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No, it is a craving, and it is NOT life-threatening if you stop. There are plenty of other chemicals (alcohol, opiates, etc) that can cause death if you are addicted and immediately stop. How many times have YOU gone through detox? We can compare notes.
It is not a necessity, it is a desire.
Once your addicted its not overatted or underatted, its a necessity.
it is a necessity only because your brain is addicted and has convinced you of it. that is called junkie thinking. detoxing and retraining your brain to think logically and not like an addict is the only way to rid the addiction.
even smokers know smoking is bad for them and only the most deluded head in the sand smoker allows his junkie mentality to tell them otherwise.
you can get past the addiction, many of us "hard core" smokers have. yes, smoking is overrated by smokers who are too worried about the difficulties to bother to try to give it up.
Does it matter to you personally if they can't quit smoking? Why not live and let live! So some people smoke. Big deal! Others don't, another big deal. I'm a reformed heavy smoker and I can accept that not all people can give it up. I'm happy to let those who can't get on with it, it is after all their business. What right have we to push our views on the smokers?
I have a question for the people who are really, virulently, anti-smoking:
Look, I understand that many people don't like cigarette smoke. I try to be as considerate as possible in acknowledgment. But - and I am not saying that all of you do this - what is the point of doing things such as coughing exaggeratedly when 10+ feet in range of people smoking, put-downs, going into a bar clearly labeled "smoking permitted" on the door when there are other options available (in my area it depends on food sales) and then complaining about the smoke? At this point, it ceases being about concern for the health of others (or even one's own, for that matter) and it becomes a matter of control and self-righteousness. I know plenty of people who are overweight and who don't eat properly. Do I make barnyard noises and go "om nom nom" when they open their chips. No. Because that would be obnoxious and juvenile. And it doesn't push anyone toward a better lifestyle one inch.
That being said, instead of talking about banning this or that, or shaming groups of people, why don't we take a look at society to see what the hell's so wrong that so many people feel the need to turn to a substance or an activity to make themselves feel better? Smoking, drinking drugs, gambling shopping - there's even a show where we've got people addicted to eating drywall and all sorts of odd things. Why don't we go for the root cause? We've seen how well Prohibition and the War on Drugs have worked. Why don't we incentivize healthy behaviors? That's really just a rhetorical question, because I think our society is too fundamentally ill for that.
I've tried to quit smoking before, and I am trying again very soon. Not every smoker wants to quit, and I hope not to be a huge PITA due to any doubts I may have about my ability to quit. I am going to try the straw/pen sheath idea. One positive suggestion is way more helpful than all the nagging in the world.
I have a question for the people who are really, virulently, anti-smoking:
Look, I understand that many people don't like cigarette smoke. I try to be as considerate as possible in acknowledgment. But - and I am not saying that all of you do this - what is the point of doing things such as coughing exaggeratedly when 10+ feet in range of people smoking, put-downs, going into a bar clearly labeled "smoking permitted" on the door when there are other options available (in my area it depends on food sales) and then complaining about the smoke? At this point, it ceases being about concern for the health of others (or even one's own, for that matter) and it becomes a matter of control and self-righteousness. I know plenty of people who are overweight and who don't eat properly. Do I make barnyard noises and go "om nom nom" when they open their chips. No. Because that would be obnoxious and juvenile. And it doesn't push anyone toward a better lifestyle one inch.
That being said, instead of talking about banning this or that, or shaming groups of people, why don't we take a look at society to see what the hell's so wrong that so many people feel the need to turn to a substance or an activity to make themselves feel better? Smoking, drinking drugs, gambling shopping - there's even a show where we've got people addicted to eating drywall and all sorts of odd things. Why don't we go for the root cause? We've seen how well Prohibition and the War on Drugs have worked. Why don't we incentivize healthy behaviors? That's really just a rhetorical question, because I think our society is too fundamentally ill for that.
I've tried to quit smoking before, and I am trying again very soon. Not every smoker wants to quit, and I hope not to be a huge PITA due to any doubts I may have about my ability to quit. I am going to try the straw/pen sheath idea. One positive suggestion is way more helpful than all the nagging in the world.
Haven't read all the posts - too many, and I can't be bothered, but this one is very well said.
I've been a smoker since I was about 14, I'm now in my low 60's and have no intention of giving up. I've known too many people who have lived the so called 'good life'...and have either had heart bypasses, some other health related issues...or are now dead!
They can spread as much propaganda about smoking as they like but that's all it is - propaganda, and statistics are sprouted to satisfy an individuals argument whilst putting the onus on others to find stats which support an alternative view...Statistics are a cop out perpetuated by self interest groups or those who have some other agenda, and only support one point of view while ignoring many other factors which are *IMPOSSIBLE* to pin point! Not dissimilar to a doctor suggesting a 24 hour bug is going around when he/she should really just admit he/she hasn't a clue because they can't pin point a reason for it, so they come up with some lame medical condition called a '24 hour bug'.
Haven't read all the posts - too many, and I can't be bothered, but this one is very well said.
I've been a smoker since I was about 14, I'm now in my low 60's and have no intention of giving up. I've known too many people who have lived the so called 'good life'...and have either had heart bypasses, some other health related issues...or are now dead!
They can spread as much propaganda about smoking as they like but that's all it is - propaganda, and statistics are sprouted to satisfy an individuals argument whilst putting the onus on others to find stats which support an alternative view...Statistics are a cop out perpetuated by self interest groups or those who have some other agenda, and only support one point of view while ignoring many other factors which are *IMPOSSIBLE* to pin point! Not dissimilar to a doctor suggesting a 24 hour bug is going around when he/she should really just admit he/she hasn't a clue because they can't pin point a reason for it, so they come up with some lame medical condition called a '24 hour bug'.
Thank you. The reasons that I want to quit-or sort of want to quit-well, it's part vanity and part financial. I can't promise I'm going to quit on the 1st, but I'll try. I made a bucket list when a friend of mine died unexpectedly at 31. Not because of cigarettes, but because of a prescription drug (which she did not abuse). A lot of the things that I want to do would be a lot easier if I quit smoking. But, at the same time, I know why I started in the first place, and that was to deal with stress. I was 15 and had a horrible relationship with my mom. She was constantly kicking me out of the house, and my best friend at the time said she smoked to calm her nerves. At first it seemed to work. What a bargain, $2 for 20 of these things! I didn't care about being cool; in fact, I hid the fact that I smoked. Now, 22 years later, I have to find other outlets for that stress. Exercise is one. I have bucky balls and other stuff to fiddle around with at work. My house is going to be spotless (not like it wasn't before, but damn) And gum. I can't tell other people what to do, because I am not in their shoes, and it's not my business anyway. But when people go on and on about smoking , it just makes me want to light up.
No, smoking really isn't harmless. It's not just propaganda! I smoked a pack a day for 25 years and hope that it didn't harm me too much. Just because other people who don't smoke have ailments too doesn't mean anything. I play tuba and other instruments which require a lot of "wind" and breath support and almost immediately noticed that it helped when I quit smoking. I'm not a crusader against smoking, but facts are facts.
swgirl926: You need to get it fixed in your mind that you can quit smoking and that you are going to, period. That's the way to do it! It is literally "triumph of the will".
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