Is Smoking a Habit or an Addiction?

Cut that out!

Is smoking cigarettes just a habit or is it truly an addiction?  When you want to stop smoking, why is it so often referred to as "kicking the habit?"  People tell you, "you gotta kick the habit!"  When you google "kick the habit" the results are all about smoking.

The Cliff Clavin in me is always curious about where phrases like this come from!  Answers.com says that the phrase Kick The Habit originated in the late 19th Century as a reference to withdrawals from opiate addiction.  Back in the day you could get Opium, think predecessor to Heroin, and Laudanum, (think liquid opium) legally and easily from the local Chinatown or corner drugstore.  Ah, the good ol' 1800's!  So, for those of you not privy to withdrawal from Opium and Laudanum, myself included, thank God, when you're in the throws of withdrawal, your nervous system is all whacked out and you may have involuntary spasms and seizures which could result in you kicking.  Now the word habit is something else entirely.  Originally habit was used to refer to appearance or dress.  Like a nun, she wears a habit.  Now somewhere in the 1880's the word evolved from something you have "on" in the physical world to something emotionally driven.  Like sipping laudanum or drinking whiskey.  Victorian etiquette never likes to call a spade a spade.  Plus, "addiction" as we know it today really wasn't used until the early 1900's so when you were addicted to something, people would say you have the "habit."  Interesting, no?  Especially when many people believe it is easier to get off the opiates than then cigarettes.

So on to the inspiration behind this blog.  From the Napoleon Hill Thought for the day:  

"Human faults are like garden weeds. They grow without cultivation and soon take over the place if they are not thinned out."

"Habits are formed so slowly that most of us don't realize what is happening until the habits are too strongly entrenched to be broken. Seldom can one pattern of behavior be eliminated without replacing it with another. It has been said that nature abhors a vacuum and will always find something to fill a void. The best way to thin out the "weeds," or faults in your character, is to identify those traits with which you are dissatisfied and replace them with their positive counterparts. If you have a tendency to lose your temper, for example, find a replacement for your anger. Neutralize it with a positive expression or affirmation, such as, "No one can make me angry unless I let them. I will not let anyone else control my emotions." 

What's your habit?

This goes for puffing on small cylindrical objects as well.  While starting out as an occasional activity, smoking very often leads to a habitual behavior and before you know a physical addiction begins to develop.  No, duh!  Right?  So enough of the obvious and on to the more subtle, finer points...

In How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone, I make a very specific distinction between quitting and stopping.  One is comprehensible to the addict and the other is not.  So with that in mind, what do you think is easier to deal with?  A habit or an addiction?  Psychologically, I'm going to go with habit.  What do you need to do to break a habit?  Well habits have a 30-40 day incubation time.  They also have a trigger.  Something that sets them off.  More often then not, the trigger lies deep in the subconscious.  Your luxury as a human being is the ability to recognize when the trigger is acting up by ways of a craving.  Breaking the habit means riding out the craving.  It does not mean you have to go to therapy to sort out why you've got this bad habit.  Obviously, knowing your history will help in the process and add motivation, but the simple action of decision is the most powerful tool in your arsenal to not smoke.  When you go to the addiction side, it reverts back to a physical need for something.  Not a want.  Wants you can manage.  Needs must be met.  Semantics?  Yes, but words are incredibly powerful.  Try this...  don't think of a pink elephant.  See?  Look what I made you do!  

Let me sum this up by quoting Wayne Dyer.  "Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change."  

So now you want to stop smoking.  Are you addicted or do you just have a bad habit.  If you try to quit, you will soon find that you're addicted.  If you just stop, you will find yourself shedding a very bad habit.

For more on semantics, humor and direction, pick up a copy of How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone.  Available now on Amazon.com or if you'd like to take a look at the Forward and Chapter 1: Stop Trying to Quit, you can do so over on www.stopdontquit.com.

Have a question or comment?  Leave it below!  As always this is your blog too, I welcome the discourse.

