Understanding the Illusion of Quitting in Addiction

Have you ever heard the saying “I can always quit”? Maybe you have from someone who is addicted but never really fulfilled that thought. With an estimated 443,000 deaths each year, including 3400 in Queensland, it is a piercing truth that this is definitely not the case with the use of tobacco. Smokers need help (Gandhi, 2011) (Queensland Governement, 2010).

Hi, I’m _________; you may remember me from such speeches as the dangers of cannabis and the effects of cyber bullying. Well today I propel at you the argument of a serial killer, mostly known to man for its addictiveness and its devastating effect.

I’m referring to of course, the cigarette.

This well-known killer can usually be found lingering around most bars and clubs, and can be sold anywhere of convenience ranging from petrol stations to grocery stores. This makes it highly available to frequent users and a forced temptation to those striving to quit.

The purchasing and smoking of tobacco can be seen as a pointless habit to those who don’t smoke.

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It can be seen as a habit that bears absolutely no benefits. When smokers were questioned for their reason of smoking, they described it as a quick moment of pleasure, a way to look confident and in control and also a way to socialize. The question is, is it worth it? Is it worth health and finance for quick pleasure here and when socializing (Why People Smoke Cigarettes: Five Reasons That Might Surprise You, 2009).

Tracking back to the growth of tobacco plants, there is a secret ingredient that lies unknown to many users of cigarettes.

The field in which the tobacco is grown is bombarded with fertilizer containing uranium and other substances that overtime creates this substance. It remains in tobacco right until the very moment it is inhaled by an unfortunate user. This substance is known as radiation. Yes, radiation, an absolute danger to the human body is definitely being consumed every 3 puffs of a cigarette. Smokers must be educated in the harmful effects of the radiation in cigarettes to help them change, help them quit and help them recover. Quitting cigarettes is known as one the hardest moves for a smoker, but every bit of help can drive them to cut back. (EPA, 2012)

As if the health risks weren’t enough trouble caused by this stick of death, but the fact of the matter is, this slow expiry is also a costly one. Not only is the cigarette a thief of life, but it also steals from your hip-pocket. The daily smoker is reduced to paying a large sum of money at the end of each week or month to inhale the smoke of this infested plant. Smokers need to be responsible and come to their senses on this one. The price of packets is constantly adding up as there is no cease in the use of cigarettes. Pack a day smokers can be expected to lose the price of items in the long run, things such as cars, payable debts or even holidays, all of these just gone. It is becoming out of hand.

Since the prices of cigarettes have been greatly increased since the dawn of government anti-smoking campaigns, smokers are directly in the crosshairs of this added cost. If packets are costing $21 each and smokers are choosing to use an entire one each day, basic calculations show that over the course of 10 years, $76650 will literally be blown away. This is considered the biggest waste of time and finance for an item of no significance whatsoever.

It is questionable whether smokers do in fact continue this life-threatening habit knowingly through ignorance, or the pure addiction of substance abuse. It has been proven that quitting is of great hardship, but the grass is so much greener on the other side without cigarettes. A healthy lifestyle is always the best option. Assisting people to quit is the only answer because it has been proven to be merely impossible for one to attempt it alone. There must be support groups provided to save those who are powerless under the addiction of nicotine, there must be instant support for smokers who are dying to quit, who know they must quit, who would put anything aside to quit, but they just can’t.

Resources such as nicotine patches and gum are available for the aid in quitting although they are not 100% effective. Will smoking ever be extinct in our society? The answer is no. there is no possibility that smoking will be removed completely from our lives. But with your help, we can take a massive dint out of the severe death toll. As stated before, the majority of smokers simply cannot quit on their own but with encouragement, with reasoning, and with addiction support, we will make a difference in the many lives affected by tobacco.