 Hey Psych2Goers, welcome back to another video. Thanks so much for being here. With your help and support we're able to succeed in our mission to make mental health and psychology more accessible to everyone. So thank you. Now, let's continue. Many of you liked our previous video on habits that can damage your brain. So we made this as a follow-up video. Do you have a bad habit that you want to change for yourself? Sometimes habits can sneak up on you. What started as a momentary slip-up has now become a part of your established routine. Bad habits are more difficult to break because they become hardwired in your brain. Neuroscientists have found that for a habit to stick, it goes through a three-part psychological pattern called a habit loop. The first step is the trigger, which prompts your brain to execute the behavior. The next step is the behavior itself. And the third step is a reward, which encourages you to repeat that behavior in the future. Luckily, habits can change. So here are a few ways to get rid of your bad habits and make better choices. Number one, identify the habit's structure. Do you know what your bad habit is? If so, that's good. If not, then feel free to check out our video mentioned in the intro. The first step in changing a bad habit is to properly identify it. Maybe you have a bad habit of biting your fingernails or eating too much junk food. Even though these things are a self-copy mechanism triggered by emotion, it may now be an unconscious habit of yours. Some problematic behaviors can become so ingrained that you no longer see them as a habit. And that's okay. You do have the power to change those habits. Try reaching for a bottle of water or a handful of pretzels instead of sugary or fatty foods. Or paint your nails when you get the urge to bite them. This serves as a distraction and can also help you feel better by doing something nice for yourself. Number two, find the triggers. Now that you know what you want to work on, figure out what triggers that bad habit to kick up. Is it a routine response to your emotions, to your environment or a particular situation? Typically, triggers will fall into one of these five categories. Place, time, emotional state, other people and proceeding actions. Under what kind of circumstances do you usually engage in your bad habit? If you have a habit of having the TV on while you study and that's become distracting for you, change the study location or move the TV out of the room. If you feel like your trigger is emotional, take a second to assess what you're feeling at that moment. Reach out to someone you trust who can help you handle your emotions that you're feeling. Or try to remove yourself from the environment that's triggering those emotions. When you're able to identify your triggers, this helps prevent you from going into habitual autopilot. Number three, eliminate the reward. That third step in developing a habit is the reward associated with it. Habits can also develop when good or enjoyable events trigger the brain's reward centers, releasing dopamine. And this is what makes bad habits so hard to break. You can override the reward center by penalizing the habit and rewarding yourself every time you do not engage in it. If you're someone who eats sweets whenever you're stressed, you can replace eating sugary foods with a brisk walk outside to more effectively deal with the stress instead. When you get back home, treat yourself to a healthy fruit smoothie. It's a way to reward yourself for not eating the sweets, and it's a healthier choice for you overall. Number four, take baby steps. Eliminating a bad habit does not happen overnight. It takes patience and consistency. Remember to take baby steps. Break down the habit into small, doable behaviors. For example, if you have a habit of sitting on the couch at dinner time, maybe make a habit of cleaning off the dining room table so you can eat there instead. Not only will you feel good that you cleaned and got something done, but it will make it easier for you to achieve your goal of sitting down for dinner at the dinner table. When you make these small, positive behavioral changes, it will keep you motivated and inspired to keep trying altogether. Number five, change the environment. Psychologists believe that your environment plays an essential role in the habit formation process because it provides you with cues on how you should behave. So if you're having trouble getting rid of a bad habit, try to change the environment. According to Charles Dewick, author of The Power of Habit, the best time to change a bad habit is during vacation. A vacation takes you out of your regular environment, changes your daily routine, and eliminates your established environmental cues. Next time you're on vacation, take advantage of that time to try and replace a bad habit of yours. And number six, find a substitute. Do you know that you don't technically get rid of a bad habit? You actually replace it? In getting over a bad habit, you normally have to develop a better alternative to choose from instead of that bad habit. For example, if you know certain social situations stress you out and subsequently lead you to drink too much, go out with a friend who can keep you accountable or stick to drinking mocktails. Make a list and visualize the new behavior you hope to engage in. Use a prompt or enlist the help of a friend if you feel you need it. Creating a plan will help you identify the bad habit and react faster when the urge happens to creep up on you. Replacing your bad habits with better ones is not easy. It's a process that takes time. Remember to be kind and compassionate to yourself throughout the process and go in with a plan. Do you think any of these tips will help you to change your bad habits? What are some of your bad habits? Tell us down below. If you have anything encouraging to share with our fellow Psych2Goers who are struggling with this, feel free to share them down below too. And please like and share this video if it helped you. Anything could help someone else too. The studies and references used are listed in the description below. And don't forget to hit the subscribe button and notification bell icon for more Psych2Go videos. Thank you for watching and we'll see you next time.