What Kind of Smoker Are You?

Smoke free in 30 days.  This is a new book by Daniel F. Seidman.  DOCTOR Daniel F. Seidman, thank you very much.  Doctor Dan (if I may be so bold) is the director of smoking cessation services at Columbia University Medical Center.  He's been in the business of helping folks kick the habit for over 20 years.  He's got a pretty cool motto:  "Nothing feels better than accomplishing something you didn't know you could do."  And speaking of cool, he is, in addition to being a psycho therapist, a jazz musician who credits the skill and art of improvisation as a useful tool for helping others. Dr. Dan's latest book is called Smoke Free in 30 Days:  The Pain Free, Permanent Way to Quit.  The Forward is written by Dr. Mamet Oz.  Dr. Oz is also one cool cat.

I was brought to this book by an article in Yahoo that was emailed to me by my wife.  In the article from Yahoo Shine, the publishers along with Dr. Dan, ask the question, "What kind of smoker are you?"  They then go on to identify the 6 major types of smokers.  I'll list them for you now:

• Recreational or Social Smoker.
• Scared-to-Quit Smoker.
• Emotion-Triggered Smoker.
• Worried-About-Weight Smoker.
• The Alcoholic Smoker.
• The Situational Smoker.

Ironically, in my book How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone, I  touch on a lot of these points.  Not having read Dr. Dan's book yet, I'm not comfortable voicing a complete opinion of the merit of the book, but from here and so far, all I can say is if Dr. Oz is down with it, so am I.  I figure, take all the help you can get. 

Not every voice is going to be music to year ears.  If my book doesn't get the job done, try this one.  Try everything until you find the thing that works for you.  Perhaps you don't want to get lectured to?  Perhaps you need to get it from a more conversational stand point.  From someone who's actually been there.  Now, 20 plus years of working with people addicted to nicotine and hearing all the reasons one starts smoking is a wealth of knowledge that any person in their right mind who's trying to quit will want to tap into...

And there in lies the rub.  Your brain has been chemically altered and you are now physically addicted to nicotine.  Clearly, you are not in your right mind!  You, like me, are off in some 1940's mentality where opera singers sing the praises of Camel and medical doctors recommend Lucky Strikes.  What?  Well if you're still smoking at this point then you've somehow managed to convince yourself that either 60 years of evidence, research and DEATH doesn't necessarily apply to you or your self esteem is so low that the evidence, research and DEATH doesn't really matter.

Pow!  Right between the eyes.  See I'm not going to pull any punches here.  And since I'm still a smoker (who doesn't smoke) and still in my 1940's mentality (I'm listening to Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters while I write this) I'm gonna give it to you straight, see?

Regardless of your emotional level or paradigm, it's time to kick the habit.

For the Recreational-Social Smoker, you will have the easiest time with this because you're not fully dialed into it yet.  YET, being the key word.  Sooner or later if you don't pass up on the smokey treats you will find yourself passing on other things like; breathing with ease, running, and away.  Get it?  Passing...  away?

The Scared-to-Quit Smoker is actually a big part of my book.  Not that I meant to.  But reading about this type of smoker actually added a little validity to my own efforts.  I fluttered about the title for a long time.  I knew I wanted it to be a little amusing but by chapter 1, you'll see why it's called How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone and not How to Quit Smoking Without Killing Anyone.  You'll also find out why I believe it's impossible to quit so don't even bother.  You can however STOP.  There's a huge difference and that difference can make or break your efforts to drop the smoking habit once and for all.

For The Emotion-Triggered Smoker,  I noticed a piece of the emotion puzzle was missing.  Granted, I haven't read the book, so again, it may be in there.  Currently, I'm commenting on the article and not the book.  So what was missing from the Emotion-Triggered Smoker paragraph?  This paragraph talks about the smoker who reaches for a cigarette when he/she encounters a problem.  Negative emotions are only one side of the Camel-Cash.  What about the positive emotions?  After a great meal?  After great sex?  Actually, even the worst sex I've ever had was still pretty great so...  where was I?  Oh yes, the after sex cigarette!  The good music on the radio while on a road trip cigarette?  Cigarettes are there for you in good times and in bad times and negative emotions are only one trigger.  The happy times can cause just as much of a powerful craving as anything negative. 

