Any smokers Out There?

rustyshackleford · Feb 15, 2009

Not really. Pick your poison, you are going to die anyway whether it be by car accident, food poisoning (think peanutbutter products), drugs (think vioxx etc), diabetes, cancer, old age, whatever. It's going to happen and if you want to enjoy a habit so be it.
When Dana Reeves found out she had lung cancer after NOT smoking she stated she wished she had smoked if she was going to die from lung cancer. I can relate to that.

Oh come on! saying that those statements are not ignorant.. well actually, your statements probably arent ignorant, just stupid when comparing those things. my brother has a severe nut allergy, but cause he knows this, he doesn't eat any fing nuts!!! people who smoke often say something like "you could get hit by a bus tomorrow" and this is true. the defining difference, though? you dont go walking out in front of buses, but smokers do continue to smoke despite being fully aware of what its doing to them.. and as for those folk with the "80% of smokers dont get lung cancer" speel, why is it only lung cancer that gets focus!!??? heart disease, ANY form of cancer, COPD, emphysema, impotence, sterility, and the 101 other problems associated with smoking are all just as real and impacting! :bugeyes:

UM Review RN, ASN, RN · Feb 15, 2009

Oh come on! saying that those statements are not ignorant.. well actually, your statements probably arent ignorant, just stupid when comparing those things. my brother has a severe nut allergy, but cause he knows this, he doesn't eat any ******* nuts!!! people who smoke often say something like "you could get hit by a bus tomorrow" and this is true. the defining difference, though? you dont go walking out in front of buses, but smokers do continue to smoke despite being fully aware of what its doing to them.. and as for those folk with the "80% of smokers dont get lung cancer" speel, why is it only lung cancer that gets focus!!??? heart disease, ANY form of cancer, COPD, emphysema, impotence, sterility, and the 101 other problems associated with smoking are all just as real and impacting!

But smoking is an addiction....and this is the loopy logic of the addict. Doesn't matter what the addiction is for -- cigarettes, food, alcohol, whatever. This is the way addicts think. I thought that way when I smoked too.

We all know the truth -- just like we know that the earth is round and pi is infinite. Knowing doesn't take away the craving that messes with our thinking and makes us think we need that cigarette. We don't. We need air. But the loopy logic kicks in -- just like the hypoxic patient thinks the venti mask is smothering him and tries to pull it off. If you're the person trying to keep the venti on the patient, you can see how powerful that thinking can be.

leslie :-D · Feb 15, 2009

Oh come on! saying that those statements are not ignorant.. well actually, your statements probably arent ignorant, just stupid when comparing those things. my brother has a severe nut allergy, but cause he knows this, he doesn't eat any fing nuts!!! people who smoke often say something like "you could get hit by a bus tomorrow" and this is true. the defining difference, though? you dont go walking out in front of buses, but smokers do continue to smoke despite being fully aware of what its doing to them.. and as for those folk with the "80% of smokers dont get lung cancer" speel, why is it only lung cancer that gets focus!!??? heart disease, ANY form of cancer, COPD, emphysema, impotence, sterility, and the 101 other problems associated with smoking are all just as real and impacting!

why so testy??

if folks want to smoke, they do so knowingly, despite excuses/rationales.

not understanding though, why you're getting worked up?

leslie

justiceforjoy · Feb 15, 2009

But smoking is an addiction....and this is the loopy logic of the addict. Doesn't matter what the addiction is for -- cigarettes, food, alcohol, whatever. This is the way addicts think. I thought that way when I smoked too.

Same here. The craving for a cigarette is akin to craving we get to breath if we hold our breath, or the hunger we feel after not eating for a while, the sense of thirst, etc. Our bodies tend to treat it as another one of those things that we 'need' to survive.

I noticed that 'easy quitter' and 'just watch this DVD' are 24 and 25. :icon_roll

I must have completely skipped the day where we went over age playing any role in how hard or easy an addiction is to break.

