(ThyBlackMan.com) If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you may remember this piece here https://thyblackman.com. In it, I talk about some bad habits you need to give up before you’re thirty. At the top of that list is smoking cigarettes. Today, we take a look at that bad habit in more detail.
As everyone should know, smoking kills. It kills millions of people every year, including some that don’t smoke. You see, when you smoke, you’re not just damaging your health. You’re damaging the health of everyone that’s around you while you blow smoke everywhere. This is just one of the many reasons you need to quit, now.
In this piece, I will go through some of the ways in which you can quit smoking for good. However, to begin, I want to show you the effects of smoking. Hopefully, it will help convince you that you need to kick this habit very fast.
Effects Of Smoking
Lung Cancer
We’ll kick things off with one of the most common effects of smoking, lung cancer. The more you smoke, the more you run the risk of developing this disease. Cancer can be fatal, particularly if caught too late. To add to this, smoking while you already have cancer can speed up the disease and make things worse. Many people have lung cancer but continue to smoke without knowing it. A horrible disease that can kill you.
Heart Disease
Smoking too many cigarettes can also make you prone to heart problems. You have a much higher risk of heart disease compared to regular people. The smoke and tobacco do terrible things to your arteries. With heart disease comes an increased risk of heart attacks as well. So, smoking can cause you to die in more ways than one.
Skin Problems
The chemicals in cigarettes are horrible for your skin. They can cause so many problems, such as premature ageing. You get wrinkles a lot easier and can end up looking 80 when you’re 40. To add to this, your skin can turn yellow and discolored too. Overall, your skin is in a bad position when you smoke.
Oral Problems
Smoking is directly linked to many problems with the mouth and throat. It can cause dental issues like tooth decay and gum disease. Not to mention many infections as well. But, it also leads to an increased risk of mouth or throat cancer. Again, these are serious forms of this disease. Many people think lung cancer is the only cancer risk for smokers. However, this is simply not the case.
Sex Issues
If you think you can smoke and have a good sex life, you’re grossly mistaken. At some point, your reproductive system will start shutting down. You’re at high risk of infertility, and it can prevent men from getting erections. Also, smoking can make it harder for both men and women to orgasm. If you’re young and want kids, you have to stop smoking.
Now, after seeing these horrible effects, it should persuade you to act now and quit. So, here are my ideas to help you kick this habit once and for all:
Therapy Sessions
Firstly, it’s important to address what an addiction is. As seen on sites like helpguide addiction can hijack the brain. It takes control of your emotions and makes you do and feel things that you aren’t aware of. In many respects, it can be considered a serious mental condition. More to the point, addiction can lead to other mental health issues as well. Many smoking addicts develop chronic depression and anxiety when trying to quit their bad habit. As a result, they give up and go back to their old ways.
My first idea looks to address the mental aspect of smoking addiction. I believe that regular therapy sessions can help you kick it. Speaking to a therapist can help you get all of your feelings and emotions out on the table. They can help you think more clearly and bring clarity to your mind. It makes you feel more in control of your brain, rather than being a slave to the addiction.
Furthermore, a therapist can give you mental exercises and tips to help kick cravings. The only issue with this idea is that many people are scared of therapy. They think it means they’re crazy if they have to see a therapist. This isn’t the case, it’s perfectly normal, and there’s no reason not to go. After all, you see a doctor when you have an illness, don’t you? Or, you go to a dentist when your tooth falls out, right? Seeing a therapist is the same concept as these things, there’s nothing to be ashamed of.
Vaping/E-cigarettes
This next idea is one of the most popular things around nowadays. Many smokers are throwing away their cigarettes in place of e-cigs. These are electronic cigarettes that don’t include the harmful substances in regular ones. This means there is no tobacco, and limited amounts of nicotine too. In fact, the way they work makes them ideal for weaning yourself off nicotine. Essentially, each e-cigarette comes with a specific liquid cartridge. This liquid is turned into vapor, which is what you inhale and breathe out. It gives the appearance and feel of smoke, but, it’s just water vapor.
Now, inside the liquid cartridge, there can be many mixtures. Some of which include a lot of nicotine, which is recommended for beginners. Trying to completely take nicotine out of your life will be impossible. It has to be a gradual process, or else, you’ll fail. Slowly but surely, you buy cartridges with less nicotine in them. Eventually, you can handle vaping without any nicotine at all. It’s a great way to wean you off an addictive substance and keep you healthy too.
One word of warning, ensure you know what goes into each e-liquid you’re inhaling. Some are known to include substances like diacetyl that can cause lung problems. This is explained in detail on sites like VR. Be wary, and ensure you aren’t putting more bad things in your body. Vaping can be such a good way to quit your smoking habit. It caters to lots of cravings, without damaging your body.
Nicotine Patches/Gum
As mentioned above, nicotine is the addictive substance in cigarettes. A lot of people are unaware of this, but it isn’t a harmful substance. You can see sites like TH will back this up. In many ways, it’s very similar to caffeine. Neither are harmful, they can just be very addictive. The problem is, cigarettes include plenty of other horrible substances. It’s these things that cause them to be awful for our health. Breathing in smoke that contains bad stuff, it’s never going to end well.
So, when people try and quit smoking, they struggle thanks to nicotine. They’re addicted to this substance, which makes it hard to put the cigarettes down. But, the easy solution is to get your nicotine fix a different way. There are nicotine patches that get it into your system via your skin. Then, you have gum that gets it in you a different way. You satisfy your addictive craving and don’t have to pick up a cigarette.
It’s important to note that you will need willpower and strength to go alongside this. Don’t think that these patches will magically make your craving stop. Gradually, they will help, but, you need the willpower to succeed.
Occupying Your Mind
If you want to look at ways to quit smoking, you have to look at why you smoke. For many, the addiction stems from boredom. They have nothing to do, so, they smoke. For others, they smoke because it’s all they can think about. When they’re at work, or in the house, their one though is that they need a cigarette. You can look at both of these things and find out an easy way to address them. In theory, the answer is simple, find something else to occupy your mind.
So, I have a couple of ideas to apply this to real life. Firstly, let’s look at the issue of work. Working can be boring, which leads you to think about going out for a smoke at lunch. What you should do is try and make your work more fun. Set yourself personal goals and targets, to keep you motivated and occupied. It’s like you have a little contest with yourself every day. If you have a friend that smokes, you can help each other out. Set competitions with one another, to see who can get the most done each day. You’ll both be focused on your work, and cigarettes will be far from your mind.
When you’re out of work, the solution is simple, find a hobby. Do something that takes up your time, and tires you out too. Playing a sport is probably the best idea out there. This keeps you fit and healthy while occupying your mind. Then, you get home, feel tired, and fall asleep without thinking about smoking.
Use these ideas to try and quit your bad habit for good. Protect your health, don’t let smoking kill you.
Staff Writer; Rex Curry