The Worried-About-Weight Smoker.  Conveniently, How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone has The Stop Smoking Diet!  "But wait a second," you say, "I'm trying to quit smoking here!  Now I gotta watch what I eat too?"  Well you're the one who brought up weight gain, not me!  Look, Dr. Dan's right on the money here.  Let's prioritize things a bit.  Yes, putting on a few pounds might suck in the beginning (pun intended).  Fortunately, if you keep smoking, there's a very powerful weight loss combination called Cancer and Chemotherapy that will virtually guarantee you shed those unwanted pounds...

The Alcoholic-Smoker.  This is my favorite one!  If you're getting off the sauce, still on the sauce, or have been off the sauce for a while but are struggling with knocking off the smoking part take a look at the bigger picture here.  In the article this paragraph slips into a little psychobabble about shame and guilt.  I had to go back and read this paragraph a few times.  Let me translate.  Give yourself the permission you need to love yourself just enough to take your life back.  A craving is just that, a craving.  Nobody says you have to act on it.  But your craving is more like a compulsion.  A compulsion is just a really strong craving.  Look, I've struggled with addiction a good majority of my life and have managed to find a way to come out of the fog.  How?  I decided to.  That's how.  And yes it is that simple.  Please let's not confuse simple with easy.  Addiction is the symptom.  What is the cause?  Have you been self medicating?  I know I was.  I own that now.  I own my addiction too.  That is why I refereed to myself as a smoker who doesn't smoke.  I am also a friend of Bill.  Are you?  12 Steps later and you're still self medicating with nicotine.  Better than drinking yourself into the grave I suppose but once you get a handle on the wagon rains it may very well just be the beginning.  That's one battle.  The war is addiction.

The Situational Smoker!

If you're a Situational Smoker then you're the guy or gal who says things like "I can quit anytime I want!"  And very often you do.  You'll smoke for like a month or three years and then just stop for a couple years or weeks until the mood strikes you and then you light up again and that cycle will last for some other variation of time.  More often than not the breaks you take from smoking are just long enough to convince yourself that you actually are in control of your addiction.  FYI, being in control of your addiction means you don't do it anymore.  Just ask an of the friends of Bill's mentioned earlier.  Frankly that question might get you laughed at in that circle.  They'll laugh at you then embrace you as one of their own because we've all denied it and claimed to be in control when we really were not.  Again, I know I have and I am willing to own that too.  Are you?

So have you figured out which one you are?  If if you don't smoke anymore, where did you fall in this line up?  I don't know about you but when I look closely at my career as a smoke I think at one point I covered everyone of these types.  I started out as a Recreational like most of us and had a very brief stint as a Situational Smoker.   The rest of my career as a smoker was a fine weaving of Emotional Smoker mixed with the Scared to Quit Smoker with a side of Worried About Weight Smoker.  And the whole whack was washed down with a tall glass of Bourbon.

And now here we are 2010.  8+ years sans Camel.  4+ years sans Bourbon.  Today I did Swings with an 88 pound Kettlebell for 10 minutes.  I did 120 repetitions.  That's 10560 pounds lifted in ten minutes.  My lung feels great!  Thank you Dice Clay for that timely gag.

How about you?  Are you ready to kick the habit?  Have you been ready for a while?  Do you know someone that needs to?  This blog is first and foremost a conversation.  Yes I am shamelessly here to plug my book, but the mission of this book and this blog is to empower you the addict (smoker) to have the courage, confidence and sheer f-in' will to just STOP.  If this book, blog or Dr. Dan's book is what it takes, then more power to you!

