欧美人文风情第73篇:如何戒掉坏习惯?

 Typically, we are harder on others than ourselves when it comes to bad habits. 一般来说，当提到坏习惯时，我们总严以待人宽以律己。

They could be annoyances¹, like, someone who starts cracking their knuckles² right next to you, 它们可以是让人讨厌的事，像是，某个就在你旁边开始折指节的人，

or a friend of yours who you love very much but who constantly drops the word "like" into, like, every other sentence. 或是你一个非常喜欢的朋友，但他会不断用“像是”这个词，像是，每隔一句就用一次。

Hey, but you've got one, too! Everyone has at least one bad habit that they can shake. 嘿，但你也有个坏习惯!每个人都至少有一个他们可以摆脱的坏习惯。

Or can they? 或是他们可以吗？

Welcome to Wellcast. This week, we took another viewer's suggestion from Franticow who wrote in asking for video on breaking bad habits. 欢迎收看Wellcast。这周，我们采纳另外一个观众Franticow的建议，他写信来寻求戒掉坏习惯的影片。

So today, you guessed it. 所以今天，你们猜到了。

We're gonna examine why it's so darn difficult to give up chowing down on junk food or chowing down on your fingernails. 我们要检验为什么要戒掉大吃垃圾食物、或是大啃你的指甲是如此的困难。

We've also got a four-step method for overcoming your biggest vice³. Are you ready? 我们同样也提供一个克服最大恶习的四阶段方法。你准备好了吗？

First and foremost: how do bad habits even form? 首先最重要的是：坏习惯到底怎么养成的？

Studies by the National Institute of Health point to two main reasons: The first reason is repetition. 美国国立卫生研究院的研究指出两个主要原因：第一个原因是反复。

If you do something often enough, say, you twirl your pencil during class, 如果你够常做某件事，例如，你在课堂上转笔，

you brain decides it can stop wasting precious neuron thinking about it. 你的大脑决定它可以停止浪费宝贵的神经元来思考这事。

So it checks out and goes on vacation. 所以它收工并放假去了。

You could be twirling your pencil through AP English, social studies, algebra⁴ and trig without even thinking about it. 你甚至连想都不用想，就会在大学先修英文课、社会研究课、代数和三角学上转你的笔。

The other way bad habits are formed is through positive reinforcement, 另一个坏习惯养成的方式是透过正面强化，

which sounds like a really good thing, but it can be dangerous. 这听起来像是一件非常好的事，但它也可以是很危险的。

Let's talk about that energy drink that you insist on sucking back when you're up late studying. 来谈谈你在熬夜念书时坚持要喝的能量饮料。

Gives you a nice boost of energy, and then helps you get through to the end of that mind-numbingly boring paper you're writing on Chaucer. 它给了你满满的能量补充，然后帮你撑过你正在写的那份让人脑袋麻痺、无聊的Chaucer(英国作家)报告的最后。

But the reason why this kind of habit is hard to break is that the nice surge of energy at 11 p.m. is an enjoyable feeling. 但这种习惯为什么难戒掉的原因，是因为在晚上十一点时能量的激增是一种快乐的感受。

And enjoyable feelings usually result in your brain releasing dopamine. 而快乐的感受通常会导致你的脑袋释出多巴胺。

This is partly why people often crave⁵ things that aren't even enjoyable for them anymore. 在一定程度上，这就是为什么人们常常还会渴望那些对他们来说甚至已经不再快乐的事。

The brain is jonesing for dopamine. 脑袋上了多巴胺的瘾。

But don't worry, my habitual⁶ compadres. 但别担心，我的恶习朋友们。

Human beings are pretty amazing at changing and adapting. 人类在改变和适应方面是非常惊人的。

Ladies and gentlemen, we're going to obliterate⁷ that bad habit in four easy steps. 各位先生女士，我们要用四个简单步骤来戒掉那坏习惯。

Pause and print this sheet at watchwellcast.com. 暂停并印下watchwellcast.com上的这份表。

Step one (let's start at the very beginning. It's a very good place to start): 第一步(从起点开始。这是个开始的好地方)：

Write down the bad habit you're trying to quit. 写下你试着要戒掉的坏习惯。

Start simple. Choose just one. 简单开始。只选一个。

Step two: Learn to avoid your triggers. 第二步：学会避开你的触发点

Take some time to think of other things that really make you crave doing your bad habit. 花点时间想想其他真正会让你渴望做坏习惯的事。

If biting your nails is your vice, your triggers might be: "That last minute quiz!" "Oh, no! I gotta pay my electric bill" 如果咬指甲是你的恶习，你的触发点可能是：“最后一刻的考试!”“喔，不!我要付电费了。”

or "How much money do I have in my account for rent?" 或是“我帐户里还有多少钱付房租？”

List these triggers in section two of your worksheet. 在工作表的第二栏里列出这些触发点。

Next to these triggers, write a list of ways you can avoid them. 在这些触发点旁边，写下你可以避开它们方式的名单。

For example, read your syllabus⁸ every week or make sure that you plan for automatic deductions⁹ for your electric bill. 举例来说，每周细看课纲，或是确定你有安排自动扣缴电费。

Step three: Substitute your bad habits for not so bad habits. 第三步：把你的坏习惯替换成不那么坏的习惯

Basically, you wanna teach your brain by repetition to learn a new habit. 基本上，你想要透过重复来教你的脑袋学会新的习惯。

