“As Addictive As Heroin.” So What’s Your Point?

One of the things you often hear when someone is whining about hard it is to quit smoking is, “Nicotine is a drug that is as addictive as heroin.” Okay, but people get hooked on Snickers bars too; shall we compare a “speedball” of milk chocolate, peanuts, caramel and nougat to heroin also?

I’ll swear that this inane comparison had to come from the tobacco empire.

Bycomparing the addictive qualities of nicotine and heroin (or cocaine, if you
prefer) there becomes an implication that withdrawing from nicotine is as
difficult and painful as withdrawing from heroin. And while I will admit to
never having had to say “ta-ta” to a heroin addiction I must surmise, based on
the wealth of information available regarding that process, that comparing the
two withdrawals is akin to comparing a toe-ache with a full-force swing of a
Louisville Slugger (that would be a baseball bat) to the side of the head.

Heroin withdrawal, like nicotine, begins immediately after the drug begins
leaving the body. Withdrawal begins to get “dicey” six to eight hours after the
last dose; major withdrawal symptoms peak in 48-72 hours and subside in about a
week. Here are a few of the unpleasantries the heroin addict can look forward to
during his weaning off the drug:

• tremors
• panic
• chills
• nausea
• muscle and stomach cramps
• insomnia
• diarrhea
• vomiting
• chills
• sweating
• irritability

So it sounds like if I go through heroin withdrawal I will likely spend a week
experiencing a lot of pain while sweating, shivering, puking and pooping all
over myself.

I’ve read many times that one drug is as addictive as the other,
enough that I believe it. And I’ve never heard or read anything that says nicotine withdrawal will be anything like withdrawal from heroin. But I also believe that there are many people out there who are unwilling or unable to separate the realities of the “addict-ability” of the two drugs from the withdrawal symptoms. Admit it, you know there are people that dumb.

You Have a Nicotine Addiction—Here’s What That Means

Ask a smoker why she smokes and she’ll give you a litany of reasons—that is, excuses; we looked at 5 particularly lame ones in a previous post. But beneath all the excuses lies the simple truth; she has a nicotine addiction.

Nicotine is the most heavily used addictive drug in the world

… and smoking is the most commonly used delivery system. Many claim that nicotine is as addictive as heroin or cocaine. While I’ve never known of anyone injecting nicotine directly into their bloodstream (that would kill you real quick!) a finely ground powder of tobacco called “snuff” is often snorted like cocaine. Nicotine is poison; one drop of pure nicotine would kill you dead in minutes! And nicotine has been used as a weed killer and pesticide for centuries (I remember my dad using it to kill dandelions as a kid).

When you take a drag on a cigarette nicotine is absorbed by the lungs and delivered to the brain in 8-10 seconds; lots of things begin happening then. Nicotine raises your blood pressure and heart rate as well as changing your breathing patterns. Scientists have recently discovered that it raises the levels of a neurotransmitter called “dopamine” in parts of the brain that are associated with pleasure. It has this effect in common with its previously mentioned pals heroin and cocaine.

Nicotine doesn’t hang around for long. In about 30 minutes levels drop to about half, and to one quarter in an hour.

At some point during this decrease the nicotine addiction raises its ugly head; “Feed me! Feed me!” it demands.

The smoker begins to feel “pangs”; there is, contrary to common lore, no physical pain involved. It is merely a feeling of restlessness or that something is missing and can lead to nervousness or agitation on the part of the smoker. And how do we end the nervousness and agitation? “More poison, please!”

The dynamics of nicotine addiction are pretty much the same as those of any other addiction. You experience something that makes you feel good (drugs, alcohol, nicotine) and when the “feel-good” stuff goes away you’re left feeling bad. And the way to stop feeling bad is to ingest more of the feel-good stuff.

And so the cycle continues. The need to recover from an unpleasant state created by the addictive substance of choice demands that the addict ingest more of the substance that is causing the discomfort in the first place.

A needle in the arm, a “toot” up the nose or the seemingly far-less-harmless act of smoking a cigarette—all serve the same purpose.

And that is to deliver the drug of choice in order to relieve symptoms caused by the drug of choice. Get real, smoker. You don’t smoke to relieve stress or look cool or give your hands something to do; you smoke because you’re an addict, just like the street-creature you call a junkie. Recovering from heroin addiction is a nightmare; with the right mindset, recovering from a nicotine addiction is actually pretty easy.

5 Lame Excuses Smokers Give For Smoking

Rebel!

