Smokers love excuses. Nothing makes them happier than,
‘I
can’t quit because…’. They really believe their own excuses.
But all these excuses are cop-outs. There’s no reason to
smoke. Smoking doesn’t have any redeeming benefits. It’s
100% harmful, poison.
But many smokers don’t want to hear that. In fact, they
already know it’s poison. They just haven’t yet discovered
how to quit. Reading the truth, in a non-aggressive, non-
threatening way, helps to get started on the quit smoking
path.
So the excuse, ‘I enjoy them’, ‘they give me pleasure’,
needs to be looked at carefully. Do they really enjoy
them, or are they making a ‘Can’t quit’ excuse.
In reality, the pleasure comes from the experiences
associated with smoking. It doesn’t come from smoking
itself.
In fact, smoking becomes the ‘avoidance of displeasure’,
rather than the ‘gaining of pleasure’. Smoking brings
temporary relief to the withdrawal symptoms that smoking
caused in the first place.
Have you always smoked ? Or do you remember back to a time
you felt peace and confidence, before this addiction took
hold of you ? Any pleasure comes from temporary relief of
withdrawal symptoms. That’s the sad truth.
Where’s the pleasure in loss of taste ? A build up of tar
and other chemicals causes a gradual loss of taste.
Smokers sometimes don’t notice since it happens over years.
Then they can’t taste expensive restaurant meals, and think
multiple cigarettes before, during and after the meal
provides the answer. Sound familiar ?
In fact, good company and conversation provide the
pleasure, which a smoker mistakenly associates with his
cigarette.
What else causes us to associate pleasure with cigarettes ?
Unfortunately, over many years, cigarettes have featured
prominently in movies. Famous, beautiful people seem to
love their cigarettes.
Have you noticed how most romantic movie moments used to
involve two people lighting up cigarettes together ?
Luckily that’s less common in modern times, but who can
forget Bogie and others in the classic old films.
Cigarettes still get advertised around the world,
associated with something pleasurable. Once again,
romance, freedom, open countryside, tranquillity.
This psychological conditioning prevents thousands of
people quitting. The myth of ‘pleasure’ is stronger than
the reality of physical nicotine dependency.
Ever heard a smoker say they can’t wait for their children
or grandchildren to get started smoking ? Of course not !
They know it’s harmful, and usually openly admit they’d
like to quit. They even agree with policies that restrict
smoking in public places !
They admit they found the taste awful at first. But
persevered so they could seek the pleasure they hoped to
emulate. Nature makes poisons foul-tasting for good reason
– a warning not to use that substance.
Smoking actually removes pleasures previously taken for
granted.
We’ve already covered taste. How about fitness ? How
about the ability to run more than a few yards without
gasping for breath ? How about your non-smoking friends
and family, who must breathe passive smoke, and find their
clothes foul smelling in the morning ?
So the biggest pleasure in quitting smoking actually comes
from regaining past pleasures ! Unless you’re a lifelong
smoker, you’ve forgotten the simple pleasures lost.
But here’s some good news. Those pleasures can come back.
When you quit, your senses eventually return to normal.
Once again, you can taste and enjoy food. Taste starts to
return after only a few days. Over time, your fitness will
improve. Your habits will change as your non-smoking
personality starts to emerge e.g. no cigarette between
meal courses.
The pleasure of non-smoking far outweighs any imaginary
pleasure from smoking. Regaining life’s simple pleasures
is a worthwhile goal, and good reason to quit smoking right
now.
