brianwl:
1. All the cancer causing additives are/were government mandated.
Cites please.
Without documented evidence, this will remain in the BS file.
Vegans claim that the charred flesh of cattle is carcinogenic, and that it is the burning process that creates these chemicals.
2. Congress continues to take huge amounts of money from the tobacco companies and anyone else with deep pockets.
Ya, so what?
3. Nicotine is known and been proven to be as addictive as Heroine. But there are not any rehab centers to help a person quit smoking like there are for drugs.
More BS spewed by those who want to get congressional funding and tax-exempt status by having it reclassified as a disease.
If it were as addictive as heroin, then how did I (and many, many others) quit cold-turkey?
This is a DANGEROUS myth. Why? Because my kid hears this at school. She tries a friend's smoke, and doesn't get hooked. She figures "Whoa, that wasn't bad, I must be immune to addiction, I guess heroin isn't as bad as everyone says it is either". Knowing 10 people who have quit relatively painlessly reinforces this attitude.
Breaking a heroin addiction is a life-threatening event that requires constant qualified medical supervision. I have absolutely no recollection of spending a week curled up on the floor shaking and puking my guts out when I quit.
Dude... I smoked FOUR PACKS A DAY for years, and was smoking nearly two a day when I quit.
Don't EVEN insult our intelligence with billboard claims. We know better, and you know better.
4. Smoking is not recognized as an illness therefore no support by employers to let people take the time off for rehab.
Good. No time off is needed for rehab. What's the best rehab? DISTRACTION! Keeping busy is the best way to deal with it. You want time off for rehab? Take a week of vacation time and go spend it with the family in Yellowstone. "Forget" to take your smokes.
5. Non-smokers do not help smokers quit smoking. They hinder the attempt with their constant comments. Leave us alone. When we are able and ready to quit, we will.
Agreed.
Every time I'd hear an anti-smoking ad on the radio or see a billboard or bus sign, I'd light up. After I quit, for the first 6 months I'd reach for my pocket.
6. If you smoke menthols, you need to switch to regulars before you can quit. The menthol is addictive too.
More BS. Menthol is no more addictive than Pepsi. It's simply something enjoyable.
7. Don't fool yourself, there is no such thing as an "ex-smoker." Just a smoker who doesn't actively smoke currently. All it take is one cigarette and you're back on them just like an alocholic or drug addict.
More BS.
The smell of smoke does not bother me. I work around smokers every day. I now actually NOTICE the smell, and it is no longer pleasurable, but it has no other effect on me.
I dare say that if I actually had another cig, I would not be likely to finish it because I DON'T find it pleasurable anymore.
Brian... you are looking for excuses to not quit.
There is one reason that you haven't quit... you do not have sufficient motivation to quit. For me, it was the desire to dive. My buddy would not dive with me if I smoked, and I would have nobody to dive with regularly other than he (no, he's not DIR either). Simple choice... do something that I had really wanted to do for 20 years, or continue doing something that I had been doing and hating for 20 years.
For my brother and grandmother, their motivation came from burying grandpa. That was always in the back of my mind, but I was too young to fully grasp what grandma and the family went through during his last 6 months. The iron lung was in a bizzare darkened room that we were not allowed in. There was a window in the door, and a mirror above his face so he could see the door.
One day, hopefully, you will find it within yourself to make the move forward in your life. There IS plenty of help available that wasn't available to grandpa... patches, gum, support groups.
Trust me, it is a 100% positive move, and after a few months, you will look back and ask yourself how you could do it for so long. The money I saved the second year lone was enough to pay for my Mako scooter. The money I saved the first year paid for the rest of my gear. The third year paid for my custom-cut DUI drysuit.