I smoked cigarettes for a lot of years, more than I can bring myself to admit to. So when it comes to giving reasons, or should I say “making excuses” for continuing to suffocate myself, I am a pro.

I’ve met smokers who claim not to believe the overwhelming evidence that smoking is hazardous to your health. There are some that believe it but are willing to risk painful death rather than quit. And there are smokers who just don’t ever think of such things; Mammy, Pappy, Gramps and Uncle Bubba all smoke so why shouldn’t they? But these people are rare.

The vast majority of smokers realize they are using a six-shooter with three
bullets chambered

…to play Russian Roulette. But when asked (by others or by
themselves) why they continue this dangerous game they give reasons like, “It
relaxes me” or “Because Uncle Bubba, Gramps, Mammy and Pappy do.” The word
“reason” implies honesty, facts and rationality. None of those are
characteristics of the explanations smokers offer for continuing their habits;
what they call “reasons” are actually “excuses.”

Following are the five main excuses smokers offer for why they smoke and, as you might expect, my sarcastic rebuttals to their pretzel logic.

1) “It looks cool/sophisticated/rebellious.” James Dean looked cool; so did the
Marlboro man and the “Rat Pack” guys. But that was 40 years ago when fins on
cars and poodle skirts looked cool.

When was the last time you saw someone sucking on a ciggie and thought, “Wow! That dame looks really cool!” It doesn’t look cool, it looks pathetic. Ditto all that for ‘sophisticated’. Rebellious? Sure, I’ll give you that. But as soon as you come to grips with your true identity it’s time to give ‘em up.

2) Peer pressure. That and #1 are why most of us started; our cool teen-aged
friends convinced us that we needed to smoke if we were going to be ‘in’ with
their crowd. But you’re not a teenager any more, you’re a grown-up- start acting
like one and lose the fags.

3) “It’s an oral fixation.” Stick a pencil in your mouth, or a straw, or a
toothpick (love that look!). Or stick a cigarette in your mouth—but don’t bother
lighting it.

4) “It gives me something to do with my hands.” Pick up a pencil, or a straw;
heck, pick up a cigarette—but don’t bother lighting it.

5) “It relaxes me.” Take a few deep breaths like non-smokers do when they get
tense. Stretch. Take a walk. Say a prayer. Meditate. Call your doctor; they make
pills for that and your medical insurance pays for them.

There are plenty of other excuses for smoking but they’re as lame as the ones
above.

Marlboro Man

Bottom line is this: there is one reason, and one reason only why you
smoke—you’re a drug addict. See ya’ next time with more encouraging and enlightening “It’s Easy to Quit Smoking” banter!

What You Believe Is What You’ll Get

Me: “Brain, I’ve got a question for you.”
Brain: “Fire away!”

Me: “Brain, I’d like to quit smoking but I really scared to do it; why is it so
hard to quit smoking?
Brain: “It’s hard because you think it’s hard.”

Me: “Are you implying it’s not hard to quit?”
Brain: “I don’t imply; I state facts.”
Me: “But Brain, everyone knows how hard it is to quit smoking; are you stating
as a fact then, that that’s not the case?”

Brain: “Don’t read between the lines—there’s nothing there. I simply said it’s
hard to quit because you think it’s hard.”
Me: “And if I thought quitting would be easy it would, in fact, be easy?”

Brain: “That is correct.”
Me: “Brain, that’s ludicrous—everyone knows how hard it is to quit
smoking!”
Brain: “Save yourself the agony of quitting; you’ll only fail.”

We all know that reality is subject to change.

Tooth Fairy Enjoying a Smoke

Remember how real Santa, the Easter Bunny (apologies to my non-Christian readers) and that little fairy who pays for baby teeth were? And then one day they weren’t. What changed? Your beliefs about them changed, and with them your reality. Reality once stated that the earth was flat but that changed too. Why? Evidence to the contrary shattered the foundations of the belief and in the wake
of its destruction rose a new belief that created a new reality.

Our beliefs define our reality.

…and often those beliefs are wrong. Imagine a belief to be a table top. The top is supported by legs and the stronger those legs the more sturdy the table. A belief is supported by “references”, or evidences that bolster the belief. Back to Santa et.al. for a minute.

Department Store Santa

When you were a child there was ample evidence that Santa Clause was a real guy. You saw him on TV and in department stores. All the other kids believed in him too, so you had peers adding strength to the legs of your table. But most important was the fact that the two most credible sources of truth, Mom and Dad, told you he was real. But he wasn’t. Neither was the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy. One day you began to see evidence to the contrary of your belief and eventually the belief crumbled.

