I am a 30-year nicotine addict, started the habit when I was 16. Quitting is not easy, have tried it many times over in different ways and means but with only one result: Failure.
Tobacco leaves were originally used for medicinal purposes particularly in pain control such as rheumatism by directly applying the tobacco leaf extract. With some innovation, smoking was invented. The main difference between a cigar and a cigarette is the carcinogenic contents and other added chemicals in the cigarette. When it burns, tar is produced and this sticky substance ruins the show. Tar clings to the mouth, throat linings and worse, stays in the lungs. The function of the Alveoli - small cells of the lungs that sucks in air – is hampered when clogged with tar.
The pleasure provided by the slow onset of nicotine in the blood vessels paved the way for tobacco’s popularity and eventually cigarettes. Nicotine provides the human body the necessary boost to attain a higher level of concentration. This is the reason why most thinkers are addicted to cigarettes. It is also claimed to be a relaxant although at times solicits a negative reaction from the gastric glands thereby causing gastritis or ulcers. But a human body, particularly a long time heavy smoker, become dependent on nicotine and may suffer unrelated ailments when abruptly denied of their nicotine ration.
TO QUIT or not TO QUIT is the question. Different ways work for different persons. There’s the abrupt – stop now – method supported by therapies like continual drinking of fluids and taking of showers. The slow one – little by little – wherein one lessens the number of sticks consumed in a day until consumption zero. There’s also the diversionary tactic where the person engages in a new endeavor like sports(like scuba diving where smoking is an impossibility) or moving to a new habitat(where, again, smoking is not permitted). In any which way the quitter chooses, determination is the biggest factor. And to achieve the needed determination, one will need a great deal of motivation. They say that “love conquers all.” You can start on that by thinking of your loved ones who suffer from the second-hand smoke you give them and that when you get sick or worse, when you die, you deprive your loved ones of the happiness that you can provide.
Lastly, quit while you’re still ahead. And the money you save can mean a lot during hard times.