Why is it hard to quit smoking, are cigarette sort of drugs? And can anyone tell me why smoking is considered cool.

Nicotine is addictive. Dont know what else is in there, but its not good stuff.

I smoked for 45 years. When Jim was diagnosed last year with OC, I threw the damn things out. Smoking was considered "cool" back in the 50's and 60's. Now when I see someone smoking, it is disgusting. Wasting all that money to eventually kill yourself. Nicotine is just like alcohol--addicting ! And it stinks. I have a friend who is on oxogen and still goes outside to have a puff. Imagine that ? If I could quit, anybody can. But, look what it took---------it took me watching him in this horrible disease............I can go on and on, but I won't. I don't mean to sound cruel and I never ever preach to anybody that is still smoking, but my mind and heart silently say "please stop for yourself and all the people that love you"
My son still chews-----------so, yes, it is very addicting.
Claudia

Nicotine is not like alcohol in one respect and that is alcohol is not additive to everyone but NICOTINE is addictive to everyone and it is probably the most addictive substance known to mankind and it's been linked to hundreds of different cancers so if you haven't tried tobacco DON'T, if you have STOP.

For me smoking was a peer pressure thing at first. All of my friends were so I did too. Boy I wish I would have had more self esteem as a teenager and said no. Anywho, then it was an addiction. I quit several times before I was successful the last time in 2000. I quit right in the middle of my divorce which was a stressful time and still succeeded. I have had weak moments where I fell off the wagon a few times, but not in a very long time.

Now I can smell a cigarette from a great distance and they don't smell good. I try not to be the former smoker from hell - but I am. Look what they have done for me. I am more than annoyed by the fact that people smoke at the entrances to buildings so that I have to be exposed to it to enter the building. IL has a law that you have to be several feet from the entrance and very few business are adhering to it and I think that they should be fined. I am so glad that all buildings here are now smoke free and I think those that are not obeying that law should also be fined to the maximum extent under the law. It is a personal choice to smoke or not to smoke - and I do not agree with people forcing their personal choices on others which is what they are doing when I have to be around their smoke.

I guess I got on my soap box here. Good morning by the way.

Patty

I smoked for 50 years and quit cold turkey without any problems. That was the day I was diagnosed with our old buddy OC. I really think the hooked is psycholocical. My dad quit after 40 yrs by just trashing them. I have a few friends that quit the same way.

Thats how I quit too, cold turkey. I thought to myself is it going to be the cigs or me? Am I going to allow cancer to get me or do what I can to fight it? I threw them out the wondow and never smoked again.

David. Nicotine itself is the addictive agent but it is the 400 other chemicals in tobacco particularly when it is cured or burned that are the carcinogens. That is why accepted harm reduction strategies for tobacco users use nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). They are essentially nicotine in another form, nasal sprays, inhalers, gum, patches etc. Some of these are Rx, some are OTC. But the bottom line is just like with heroin addicts, you need to give them something that satisfies the brain's addiction (without introducing additional collateral harm) while you wean the body off the addiction slowly with gradually reduced levels of the addictive nicotine itself. Those NRT's are still nicotine containing substances. But as a cause of cancer it isn't a big player. It is linked to high blood pressure and other dangerous things, but to a significantly lower level than the real danger of spit or smoked tobacco which cause the cancers that nicotine does not.

This page of the web site

http://www.oralcancerfoundation.org/tobacco/types_of_tobacco.htm

talks a bit about NRT. We are just now rewriting all this as much is changing. I would also suggest people read how the tobacco companies (below the radar and unnoticed by most adults) are still marketing their addiction to our youth on this really good blog with lots of link in it. http://www.oral-cancer.info/?cat=20

Smoking initiates many processes in the body. As nicotine enters, the endorphin is released and you are actually becoming high. Yes these are sort of drugs which have obvious symptoms like becoming anxious, sweating and feeling of physical illness on removal. But you can easily give-up this habit. I found a good e-book on �Smoking Cessation� (http://www.stop-smoking-guru.com). Concerning cigarettes being cool, I don�t agree with you. What I feel is that some great personalities fall victim to this habit making it look cool which is surely a myth.

Interesting stuff.

Addictions are easy to conquer - you just have to WANT to - THAT'S the hard part. I went from 2 packs a day to 0 and never smoked again - that was 32 years ago. No patches - no books - just threw 'em in the trash.

And endorphins aren't "sort of a drug" - they ARE a drug!
People also release endorphins in fits of rage - they are called anger junkies.