What you believe about something determines how you will act toward it.

How did your act toward department store Santa before and after your
belief/reality changed? People would not sail ships out of sight of land because they believed they would fall off the edge of the earth. How do your beliefs about smoking
cessation affect your attempts to quit? Are you terrified to try for fear that
withdrawal will be agonizing? Why do you believe that?

You believe that it will be difficult because you’ve heard a million people
whining about how difficult it is/was/will be.

Well what if those people are wrong? What if the world isn’t flat after all?

Listen to me: The world is round! There is no Easter Bunny! Santa-Schmanta! Let
me be the first leg of your new table, the one called “It’s Easy to Quit
Smoking.” I know, it’s pretty wobbly and unstable right now but stick with
me—one day it’ll be strong enough to hold you while you dance with glee on your
first “I Quit” anniversary.

“Today I Chose Freedom Over Slavery”

As mentioned in a previous post I’ve been hanging out on a popular smoking cessation forum. I think I’m making some friends and I know I’ve made some enemies. There are people who insist on believing that quitting smoking is as painful as waterboarding and do not want that sacred belief shattered.

I came across a post the other day that moved me to the point of asking the author (my new friend Maggie!) if she’d mind if I shared it on my blog. Maggie was kind enough to agree and I think she does a wonderful job of illustrating the internal conflict that can take place between “the myth” and the logic that tells us that it’s really not all that tough to quit smoking. I hope you enjoy her inspiring story.

Today I Chose Freedom Over Slavery

Here I am into week 3. What a journey! What a learning experience! Week 1 was
relatively easy—I was so excited about my quit. Then week 2 was my “hell
week.”

Then yesterday was “interesting.” I felt good about my quit—I mean really
good & grateful & free—as if I’d turned a corner.  A friend on the Forum
reminded me to keep watchful because I’m still addicted to nicotine. Later I
went out to a movie & toward the end of the film (no smokers in the film) I
felt this “yen” for a cig. It sort of nagged at me. I did the deep breathing,
reminded myself of all that I’ve read, etc. It passed & it returned. Again &
again.

On the drive home, I passed many places where I bought cigs only weeks ago & I
even had to stop for gas where of course they sell cigs. The yen got pretty
strong. Crazy thoughts like “I could smoke thru the weekend & then begin a new
quit on Monday.” I kept replacing these thoughts with: “A desire is not a
need,” “You can choose freedom over slavery.”

Later, sitting on my lanai with my chamomile tea, I reflected that this yen, strong as it felt, was so different from the old compulsion which shut my brain down & drove me to buy more cigs. My brain actually functioned & reminded me—no, I reminded myself—of the fact that I’ve made a choice (Carr calls it a vow) & that today I choose freedom over slavery. This was not
really an overwhelming urge to smoke but it was strong. I’m trying to say it
was hugely different from my former compulsions. All the readings, especially
Carr & quitsmokingonline.com,  fill me with knowledge & knowledge is power.
All the quit testimonials on the Forum fill me with hope & courage. And lots
of prayer & gratitude are bringing peace & joy.

I was relaxed as I beheld the beautiful night sky—the moon & the stars. It seemed as if they all were thanking me for not polluting their space with smoke. I never before reflected on the fact that my smoking was polluting God’s beautiful earth.

Thanks—I can’t say thank you too often—to all who have reached out to me. This is a chain of grace that grows stronger every day.”

Thank you again, Maggie, for allowing me to share your poetic post.

You Think I’m Crazy, Don’t You? Meet Some More Whackos

I’ve begun posting on a very popular “Smoking Cessation” forum. I espouse the contention stated in the title of this blog and my comments are ignored by everyone but a couple of other loonies that share my conviction.  I’m not sure if they don’t believe me or they just don’t want to let go of the myth; after all, the myth (“Everyone knows how hard it is to quit smoking”) provides them an excuse if they fail. If they fail at something that’s easy they’re left with the reality that a) they’re a wuss, and b) they’d rather play Russian Roulette with heart disease or lung cancer than quit smoking.

In order to bolster my credibility and further convince you that quitting can be easy, I’ve enlisted the help of some others who’ve discovered “the truth”. Read what they have to say about their quitting experiences and please stop calling me names behind my back!

“No withdrawal pangs, just a feeling of relief that I didn’t have to smoke any more, and that it wasn’t going to be hard at all. All the smoking triggers that I worried about — car trips, after meals, phone calls, stressful times at work or at home, leaving work and lighting up, having a beer at the bar — none of those things triggered the urge. The urge is gone.”