My mom just quit at 49-years-old just a few months ago. She had been smoking since she was 12 and, even though she and I both struggled together many, many times attempting to quit, she found her last time easy as cake. She used Chantrix to finally kick the habit.

I used nicorette inhaler, but I also changed my entire lifestyle prior to quitting. We all know the morning coffee with a smoke; the smoke after meals, etc. The first thing I did was stop smoking with anything (coffee, drinks, food, etc.) That broke a majority of the habit. For the addiction, I used the inhaler for two weeks. Mind you, the whole process took place over a span of a few months. Gradual change in life to facilitate an easier transition, all the while reminding myself as I actually stopped smoking "your body is re-learing how to function without nicotine." Even one smoke will reset the body learning how to survive without the drug.

As for the "Selfish" comment I made, I do not pass judgment onto smokers as individuals. I do sympathize when those that smoke and find themselves victims of the addiction. That's not what I meant at all, even in spite of me having reactions to the smell of smokers sitting beside me in class (I get really nauseous at the smell now for some reason). I definitely have a high opinion of the act of smoking being some-what selfish, because I've seen the horrors and the burden it causes if you are unlucky enough to fall ill with one of the many side-effects.

Also, when you're a smoker, you'll often place smoking at a higher priority than those around you. I gather this not only from my own experience, but from watching others.

For example, I (re-)took up smoking as soon as I had my daughter. She would be crying her poor butt off and all I could think about was how frustrated it made me, so I'd put her in a safe place and head outside for a "breather". When we had visitors, I would be elated because it meant I could hand off my daughter to them and head outside for a smoke. Maybe that's also due to the fact that I suffered PPD. :bugeyes:

If only I could turn back time, I'd have been a better mom to my daughter as a newborn.

BradleyRN · Feb 15, 2009

yeah, but at least there's a degree of justification in those things in moderation..

Declaring that smoking should be banned is very short sighted, but saying there is a degree of justification in drinking coca cola is ludicrous. I will say though, if you have a calcium phosphate stone in your bladder, the phosphoric acid in coke can break it down, but it was also the cause in the first place and thus not necessarily justifiable.

For those of you wanting to quit, might i recommend the almost unheard of QUEST cigarettes. Only available in 8 states (last i checked), they have reduced the nicotine while leaving all the other bad stuff. We live in a crooked country, so likely you will NEVER hear of this as a quit smoking method, but here is an abbreviated version of the info i give to local smokers:

A cigarette has 1.2mg of nicotine (more now). A Quest cigarette has three levels: .6mg, .3mg, and nicotine free. As i stated, this country is so biased to drugs that the FDA wont allow Quest to offer its product as a quit smoking method. I used them and quit with only 17 packs. They are the same price as regular cigs, and allow you to freely smoke while tapering the physically addictive nicotine. The nicotine free cigs proved worthless to me as they were like smoking air. But the .6mg and .3mg were basically like smoking a light cigarette. They certainly made quitting so much easier than i ever thought it could be. If you want more info, PM me and i will tell you where to get them.

BradleyRN · Feb 15, 2009

when you're a smoker, you'll often place smoking at a higher priority than those around you.
For example, I (re-)took up smoking as soon as I had my daughter. She would be crying her poor butt off and all I could think about was how frustrated it made me, so I'd put her in a safe place and head outside for a "breather". When we had visitors, I would be elated because it meant I could hand off my daughter to them and head outside for a smoke. Maybe that's also due to the fact that I suffered PPD. If only I could turn back time, I'd have been a better mom to my daughter as a newborn.