That's about it for now, leave a comment here and join in the conversation!  Oh, one more thing, if you'd like the first chapter of my book for free, visit www.stopdontquit.com

Anxiety Makes Quitting Smoking Harder

I recently stumbled upon this article:

http://fyiliving.com/depression/anxiety-makes-quitting-smoking-harder/

Sometimes, the blog finds you...

This article covers a study by the Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention where 1500 smokers were analyzed.

You can read the study here:  http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2010.03173.x/abstract

What grabbed me most was this, "To understand the relations among anxiety disorders and tobacco dependence, withdrawal symptoms, response to smoking cessation pharmacotherapy and ability to quit smoking."

Pharmacothera...  what?

Pharmacotherapy:  the treatment of disease through the administration of drugs.

OH!  That!  When you see big words like that, feel free to get a little anxious.  I know I always do.  In fact, I'm thinking about reaching for a smoke right now I'm so anxious!

But I digress, really.  Here's the deal, some folks went out to answer the question, "If you suffer from anxiety AND smoke cigarettes, will it be harder to quit?"

Their findings:  "Anxiety diagnoses were common among treatment-seeking smokers and were related to increased motivation to smoke, elevated withdrawal, lack of response to pharmacotherapy and impaired ability to quit smoking. These findings could guide treatment assignment algorithms and treatment development for smokers with anxiety diagnoses."

This leaves me with one major question:  Who in the #%&* funded this?  Are you serious?  Is this some kind of joke?  Can you say no brainer?  I can.  If I was 11 years old the phrase "no-duh" would be ringing out load and proud!

So, just so we're clear here, not only is smoking getting put into the disease category instead of the disease CAUSING category, it is now official that if you've been anxious for a while and you smoke, then quitting is going to be a bitch.

Dude, quitting is already a bitch!  As if I wasn't anxious enough, now you're telling me withdrawals will be elevated, no motivation, and what's all this pharmaco-whatever talk? 

Look, I won't hide it, I've suffered from anxiety my whole life.  Why do you think I started smoking?  At least the real reason.  The subtext of it all...  suddenly that nicotine relaxed me.  Evened out my brain chemistry or at least covered up the feelings.  Why do people become alcoholics?  Drug Addicts?  Self-Medication is a prime factor.  Even if the soon to be addict isn't aware of it.  It's quite simple really.  The knots and butterflies, the nausea, the tight chest and diaphragm, the sensation that I might crap myself, all that stuff suddenly goes away when I have a cigarette and I can think clearer.  These thoughts process faster than a light going on so it never has time to fully register, but there it is.  Smoke this, feel better.  Self medication.
 

The article wraps up with this amazing insight:  "The results of this study demonstrate that habitual smoking may be caused by more factors than nicotine addiction."

Speaking of being 11 years old again and excuse the language, but a "no shit Sherlock!" is the only appropriate comment here.

Look folks, especially the ones still making the decision to continue smoking, smoking is a decision you make every time you light up.  In my book, How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone, I contend that for most people, especially if you, like me, suffer from anxiety disorder, it is impossible to quit.  So don't bother trying.  It is however, VERY possible to stop smoking.

After all that is the name of this blog...  stop, don't quit.  For more on that, you'll have to read the book.  Yes, I am in this for the money!  Not really, I'm kidding...  sort of.  What I am in it for, more than anything,  is to help people make the decision to stop smoking and to give themselves the permission they need to love themselves just enough to finally knock this passive aggressive from of suicide off once and for all.


I find it disturbing that someone needed "scientific evidence" to establish a "treatment algorithm" for smokers with anxiety disorder.  I don't think a word like that should be anywhere near a discussion about treatment for individuals.  It's too sterile for me.  Then again, I'm not a scientist.  I'm too left brain for any of that.


Anyway, there's my 2 cents on that.  This blog was intended to seriously analyze the study and the article but as I kept reading the article and the study I found it near impossible to take it seriously and while smoking cessation is serious and should not be taken lightly, this article to me, gives too much power to nicotine and cigarettes and diminishes the human spirit and human potential to overcome a condition.  Especially a condition (nicotine addiction) one imposed on them self.