“Any slight twinge I felt would be welcomed as a healing pain. Tobacco companies have spent Hundreds of Millions of Dollars to CONVINCE you that quitting is hard, uncomfortable, and torture. My healing pains were very slight, short lived, and welcomed after I understood the mental score. I no longer smoke and life is TRULY improved. I know it is scary to picture yourself as a non-smoker attending the usual smoking occasion (pubs, socializing, lunch breaks, relaxing, etc). But, trust me, you do not have to suffer a slow death to enjoy normal life. EVERYTHING is better without nicotine and tobacco, EVERYTHING.”

“Easy as pie!”

“It really is easy, I have not gained any weight, I was not evil, it really went smooth, I promise.”

“The hardest part was before I quit, of being afraid to quit. The quitting wasn’t even hard, in fact, it gets more joyful every day that passes, unlike when I quit before. I was slightly physically uncomfortable for about 2 days (similar to that feeling of getting a cold) then it was gone. It’s been over a month now and to be honest, I don’t know exactly how long because I haven’t counted and I don’t really care, there’s no struggle or internal strife or the need for a “reward” by celebrating anniversaries or whatever. It’s just done. It’s like I never smoked. And it had been 15 YEARS of smoking and being convinced that I would smoke till the day I died!”

“I crushed any remaining cigarettes in the pack and threw them out. I just plain stopped smoking. That was 15 months ago. No withdrawal. No cravings. You can be around smokers and not want one. Simply seeing cigarettes or smelling them doesn’t make you want them.”

These snippets were taken from reviews on Amazon.com of Allen Carr’s “The Easy Way To Stop Smoking”. If you need more convincing that it’s easy to quit smoking there are several hundred more testimonials here:
Book Revues on Amazon

Cognitive Dissonance

Or in plain English, “mental conflict”. It’s what makes it so hard for you to quit. Allow me to illustrate:

“Here’s a really sharp pencil; I’ll give you a dollar if you run it 6″ into your thigh.”
“Are you out of your freakin’ mind?”
“Okay; how about $100?
“Take a hike, you jerk.”
“Tell you what; I’ll give you $1,000 to stab yourself with this pencil.”
“$1,000? Nah, I don’t think so.”
“3 million dollars to stab yourself–that’s my final offer.”
“Gimme that dagummed #2 Ticonderoga!”

Here’s what happened. I started by offering you a great deal of pain for very little reward; while you’d have liked to earn the dollar your brain, anticipating the pain, said “no way!” There was a mental conflict; the money looked good the pain did not. As our conversation continued the pain/pleasure balance began to shift so that the greater the reward the more willing you became to consider stabbing yourself with the pencil.

When I offered you $1,000 a definitive “no” became an “I don’t think so.” The conflict (dissonance) was getting pretty heated at that point–I could tell the pain/pleasure scale was pretty evenly balanced. Then I took pleasure over the top and the anticipation of pain became almost irrelevant. Now let’s look at how cognitive dissonance is sabotaging your efforts to quit smoking.

Here’s the quitter’s mindset:

“This is going to be so freakin’ painful! Weeks of withdrawal pangs that feel like an impacted tooth followed by years of longing for the return of my dear, dear friend “tobacco”. Brain hears that and says,
“Hold on now; what’s the payoff for all this pain we’re gonna have to endure?
“Payoff?” quitter asks, “There ain’t no dagummed payoff, at least none I care about as much as smoking!”
“Ain’t gonna happen,” brain replies. “Go buy a pack of cigarettes and make us happy again!”
“I can’t do that! If I start smoking again I’m gonna die!”
And a new dissonance is born!

You’re thinking of nothing but pain, sacrifice and suffering. How could quitting possibly not be agonizing? Have you ever heard of the “Law of Attraction”? It’s all the rage in personal growth circles these days and it says that whatever you think about is what you draw into your life. With that in mind, how do you think quitting would feel if you adopted this mindset?

“I am so glad I’m quitting. I’ll be healthier, live longer, get to watch my kids and grandkids grow up and stop feeling like a leper when I smoke in public!” Brain hears that and says,
“That sounds cool, lots of pleasure in store! But what’s the payoff? There’s gotta be some pain in there!”
“Yeah, there will be some minor discomfort for a few days, “pangs” they call them. But my friend Jerry said he was so thrilled to be a non-smoker that he barely noticed them.”
“Won’t we miss our cigarettes forever more?”
“Hell no! Truth is, there was not one single good reason why I smoked. And when I started paying attention I discovered they smelled and tasted terrible, and I hated myself for being a smoker. And besides, non-smokers don’t miss smoking.”

