Stories & expert opinions
I didn't quit overnight. I just smoke less every week
A reader's story of a quit that stretched over six months — and why it still counts as progress.
Materials by this expert
Demo profile. A fictional specialist created for the website mock-up. The photo shows a stock model, not the person named. Replace with a real expert with written consent before publishing. Behaviour change: why setbacks are part of the process Almaty Zhanar works with people who have tried many times and returned to the starting point many times. She believes the main obstacle is not weak willpower but the all-or-nothing frame: one slip devalues a month of effort, and the person abandons what they started. In sessions she suggests treating change as data: what happened before the slip, what helped on the good days, which environment supports and which pulls back. In her materials for the site she explains why uneven progress is the norm rather than a sign of failure. Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, psychology, 2014 Training in cognitive behavioural therapy, 2018 Works with addictive behaviour and habit change Runs support groups for adults who are quitting smoking