Rabbit1251 Posted November 29, 2016 Share Posted November 29, 2016 I got a call from my brother, Charlie, yesterday. He told me that he has been a smoker for the last 38 years. At the beginning of this year the Doctors removed half of his left lung. He then went on to say that they are looking to remove the right side, as well.Just as it is shown in the Fallout Series smoking was very prevalent back when we were kids. Starting to smoke was not our choice. We were cajoled by the Tobacco Industry to pick it up at the earliest age. And we fell for it. My brother is paying for it now.If you don't smoke don't start. Stay clean. The pressures are not so great today. If you do smoke quit!! Quit now!! Avoid the fate that has befallen so many smokers. You didn't have a choice to start smoking, but you do have a choice to quit.The Rabbit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cossayos Posted November 29, 2016 Share Posted November 29, 2016 Just as it is shown in the Fallout Series smoking was very prevalent back when we were kids. Starting to smoke You didn't have a choice to start smoking, but you do have a choice to quit. The Rabbit I would put it the other way round. I did have a choice when starting to smoke, but without professional help it's not as easy as a simple choice to quit. Just as with every other addiction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve40 Posted November 30, 2016 Share Posted November 30, 2016 My dad started smoking when he was 13. He quit 15 years ago and was forced to retire early after having to have numerous stents put in his carotid arteries in his neck as well as in his arms and legs due to severe arteriosclerosis caused by smoking. He has "plaque" deposits practically everywhere in his circulatory system and cannot walk more than a few tens of meters without experiencing severe aching and fatigue in his limbs. The doctors have given up putting more stents in - basically for every blockage they fix, they discover two or three new ones. I used to be a casual smoker on rare occasions, but after my dad described what he had to go through when they put the stents in his neck, omg, I vowed never ever to smoke again, it is not worth it. My younger brother and sister are heavy smokers. My brother (in his mid 40's) recently suffered two consecutive strokes. Fortunately there was no permanent damage. He gave up smoking for a few weeks, but has resumed this terrible habit. He admits he has a death wish. My sister (also mid 40's) has been lucky not to have any serious health problems so far, but she looks so old, she's as wrinkly as my (non-smoking) mother who is about 70 yo. My sister refuses to give up smoking, her excuse is "she could get run over by a bus tomorrow". She misses the point that smoking will severely degrade her quality of life in her later years. It's the difference between being an independent and fit elderly person who can still enjoy life, or being a bed-ridden invalid in a nursing home, in a perpetual state of medicated stupor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernt Posted November 30, 2016 Share Posted November 30, 2016 I do not agree that we didn't have a choice. You ALWAYS have a choice. My dad smoked, my mom was a casual smoker and my younger sister picked up the habit. But I didn't. Today I'm 55 and I never smoked.My wife did smoke for the first 5 years or so of our relationship. But 15 years ago she quit. She realized that the cigarettes decided when she was to light up one. She was not the one deciding to pick one from the packet. And she didn't want the tobacco to be in control.It was hard on her. She tried several things for more than a year until she went for a cold turkey. I realized that it is a habit/addiction that is extremely hard to kick. But - You have a choice :excl: If you set your mind to it you can do it.You make up your mind whether to walk left or right. Drtink a beer or a glass of water. Likewise you decide for yourself if you want to start on a - any- bad habit. No matter the influx of commercials from the industry and their puppet "experts". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit1251 Posted November 30, 2016 Author Share Posted November 30, 2016 Maybe we did have a choice. But the odds were very much in the Industry's favour. I chose not to smoke. Money was tight as a lad and smoking was too much like rolling your own with dollar bills. Later in life I did take a pipe for a couple of years. But pipes don't carry the tars and nicotines that cigarettes do so quitting was easy. Still have my clay pipes around here somewhere though. The ammunition: The Rabbit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cossayos Posted November 30, 2016 Share Posted November 30, 2016 Maybe we did have a choice. But the odds were very much in the Industry's favour. I chose not to smoke. I smoked my first one at 8 and got into it at 16. In my case the industry did nothing. There were ads, of course, but it was the group pressure making me take up smoking. I did have a choice, since many abstained. But once you're there it's not as easy as saying it's your choice. There are so many smoke related moments in any smokers life. Having a coffee, hanging out, something as simple as a traffic jam or extended waiting periods. And that's just covering the psychological issues not the bodily discomfort. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernt Posted December 1, 2016 Share Posted December 1, 2016 I was pretty annoyed with my wife not being able to stop just like this (Snaps fingers)That is - until I read a scientific article about a test being done using a long time junkie as a -voluntary- test person. Injected with nicotine instead os his usual heroin he experienced a high as never before. Pending more tests the scientists concluded that nicotine is much more addictive than any drug normally related to drug abuse. Heroin, cocaine etc etc.I felt - and still feel - the deepest respect for my wife and anyone else being able to stop smoking once you have gotten into the habit. That was a real eye opener o_O Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greentea101 Posted December 1, 2016 Share Posted December 1, 2016 I stopped smoking in 2008 because it had become unbearable. I was essentially forced to inhale smoke every 20 minutes just to stop feeling shitty, which was a nightmarish experience. So after about 10 years of smoking, I just stopped, endured five days of intense discomfort, and then I was finally free. Best thing I ever did in my life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cossayos Posted December 1, 2016 Share Posted December 1, 2016 That is - until I read a scientific article about a test being done using a long time junkie as a -voluntary- test person. Injected with nicotine instead os his usual heroin he experienced a high as never before. It doesn't give you any high. I never used any substances, but smoking isn't like injecting or taking a sniff. It doesn't make you feel like being king of the castle. And yet it's an addiction. If required I can go for a lot of hours without lighting one. The craving's there, but the bodily discomfort isn't. Having a smoke never gave me a high, nor anyone I know. It's just a habit and I would like to see the details of that study and what was involved besides nicotine that gave that guy the feeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reneer Posted December 1, 2016 Share Posted December 1, 2016 (edited) ÃÂ That is - until I read a scientific article about a test being done using a long time junkie as a -voluntary- test person. Injected with nicotine instead os his usual heroin he experienced a high as never before.ÃÂ It doesn't give you any high. I never used any substances, but smoking isn't like injecting or taking a sniff. It doesn't make you feel like being king of the castle. And yet it's an addiction. If required I can go for a lot of hours without lighting one. The craving's there, but the bodily discomfort isn't. Having a smoke never gave me a high, nor anyone I know. It's just a habit and I would like to see the details of that study and what was involved besides nicotine that gave that guy the feeling. Injection (versus smoking) is a very different thing and will certainly produce different psychological outcomes because you are injecting it directly into the bloodstream, which means the drug makes it to your brain that much faster. Edited December 1, 2016 by Reneer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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