Now might that not be a mindset at least worth considering? Pleasure outweighs pain, dissonance disappears. It sure would make quitting easier, wouldn’t it?

Have You Ever?

Have you ever…

• bought cigarettes instead of food?
• 

  Care for a cigarette?

  pulled a butt out of an ashtray and smoked what was left of it?

• watched a loved one die from lung cancer?
• stolen money to buy cigarettes?
• gotten up in the middle of the night to smoke?
• coughed up brown phlegm?
• stood out in the cold or rain to smoke a cigarette?
• stolen someone else’s cigarettes?
• felt panicked because you thought you’d run out of cigarettes before you
  could buy more?
• wanted to quit smoking but were afraid to try?
• smelled yourself? (I know you can’t smell yourself but trust me, everyone else can.)
• lied about how much you smoke?
• estimated how much money you’ve spent on cigarettes? (Me? About $43,000.)
• burned yourself?
• burned someone else?
• burned your car seat?
• burned your furniture?
• Hated yourself for doing what you were doing to yourself?

Yep; been there, done all of those. But I have a solution: quit. It’s really
pretty easy to do.

How Do You Think it Would Feel?

How do you think it would feel…

• to stay in your seat after dinner rather than rushing outside to smoke?
• to not feel like a criminal for smoking in public?
• to leave church and walk to your car without lighting up?
• to smell clean rather than the way you do? (Bet ya’ didn’t even know you
  smelled like smoke!)
• to not worry that your second hand smoke is killing the ones you love?
• to drive home without having to stop to buy cigarettes?
• to not panic when you had to take a 4-hour flight? Speaking of which…
• to wait at baggage claim rather than rushing outside to get a nicotine fix?
• to not feel like a junkie?
• to have white teeth?
• to have fresh breath?
• to know your lungs are turning pink?
• to sit in the non-smoking section?
• to run?
• to climb stairs without gasping for breath?
• to know you’ll be there for your kids and grandkids?
• to be proud of yourself rather than guilty for what your doing to
  yourself?
• to say “No thanks; I don’t smoke.”

It feels great!

Semantics: “Ex-smoker” vs. “Non-smoker”

I will use these terms as this blog unfolds and I need for you to understand what I mean by each of them. These are not universally accepted definitions, by the way. They are mine, and I define them only as a means of distinguishing one from the other—you will see they are very different people.

A non-smoker is one who has the mindset of someone who has never smoked.

She does not crave a cigarette when she gets nervous or scared, nor does she feel a need to smoke after eating or having sex. She may or may not be judgmental towards those who do smoke; either way, she neither needs nor wants cigarettes any more than you or I may need or want a robin’s egg omelet. This is the mindset that one who is contemplating quitting smoking must adopt if she is to be successful in her efforts.

An ex-smoker is a person who no longer smokes cigarettes but retains the mindset of one who does.

He proudly boasts of how he was able to summit the treacherous mountain peak of smoking cessation while slapping a nicotine patch on his arm and putting a pinch of snuff between his cheek and gum. Even if he uses no nicotine withdrawal aids the ex-smoker still craves a cigarette with a cocktail, a cup of coffee, when stressed or at any of the other times that used to trigger an urge to smoke.

The most significant difference between the “ex” and the “non” is this: the “ex” is at least 5 times more likely to fail in his efforts to quit. Admittedly, statistics for the effectiveness of different stop-smoking techniques are all over the board but I want you to consider this:

The ex-smoker believes he has given up something he loves.

He finds that painful and his brain will do everything it can to alleviate that pain. And what might that be? A return to smoking.

The non-smoker feels no pain, only gain.

She has adopted a belief that she does not smoke and has neither need nor desire to ever do so again. And that belief is reinforced every day she remains smoke free. It’s all in the mind.

Quotes to Consider:

“I used Skoal to quit smoking, as I figured that it was the lesser of 2 evils. I quit Skoal by using the nicotine gum, and found it quite do-able. The gum didn’t work at all for me when I tried to quit smoking. I think it is a similar oral sensation to chewing snus, and that’s why it worked in that scenario.”

“I quit cold too. In my case it simply took a change of mindset to think of myself as a non-smoker, not a smoker who was *trying* to quit”