How long does it take to deal with a bad habits?

Habits are learned forms of behaviour that are result of repetition of certain actions, feelings, thoughts. We adopt all habits in the same way: at first there is an intention or a tendency for a certain behaviour, and then by repeating that behavior, it stabilizes and solidifies, eventually becoming automated.

Once habits are formed, they no longer require an effort or a conscious intention to act in this way.

In these moments, man is like a machine operating according to a previously created internal program. It is not necessary to think, to pay attention or make decisions, it is enough to just indulge in familiar, habitual, accustomed behaviour.

As we are aware of our habits, whether they are bad or good, we tend to shape them, most often through a line of least resistance. Researchers from College London University examined the habits of 96 people over a 12-week period and found that the average time to adopt a new habit was about 66 days.

But what if we want to break the acquired habits? Creating and rejecting habits seem to be closely related. Psychologist Timothy Pychyl explains: 'Breaking a habit really means creating a new habit. The old habit or pattern still exists, but it is less dominant. "

Experts agree that there is no typical model for breaking the habit. The right recipe would be a mix of personality, motivation and circumstances.

People who want to break the habit for their personal values ​​will change their behavior faster than people who do it because of external factors.

Edit: Sanja Paić

Photo: aranprime-unsplash