TODAY'S EXCELLENT FOOD FOR THOUGHT:

"Do not wish to be anything but what you are." 

~St. Francis de Sales.     

 

This is very powerful for those of you still on the fence about whether or not you are going to stop smoking or for that matter break any habit.  Who are you?  How well do you know your self?

 

Give it some thought...  let me know what you think!

Man Calls 911 Reports a False Murder Blames Nicotine - Part Two

In case you missed it, http://stopdontquit.blogspot.com/2010/11/man-calls-911-reports-false-murder.html

Now that you're caught up, I thought I'd put my money where my mouth is.  So after posting the previously mentioned blog, I promptly went to Amazon.com and sent Alex Lee Baker a copy of my book, How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone.  There's a special on free 2-Day shipping right now, so he should have it by December 2nd.  Which ironically, is today!

With any luck Mr. Baker will find a few tools to help him in his quest to stop smoking.  Many a news and blog organization are reporting on this kind of tongue in cheek, but I got to tell you, from some one who's been there and done that, the withdrawal phase is no joke.  I completely understand and empathize with how Alex must have felt and what the anxiety must have been like.  It can drive you crazy.  Literally.  And it's no wonder why people can stop most hard drugs, get off booze, and still smoke!  Go stand outside an AA meeting after it gets out.  How many people light up after?  The real challenge is to identify addiction, know where it came from and how it got into your life and then face it head on.

Good Luck to you Alex Lee Baker!

Man Calls 911 Reports a False Murder Blames Nicotine

The face of withdrawal!

For Alex Lee Baker, the reality of nicotine addiction and cigarette withdrawals will prove to result in a night that he will never forget.  On the evening of November 28th the 911 line in Clarksville, TN erupted with 3 calls.  The first claiming to have witnessed a murder, the second call claimed he, the victim now, was in the woods after being stabbed and pushed from a car.  Call number three said he was in the woods dying and that he had killed his girlfriend and buried her out near Woodlawn.

All three calls originated from the cell phone of Mr. Baker and spawned a search involving several officers from Clarksville PD, two Deputy Sheriffs and their K-9 unit, a couple Highway Patrol men and one helicopter.

During the search Detective Eric Ewing was able to establish that all three calls were place by Baker and that clearly Baker had lied.  Baker then claimed that he lost his phone.  Eventually he came clean and admitted that...  wait for it...  wait for it...

Baker had placed the calls because he was board, anxious AND had not had a cigarette in two days.

He was charged with 3 counts of false reporting and is being held on a $15,000 bond.

Clearly, there are lots of adjectives that may come to mind here.  Obviously, he didn't read my book, How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone.  This is a silly story that is not only true but shows the magnitude and effect of nicotine addiction.  Fortunately, he didn't actually murder his girlfriend and no one was hurt, but what kind of state was this poor guy in that he called in 3 fake 911 calls.  For him the emergency of not having a smokey treat was all too real. 

Board, he had nothing to do with his hands.  Anxious, his brain chemistry was all out of whack.  Nicotine fit in full bloom and having been in this position before, I completely empathize with Alex Baker and understand how he must have felt.

Where did he go wrong?  Well, aside from calling 911 and claiming to have been stabbed and killed his girlfriend; where did he go wrong?  A nic-fit comes on like a wave and is not permanent.  It will not last forever.  You need to ride it out.  While in the pains of it, it's necessary to find something to do to keep yourself from climbing the walls or stabbing yourself and your girlfriend.  This kid needs an Xbox and a copy of my book!

Rehab yourself with QiGong Recharge by John DuCane

Qi Gong has become for me a form of active meditation.  For someone looking to rehab from the effects of smoking, Qi Gong may be a good way to patch up so to speak.  Me?  I decided to stop smoking almost 10 years ago and have recently published a book on how I did it.  It's called, How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone .  For me the first week or two was brutal.  So since then I have looked for natural methods to ease one through the withdrawal phase.  QiGong Recharge is one perfect example of "if I knew then what I knew now."