So if you tend to bite your nails when you're stressed and alone in your living room, 所以如果你在客厅压力大且孤独时容易咬指甲，

stock your refrigerator with carrots and celery, 在冰箱囤积红萝卜和芹菜，

so that you can reach for something else to chew on when you're stressed out. 这样一来当你压力大时就能拿些其他的东西来啃。

Write a substitution next to every trigger on section three of your worksheet. 在工作表上第三栏每个触发点旁写下替代方案。

Step four: Gather your army. 第四步：集结你的军队。

You do not have to do this alone. Enlist¹⁰ your friends to help you defeat this bad habit. 你不必单独做这事。招募你的朋友来帮你打败这个坏习惯。

Start by telling them that you're planning on eliminating this bad habit and you need their help. 开始以告诉他们你正计画要消灭这个坏习惯，而且需要他们的帮助。

Just the simple act of letting them in on this battle that you're waging is a step at the right direction. 就是这个让他们知道你正在进行的这场战斗的简单行动，就是朝向正途的一步。

Remember, your friends can be bodyguards¹¹. They'll stand between you and your brain. 记住，你的朋友可以当保镖。他们会站在你和你的脑袋之间。

Tell them to police you. If they see you reaching for those nails to bite, 叫他们监督你。如果他们看到你伸手要咬指甲，

give them the permission to remind you of your mission or even slap your hand. 准许他们提醒你的任务，或甚至打你的手。

Whatever you want! 不论你想要什么!

Alright, guys. Let's recap. Today you learned four steps for beating your bad habits. 好的，各位。来复习吧。今天你学到打败坏习惯的四个步骤。

You decided¹² which habit you wanted to kick. You figured out your triggers for this bad habit. 你决定你想要戒掉哪个坏习惯。你想出这个坏习惯的触发点。

And you decided on ways to avoid and replace these triggers with healthier alternatives. 你选定方法来，用更健康的替代方案避开并替换这些触发点。

If all those fail, you learn to enlist your friends in the fight. 如果那些全都失败，你学到召集你的朋友来打这场仗。

Tweet us at WatchWellCast. Email us at [email protected]. 在推特WatchWellCast上留言给我们。寄信到[email protected]给我们。

Or leave a comment down below. We'll see you next time. 或是在下方留言。我们下次见。

 

1 annoyances   

n.恼怒( annoyance的名词复数 )；烦恼；打扰；使人烦恼的事

参考例句：

• At dinner that evening two annoyances kept General Zaroff from perfect enjoyment one. 当天晚上吃饭时，有两件不称心的事令沙洛夫吃得不很香。 来自辞典例句
• Actually, I have a lot of these little annoyances-don't we all? 事实上我有很多类似的小烦恼，我们不都有这种小烦恼吗？ 来自互联网

2 knuckles   

n.（指人）指关节( knuckle的名词复数 )；（指动物）膝关节，踝v.（指人）指关节( knuckle的第三人称单数 )；（指动物）膝关节，踝

参考例句：

• He gripped the wheel until his knuckles whitened. 他紧紧握住方向盘，握得指关节都变白了。
• Her thin hands were twisted by swollen knuckles. 她那双纤手因肿大的指关节而变了形。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

4 algebra   

n.代数学

参考例句：

• He was not good at algebra in middle school.他中学时不擅长代数。
• The boy can't figure out the algebra problems.这个男孩做不出这道代数题。

5 crave   

vt.渴望得到，迫切需要，恳求，请求

参考例句：

• Many young children crave attention.许多小孩子渴望得到关心。
• You may be craving for some fresh air.你可能很想呼吸呼吸新鲜空气。

6 habitual   

adj.习惯性的；通常的，惯常的

参考例句：

• He is a habitual criminal.他是一个惯犯。
• They are habitual visitors to our house.他们是我家的常客。

7 obliterate   

v.擦去，涂抹，去掉...痕迹，消失，除去

参考例句：

• Whole villages were obliterated by fire.整座整座的村庄都被大火所吞噬。
• There was time enough to obliterate memories of how things once were for him.时间足以抹去他对过去经历的记忆。

8 syllabus   

n.教学大纲，课程大纲

参考例句：

• Have you got next year's syllabus?你拿到明年的教学大纲了吗？
• We must try to diversify the syllabus to attract more students.我们应该使教学大纲内容多样化，可以多吸引学生。

9 deductions   

扣除( deduction的名词复数 )； 结论； 扣除的量； 推演

参考例句：

• Many of the older officers trusted agents sightings more than cryptanalysts'deductions. 许多年纪比较大的军官往往相信特务的发现，而不怎么相信密码分析员的推断。
• You know how you rush at things,jump to conclusions without proper deductions. 你知道你处理问题是多么仓促，毫无合适的演绎就仓促下结论。

10 enlist   

vt.谋取(支持等)，赢得；征募；vi.入伍

参考例句：

• They come here to enlist men for the army.他们来这儿是为了召兵。
• The conference will make further efforts to enlist the support of the international community for their just struggle. 会议必将进一步动员国际社会，支持他们的正义斗争。

11 bodyguards   

n.保镖，卫士，警卫员( bodyguard的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Brooks came to Jim's office accompanied—like always—by his two bodyguards. 和往常一样，在两名保镖的陪同下，布鲁克斯去吉姆的办公室。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Three of his bodyguards were injured in the attack. 在这次袭击事件中，他有3名保镖受了伤。 来自辞典例句

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。