, deliberately, switch gears, substitute a healthy behavior repeatedly until your brain “re-wires” itself and creates a new well-worn groove of association, connecting the emotion with a different response. Ideally, the new response should be one that also creates pleasure for you by activating the dopamine receptors in your brain.
Often times, hypnosis and counseling, as well as the support of a friend or an online community can assist you. It is good to have someone who can encourage you and hold you accountable. Don’t wait. Get started now on retraining your brain to create new habits. You can do it!