Does that PPD stand for Postpartum Depression or Poor Prioritization Disorder? It's nice to blame a drug for your bad decisions, but it is a cop-out. You make your own choices, and only you are to blame for the bad ones. Dont get me wrong, im not saying it is bad to go relax with a smoke after dealing with a crying baby, just that it is bad to blame the cigarette for any guilt you have for doing so.

eriksoln, BSN, RN · Feb 15, 2009

Declaring that smoking should be banned is very short sighted, but saying there is a degree of justification in drinking coca cola is ludicrous. I will say though, if you have a calcium phosphate stone in your bladder, the phosphoric acid in coke can break it down, but it was also the cause in the first place and thus not necessarily justifiable.
For those of you wanting to quit, might i recommend the almost unheard of QUEST cigarettes. Only available in 8 states (last i checked), they have reduced the nicotine while leaving all the other bad stuff. We live in a crooked country, so likely you will NEVER hear of this as a quit smoking method, but here is an abbreviated version of the info i give to local smokers:
A cigarette has 1.2mg of nicotine (more now). A Quest cigarette has three levels: .6mg, .3mg, and nicotine free. As i stated, this country is so biased to drugs that the FDA wont allow Quest to offer its product as a quit smoking method. I used them and quit with only 17 packs. They are the same price as regular cigs, and allow you to freely smoke while tapering the physically addictive nicotine. The nicotine free cigs proved worthless to me as they were like smoking air. But the .6mg and .3mg were basically like smoking a light cigarette. They certainly made quitting so much easier than i ever thought it could be. If you want more info, PM me and i will tell you where to get them.

I have a serious question. Isnt Quest exactly like the people who try to go from reg. cig. to light to ultra lights to quit? I've NEVER seen that work.

As I'm typing this, I think I may have answered my own question. If reg/light/Ultra light cigs all have the same nic. then its not the same. IDK if they do or not though.

I must admit, when I smoked, I loved a pack of Marlboro Ultra Lights once in awhile. I'd watch Star Wars and smoke them like crazy. I know, its weird, but I enjoyed myself.

BradleyRN · Feb 15, 2009

I have a serious question. Isnt Quest exactly like the people who try to go from reg. cig. to light to ultra lights to quit? I've NEVER seen that work.

I dont think lights have less nicotine, tar maybe? If they do at all, it is still not the same as Quest.

eriksoln, BSN, RN · Feb 15, 2009

Yeah, less tar, thats right. Thats what they advertise anyway. Not less nicotine.

I liked the gum. It helped me. Kept me from going ape poop while working/quiting. Loved it. 3 weeks quit. Still using the gum, but dont miss the cigs anymore.

rngolfer53 · Feb 15, 2009

just curious to see how many of you guys are smokers? i've (very) recently stopped after about 12 or 13 years of filling my body with the many impurities cigarettes have to offer and it was just for mine and my girlfriends health. BUT i've expereinced first hand over the last eight years people dying horrible deaths due to smoking related diseases and it never put me off, and still never realy did - it was just that i was out of puff climbing the stairs and thought " thats not right!!". so, how many of you guys are the same?????? still smoking / recently stopped / stopped since nursing??

I haven't smoked for many years. I'm a hospice nurse, and I see Pts die all the time from smoking-associated diseases. I hate going to those homes, b/c it seems everyone there smokes. They've just watched their loved one die, and they're all puffing away. :banghead:

Makes you wonder about the sanity of some people. Me for one, for going in there.

Another bad thing is when I have other visits after the smoking call. I know I smell like an ashtray, but there's nothing I can do about it. :angryfire

justiceforjoy · Feb 16, 2009

Does that PPD stand for Postpartum Depression or Poor Prioritization Disorder?

I hope to god you don't work maternity if you think it's okay to make a joke like that about PPD...

The point of my post was not to highlight my own experience, it was to try and illustrate the point I was attempting to make. Obviously I failed. Oh well! :lol2:

is5512 · Feb 16, 2009

I love smoking! Cigarettes, cigars and pipe tobacco were some of my best friends ever. I really enjoyed my last cigarette at Midnite, December 23, 2008.

Later that evening, they found a 90% blockage and put a stent in a coronary artery.

In ICU, a nurse slapped a nicotine patch on me to help me quit. I laughed. "I love cigarettes, but they just tried to kill me. Quitting won't be a problem."

All things considered, I guess I quit "the easy way." The only regrets I had were when I was watching a Hank Parker fishing show during my next overnite stay. It triggered the want-to pretty bad.