Smoking (cigarettes, specifically) is funny to me.
The rest of this entry will likely not be very popular because I have friends and family who smoke. It’s not that I don’t respect them, it’s just that I don’t understand smoking.
I have smoked. Even a few months ago, I’d have an occasional cigarette out with friends at a bar, or go out to smoke hookah. I suppose that’s what they call a social smoker. Smoking was a big part of why my father had a heart attack, it’s probably a big part of why my grandfather had throat cancer.
I can tell you that I still like smoking in theory, that something feels comforting about the very act of inhaling smoke. Maybe that’s because I grew up with parents who smoked, I don’t know. I simultaneously hate it for the way it smells and sticks to every bit of you – your hair, your clothes, your fingertips – and I also like it because the act of smoking is one that I actually enjoy. Besides the physical sensation, I associate smoking with this freedom – I think the freedom to just not give a crap. Smoking is like announcing – I don’t even care about myself, so screw the world.
But I still don’t get it. Partly because smoking really isn’t rebellious. You end up paying some corporation and your state tons of money for the pleasure of them participating and facilitating your slow death. That’s cool, I mean, that’s your choice to make. But it is a choice.
Smoking is addictive, but lots of things are addictive. People choose to be addicted, though. I’ve watched people quit smoking, and it’s not easy for them. And sometimes they revert back to old behavior but changing any addictive behavior is about making the choice to stop it. It’s not the physical part that’s the first obstacle – most people dismiss quitting because they believe the physical part would be unbearable. But they haven’t tried to quit because they can’t get past the emotional needs that smoking fulfills for them.
Really – that’s why you can have social smokers. Some people start as social smokers and it morphs into an addiction partly for the physical effects, but also partly because they associate an alleviation of social anxiety with smoking. And then they just associate an alleviation of anxiety with smoking.
The most interesting thing, for me, about stepping into cognitive behavioral therapy for the first time, was that I was surrounded by posters people had created about drug addictions. I wrote the same journal entries those people wrote, I was given the same tactics for replacing behaviors, despite the fact that I had no physical addiction.
I’m not denying that the physical aspect is difficult. But the physical aspect also fades.
I’m also not saying that if you choose to smoke you have a kajillion emotional issues. You could have sorted your stuff out and decided smoking is fun and you’d rather smoke than not smoke. That’s your right. I don’t have to drink, but I choose to because it’s fun. And I’m okay with that.
All I’m saying is that smokers who argue that they would quit but they can’t, aren’t trying. Listen, if someone is harassing you to quit, tell them to stuff it or ignore them. But don’t make a stupid argument. If you honestly wanted to quit, you would. If you don’t want to quit, that’s your decision to make, and you should be happy with it. If you’re not happy, something is wrong and you should be taking the steps towards a decision you’ll be happy with.
K.
The contents of this blog entry may not reflect the views of the Webmaster of Doom, Michael.
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