John DuCane is a practitioner and teacher of Qi Gong.  He is also the man behind Dragon Door publications.  He has been practicing QiGong since 1975. 

Mr. DuCane has published several works on Thi Chi and QiGong.  For this blog I'm going to show you the one I've been using for a few years now and the one that has added to my overall peace of mind, serenity and well being.  Not to mention the added benefits of more fluid motion and flexibility!

The Subtitle to QiGong ReCharge is A Daily practice to Release, Relax and Rejuvenate.  And that is exactly what will happen for you when you begin to practice the techniques taught in this DVD.

For you, the recent or soon to be non-smoker, this DVD will come in handy on a few levels.  Let's look at some of the benefits and see how they will aid you in getting through this tough time.

As the cover points out, you have inherited a body.  It's the only one you got.  Whether or not you're a spiritual person is irrelevant.  What is important to recognize is that sooner or later you're body will return to the universe.  As the days draw to a close, what kind of condition do you want your body to be in?  Clearly, you've decided to upgrade your body and repair the damage done by smoking.  Congratulations!  That is without a doubt a brave, powerful and honorable decision that will pay many dividends over the coming years. 

By incorporating the practice of QiGong ReCharge into your daily life you will immediately reap the follow benefits:

• Increased Energy.  Getting off the smoking bandwagon can drain you.  Your body is all out of whack.  So is your brain chemistry for that matter.  This can result in a feeling of sluggish depression.  How would like to alleviate that sensation?
• Greater Sense of Well Being.  QiGong will allow you to slow down and move with relaxed purpose.  Since you are going through some big changes you will be able to center yourself for the day ahead and re-center yourself through out the day.
• Reduce Stress.  Let's face it.  When you decide to stop smoking, it's stressful.  There's no denying that.  By adding the practice of ReCharge do your daily routine you can remove the stress that builds up in your body.
• Release Tension.  Speaking of stress!  Where do you carry yours?  In your neck?  Shoulders?  Lower Back?  Stomach?  How about all of the above?  How would like to let that all go?  Especially now that you're not smoking.  How will you release your stress?
• Replace the Ritual.  Smoking as a habit for most of us was a ritual.  We did it in the morning to wake up, we smoked after a good meal, it was good for the road trip, it made a nice night cap, and so on and so forth.  What will you do now?
• Fire Up Your Lymph System.  QiGong will aid, assist and stimulate your body's natural cleansing system. 
• Relax Your Nervous System.  What do you think is getting over worked now that you've stopped smoking?  Are your nerves fried? 
• Improved Breathing.  QiGong will help you to being using your lungs again for their intended purpose.  

For me QiGong ReCharge became a way to recover and...  well recharge after a heavy day of Kettlebell training.  I was looking for something to do that would not only aid in active recovery but also aid in releasing tension.  Physical and emotional.   QiGong Recharge quickly became the status quo for me.  I would and still do use it to warm up before exercise and sometimes as a way to cool down after training as well.  As a stand alone system I have used it to recover form surgery and have also used it to reduce stress and anxiety.

Whether you smoke now, are trying to stop, or have stopped, this routine of movement and breathing will help you release, restore and of course, ReCharge.  Even if you're coming out of another addiction, this will help with inner peace.

Let me know if you decide to give it a try.  I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions. 

FDA to require graphic warnings on cigarette packages, ads

http://www.latimes.com/health/la-sci-1111-cigarette-packages-20101111,0,5986780.story   

Clearly, I gotta chime in here...  I've tried getting through the above article like five times.  The first time was right when it came out last week and since then I've looked at it and then had to look away out of frustration.  I finally was able to sift through half of it and then finished it this morning.

I'm going to commit to a general point of view here that as a non-smoking advocate may seem contradictory but honestly, I just don't get it.

