Do You Have A Good Reason To Quit Smoking? I Did! April 20th Will Be 8 Months Without A Cigarette!

Usually in the past, quitting smoking has been much like a roller-coaster ride for me. It was always going to be a struggle of monumental proportions, that was for sure. It seems that everyone that is a smoker wants to quit? Why is that? Is it just because we know that smoking is bad for us or is there another underlying reason?

Actually there are a few reasons why people want to quit smoking that I have encountered in my time on this little planet of ours! I have talked to a lot of people over the years about these reasons and there seemed to be a uniform thread of opinons on why they think about quitting; sadly most of them end up smoking again, eventually.

The first reason I was given, the most common of all, believe it or not, was for financial reasons- " I could save myself so much money if I quit!"

The second reason was that either their girlfriend, wife or significant other wanted them to quit! I am doing it for the kids and the woman! The third reason or maybe it was further down the totem pole than that, was because of their health!!!!!!!!!!

You would think that health would have been the number one reason, right? But sadly, it was not! There were other minimal reasons such as bad breath, smell in the house, dirty car, holes in clothes and furniture, fingers going yellow, teeth starting to look bad, etc,.

I quit back in February or so, 1998 and started smoking again once I came to Korea in April or May 2000.

2 years plus of not smoking and like an idiot, I started back up again. One of the main reasons that I first quit was because of my health and second was the financial thing too. When I first came to Korea, the price of cigarettes was one dollar a pack! Unbelievable at the time considering a pack in Canada was hovering around the 7 dollar mark. Needless to say, the temptation was too much and bingo! I started smoking again..... big mistake.

When I left Korea in July 2001, I ended up in Uzbekistan for 3 months where the cigarettes were 75cents a pack, so ridiculously cheap with a sticker on Pine Cigs saying, "tax exempt outside the U.S." I smoked like a fiend, need I say anymore!

Once I returned to Canada in October 2001, the plan was to quit again and get myself healthy. I quit off and on for about 3 years, but really was still a smoker, especially going out to have a drink. It was just so hard to have an empty hand without a drink or something in it!

Once I came back to Korea in September 2004, the price had changed a whole 50 cents a pack. Now they were 1.50 for a pack. I started smoking or should I say, I carried on smoking , but this time HEAVIER!

Well, now it is April 2006 and I am glad to say that I have not had a smoke since August 20th, 2005. I was so ready to quit this time, but for the only reason that really you should quit for; your health.

I seriously do not even crave a cigarette now, even when my girlfriend lights up at night or when we are out. I just think to myself now..... You are 42 and want to live a long healthy life, right? So, don't smoke and screw your future up! That is what I said to myself for the first few months and now it is not even an effort for me anymore. I don't even think about wanting a cigarette in the slightest now. Quite an accomplishment for me, I must say!

I also said that I would not be one of these ex-smokers who would hate smokers and be uncomfortable around smokers. As an ex-smoker that would be rather hypocritical, don't you think? There are lots of people that become absolute opposites when they stop smoking, i.e. They don't want to be anywhere where people are smoking and go completely overboard like a preacher on a box. Piss off, is what I say! Get over it! Just 'cos you quit doesn't mean the whole world has to......

Anyway, I tell people to blow smoke in my face and not to worry about smoking at anytime.
Don't want to be that preacher on a box, honestly.

Quitting is a personal choice and is up to the individual. One thing that I would like to say though, is not to quit for someone else. Do it for yourself or don't quit at all. Be honest why you want to quit and then make a plan to do it. You have to do the method that works for you, whatever that is.

Smoking is not illegal and the gov't has their hands in the smoking pot, big time! Even the whole campaign to promote 2nd hand smoke and its causes and effects! Complete bullshit! One of my professors at UFT (University of Toronto) has a fellow colleague that has completed the biggest study EVER on the effects of 2nd hand smoke. The research took him over 2 or 3 years. His finding were "ZERO!"

He is having a hell of a time trying to get the research published. I wonder why? We all know why! It is a smoke screen that the anti-smoking powerful elites have tried to haze our eyesight with! Whatever!

Although smoke might be an irritant to the eyes or uncomfortable on the nasal or breathing tracts, there certainly is no evidence that it can cause any diseases at all, like the propoganda non-smoking fanatics would have you believe.

I have always said that if the gov't is serious about stopping people from smoking, then they need to ban cigarettes; something that will never happen due to the size of the global cigarette economy. They would be cutting their own throats, so as to say!

I am proud of the fact that I quit smoking for me! Not for anyone else. I don't want any hero's biscuits or medals of honour. I quit for a good reason and the choice to quit should always be with the individual.

All you partners out there that married a smoker, get off their back about quitting! Let them make the decision. You knew when you met them that they smoked and now have to just accept that fact.

Smoking is a big part of our society and will be for a longtime to come. Let's hope that the youth can change our bad habit in their time to something that will improve in the future.

Hope is eternal as one says though!