What is it that Many Smokers Really Enjoy About Smoking? Why Not Just Quit Smoking?

By Jim Newell

A few days ago I was out to dinner with my wife and a group of friends. One of the women was asked how her attempt at quitting smoking was going, her reply, was that she was sneaking a few drags a day from her husband’s cigarettes, and that she really does  enjoy smoking.

This is a refrain that is often heard from people who smoke, I used this same statement myself for way to many years, I was not ready to quit then, and these people are also usually not ready to quit.

So let’s examine what it is that so many smokers really enjoy about smoking;

• Could it be the yellow nicotine stained fingers?
• Maybe the yellow teeth and bad breath?
• How about small burn holes in clothing, furniture, car seats, etc.?
• Possibly they like that they cannot smell or taste their food?
• Or do they just really like the fresh air, you know when they have to go outside to smoke and it’s below freezing?
• Maybe they like the extreme stress they experience when they only have one cigarette left, oh I forgot, smoking relieves stress…right?
• With a pack of cigarettes now going for over $10.00 in some states, and seemingly going up every day, they probably just like to spend money, talk about money to burn!

Maybe I got the list wrong, these all look like things most people would not enjoy, and I could go on. In fact this is a good exercise when you are still in the making up your mind to quit phase. List all of the things you don’t like about being a smoker, as well as all of the things you do like, see which is longer.

One of the characteristics of folks who are successful with quitting smoking is that once they have made the firm decision to quit, they also call on their personal discipline to make it work. Making a firm decision to quit smoking and having the personal discipline to actually quit does not allow for deviations, or excuses.

I don’t mean to imply that quitting smoking is easy, I also thought it was too hard for me to master for many years, however when I finally decided to really quit, the fact that I had made a firm decision to quit actually made it much easier to accomplish.

It’s really just a five step process;

1. Decide to Quit, I mean really make a firm decision to take back control of your life.
2. Throw all of your cigarettes and lighters away, get rid of the ashtrays.
3. Tell everyone you know, that you have quit smoking, ask for their support, ignore those who say you can’t do it (they are usually the ones who still smoke).
4. Get up each day and say “ I have now been a non smoker for __ days!”, before you realize it days will turn into weeks, weeks into months, months into years, and some point you will never think about smoking again.
5. This is the big step, you have to resolve to never touch tobacco again, and this includes cigars, chew, pipes, dip, or any other tobacco product.

Welcome to the world of non smokers.

Related articles by Zemanta

• What Is Nicotine Dependence? What Are The Dangers Of Smoking? (medicalnewstoday.com)
• ‘Smoking Killed Me’ Sign Placed On Hearse, Grave (huffingtonpost.com)