Seriously, it's 2010.  If you legitimately do not know that smoking is bad for you in this day and age, I'm sorry, but you deserve whatever comes your way.  How can you not know smoking is bad for you?

Maybe because the people who make the decision to smoke are fully aware of the dangers, consequesces and the risk and for whatever reason, be it addiction, self-loathing, or a little bit of both, decide to do it anyway...

This article goes on to claim that daily 4000 young people try smoking and 1000 of them continue to smoke.  Here's the exact quote, "Every day, 4,000 young people try cigarettes for the first time and 1,000 continue to smoke."

One key word is left out of that equation.  Decide.  Smoking is a decision.   According to the article that means 365,000 "young people" take on the habit of smoking.  According to the CDC, smoking can be related to 1 in 5 deaths annually.  393,600 full time smokers die each year. Tobacco is the number one cause of preventable death in the United States.  However, when you do the math there's 28,600 more people dying from it than starting it.  Darwinism will eventually solve this problem.  Cruel?  Maybe.  True?  Yes.

So yes, smoking is a bad thing.  But...  C'mon people.  Don't you already know this?  If you're still puffing away at this point, is a picture of a diseased lung or some cat smoking through his trachea really going to change your mind?  I say no.  I say the only person, place or thing that is going to change the mind of the smoker is the mind of the smoker.

Many an addict will not stop shooting smack simply because he/she see's the effects of the drug on someone else.  An addict is simply that, an addict and they are the only one who can actually stop.  Notice I don't say quit.  Quitting is an impossible act for the addict if you ask me.

The American Heart and Lung Association state that "Pharmacological and behavioral characteristics that determine tobacco addiction are similar to those that determine addiction to drugs such as heroin and cocaine."

So first off, if tobacco is that strong, why is it even legal?  Secondly, this mean that these 365,000 new smokers aren't just smokers, but addicts with a physical addiction as strong as junk and blow.  

So....  what's the plan?  As a government institution in the United States of America, let's tell an independent company how to package their product in a way that could drastically reduce sales and consequently close their business.  OK, so as Americans we can look the other way (for now) because smoking is bad.  But what happens when this logic gets plugged into video games, music, food?  Let's not set a precedent here.  Not to sound too paranoid (I'll go through an X-Ray at the airport and as long as they're gentle, I'm OK getting my junk brushed for the common good) but keep in mind, there are some civil liberties involved.  

Well so perhaps potential non addicts will get scared off so that's a good thing but what are we doing to address the root causes and issues of smoking addiction.  You can't communicate rationally with an addict.  They're addicted!  There's a chemical imbalance in their brain that is so strong they actually decide to over look the facts and do it anyway.


I know I did.  From 1991 to 2002 I looked the other way and enjoyed every single puff.  Why did I smoke?  Well for that you can read the book.  Same on how I stopped.  Excuse the shameless plug, but the bottom line here is that smoking is a choice.  Every time someone lights up it's a decision.  So how do we communicate to addicts?  

Parent's who smoke?  I say pass a law that puts smoking as a parent in the same category as abuse or neglect.  Sorry but if you smoke and have kids and then smoke in front of your kids, you're an asshole.  How can you do that?  I know how...  addiction!  Addiction is not logical and causes irrational behavior like putting known carcinogens in the direct path of your own flesh and blood!  What the *%$# is a picture of a black and brown lung sitting on the Camel's hump going to do to make that person quit?

Logic will not do the trick.  If you read my book you'll notice that I don't throw a bunch of facts and figures at the potential non-addict.  I show them how I did it and how they can too.  You decided to start smoking, now decide to stop smoking.  Here's How.  That's it.  Peanut Gallery's open...

How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone Test Drive

How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone is available for sale on Amazon.com.  In a previous blog, I answered the question, "But Dave, I don't smoke.  Why should I read your book?  Well, if that didn't get you off the fence and you still can't decide to add the book to your shopping cart, how would you like to go for a quick test drive?  When you visit StopDontQuit.com   and enter your name and email address I will send you for free a PDF of the Forward, written by my dad and Chapter 1, called "Stop Trying to Quit."

