How Did I Start Smoking Tobacco?
One of my earliest memories as a child is of my Dad and the smell of
tobacco. I had a joyful childhood. As I aged puberty hit. It was
around between the 6th and 7th grade that I started smoking. On a whim
my friend and I got our hands on a pack of cigarettes. I remember the
smell distinctively. I felt older and that was the entire point. It was
around that time I tried alcohol for the first time as well.
It was a red labeled brand. Because it was new to me I didn't acquire the
ashy aura that I would go on to get. I did smell strongly though and it
was a constant struggle to avoid being caught. Throughout high school it
was a crutch I smoked on and off for a couple of years gradually tapering
off to a couple of cigarettes then none. Most of the time I was by myself
or in crowds where it was acceptable and in a way encouraged.
It was just so easy to just sit with a cigarette and justify that it was
needed to complete the picture of just quiet contemplation.
There was some times where I would stop, stop drinking. But it was on
and off until my later years in college when I finally stopped for good.
How Did I Stop Smoking Tobacco?
Cold turkey. I stopped drinking as well. The method I used was to gradually
stop. First I changed my brand to a "light" brand/version. I was a pack a day smoker
and it was a habit I enjoyed. I then reduced the number of cigarettes I smoked
in a day. As "normal" reversed smelling like cigarettes became...it just
stank. And I learned about the differences between chemical treated vs
non-chemical treated tobacco - it really does make a difference. The chemical
treated tobacco is a lot worse I could feel it throughtout my entire circulatory system.
It just agitated me.
Smoking uses time. Takes up time. I learned to replace the habit with more positive
"things" such as physical and breathing excercises. I suppose one of my habits of
lighting incense helped as well. I think it helped to emphasize the "smell".
Towards the end one of the deal-breaker's for me was the smell. I just didn't
want it on my hands, my clothes, in my room.
It wasn't anybody else - it was me.
The drinking just went hand in hand with it and died a natural death.
The time I spent with people in a social setting, smoking, drinking, ...etc?
I just switched it around. At first, at least at first it does help to avoid the old
haunts then it becomes a test of will and character then a question, what's normal for me?
And - where do I spend my time and with whom?
How Have I Justified My Choice to Stop?
1. The smell can be offensive both to myself and others.
2. It's essentially a poison.
3. It can be a habit. A habit that uses money.
4. My actions could perpetuate a "promotion" of it. See point 2.
5. My life could of been brighter without it and I've actually realize it.
6. It's not a freedom it's a setback - health is a freedom.
Nowadays it just doesn't seem rational to me whether it's one cigarette or twelve - or even a cigar.
Whatever I've got to deal with I can deal with it without needing to express it outwards in a cigarette
or alcohol. At the very least I have the conscience choice.
Don't need it, don't want it.
I hope this post can encourage others to stop as well.