This book is a quick, easy read and yet it is an effective tool.  As one reader put it, "This book is a perfect combination of humor, guidance, passion and purpose. If you've ever wanted to change your life in regards to smoking, or really any addictive behavior, this book is a MUST!!"

Why not give it a try?

Stop Smoking with Oysters

Stop Smoking with Oysters

This is a Hub I wrote that goes with my book, How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone .  In it I'm going to take a look at handling the withdrawal phases and I'll also examine the value of growing pains.

 I found a CD set on Mantra's that I mention in the Hub and in this CD on Mantra's lies some very powerful and simple wisdom that became the chief inspiration and motivation for this Hub.

Take a look at it and let me know what you think...

Stop Smoking with Oysters

Breathing Exercises for the Recent Non-Smoker

Recently published on HubPages, I take a look at some breathing exercises and techniques for you to employ as a recent smoker who doesn't smoke.

Breathing Exercises for the Recent Non-Smoker

In this article I'll take a look at Diaphragmatic Breathing, Chi/Qi Breathing and Japa Meditation.  There is also an accompanying video for you to see one of the breathing exercises I chose and do to help release stress and inhale positive energy.

Click the link above and Enjoy!

But Dave, I Don't Smoke! Why Should I Read Your Book?

Sure you do!  What?!?!

How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone is also a good read even in the non-smoking section!

Look, just because you don't take a cigarette and shove it in your mouth, light it on fire and then breathe in the results doesn't mean you don't smoke...  something.

Smoking is what?  When you smoke people say:

• Its a bad habit
• An addiction
• You're hooked
• Dependant
• A slave
• You got a monkey on your back
• Etc...

Can you think of something in your life you're hooked on to?  Dependent on?  What kind of monkey is on your back?

The Forward of the Book, written by my dear old Dad will tell you this:

"How To Stop Smoking....., as you might be starting to surmise, is more than an opportunity to look at your addiction to nicotine. And when you are no longer smoking (but still a smoker), you can reread and reread How To Stop Smoking.... and become conscious of anything else you are “smoking” to destroy your life. It might be a lot of negative energy from people you need to get away from. It might be a belief that it’s not in the cards for you to be financially successful or that you are not attractive enough to have a satisfying sexual relationship with your partner.

There are lots of different kinds of SMOKE that we inhale and sometimes insidiously get high on. And just as with the cigarettes, this other kind of negative SMOKE can invade our entire body through the production of neuropeptides which are amino acids chains specific to our emotions. So when my brain is producing “negative” neuropeptides, I find every negative thing there is to find that day. And, YES, when my brain produces “positive” neuropeptides, I find every good thing there is to find, even in the midst of a crisis. Yes, it could be that our “addiction” to these negative neuropeptides is what drove most of us into smoking in the first place."

What do you smoke?  Don't worry, you don't have to say it out loud.  Your inner voice already said it...  yes, that inner voice.  The one that shouted your dark, dirty little secret.  The one that says, 'man I got knock this off' every time you cave in to it.  From too much ice-cream, avoiding exercise, all the way to something nefarious (booze, drugs) we all have or have had something we "smoke."

So if you or someone you love has a monkey on their back, this book was written for you.  Even if you don't "smoke."

No Equipment Required

In my book, How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone, you'll read about the importance of exercise in helping people get over the smoking hump.

Time and money can often interfere with your decision to use exercise to get yourself back in shape and quell those nasty withdrawals.

So, what if time and money wasn't an issue?  What if you could get in a killer workout in under 3 minutes?  What would you do then? 

Recently I put up an article on HubPages addressing this very concern and included a workout designed to get you done in under 3 minutes!

You can read it here:  NO EQUIPMENT REQUIRED

After reading it and hopefully trying the workout, let me know what you think and leave a comment!