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Psychological addiction to smoking
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If you are offered a drink or a night out on the town, you can easily turn it down. While you are capable of turning down pleasurable things, you are unable to ignore cigarettes. Why is it that you panic when you cannot get a cigarette and cannot ignore the urge? Other things that are enjoyable are simple to turn down, but smoking retains a strong hold on the psyche.
Most smokers have the same feeling of disgust when they look at a cigarette. At some point, you end up with a cigarette in your hand and no clue why it has such a hold on you. It feels like something that you could just quit until you actually try to stop smoking. It is only once you quit smoking that you realize the hold that cigarettes have developed on your mind. Whether you want to be or not, you are addicted. If you believe that you are
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It seems ridiculous to ask this question because you obviously do not tell your children to smoke. While you know that smoking causes harm, it can be challenging to quit. Some smokers avoid quitting because they are afraid of the withdrawal symptoms. In reality, nicotine withdrawal is very mild. Most smokers can live their entire lives without realizing that they are actually drug addicts. They remain afraid of withdrawal symptoms without realizing that the fear of withdrawal is worse than withdrawal itself.
When trying to quit, people often start with nicotine patches or gum. This technique is ridiculous because your entire goal is to stop using nicotine. You wouldn't tell a heroine addict to switch to a patch instead of injecting or smoking it, so why would you tell a nicotine addict to switch to patches?
Removing the Illusion
The desire to smoke and the addiction are just illusions that exist in your mind. Physical withdrawal effects are very limited, so the only thing holding you back is your mind. Once you remove the illusion that smoking is enjoyable, you can go on to live a pleasurable life without
Cigarette addiction is responsible for over four million deaths every year. The question most people ask is why don’t people just put down their cigarettes? Well, the answer to that often asked question is nicotine. Nicotine is a neurotransmitter that targets certain receptors in the brain. It is a chemical messenger that induces feelings of pleasure. When someone takes a hit off of a cigarette, they ingest the harmful chemicals that can cause cancer and other serious health threats. They only inhale these chemicals to get one thing and one thing only, nicotine.
There are various approaches to addiction I will be comparing the behaviourist and psychodynamic approaches to see which provides the most compelling explanation of addiction. The behaviourist approach states change in behaviour happens due to past experiences and our actions are a result of the environment. (Glassman and Hadad, 2013). The environment in which we exist makes us act in a certain way for example, seeing people around us do acts like smoking and gambling may make an individual want to participate in those acts (Gross,2015). The psychodynamic approach on the other hand claims behaviour is determined by the unconscious mind and our actions have a motive behind them, which reflect our early childhood experiences (Gross, 2015).
...rough something known as a withdrawal; which can be very unpleasant and discouraging. A withdrawal is the event experienced when a person who has been regularly using a substance, suddenly stops. Withdrawing from nicotine has multiple symptoms that can be characterized as irritability, impatience, hostility, depression, and even a decreased heart rate. Within 3-4 hours a smoker can began to withdraw from lack of nicotine use. Almost all smokers ----want---- and probably try to stop smoking, but in most cases the craving for nicotine overcomes their will to quit. Truth is, it is so difficult for smokers to quit smoking, because they are addicted. If there was a ban on cigarettes or even a stricter regulation, it could discourage people from even trying a single cigarette. It could alleviate the inevitability of addiction and the dependence on cigarettes in general.
The most common form of tobacco used is the cigarette. Smoking for most people gives satisfaction and pleasure. The tobacco chemicals that are released into the brain when inhaled cause a happy or joyous feeling to the person. People often turn to cigarettes to suppress hunger or relieve stress (Dichter). After a short period of time, a person can become addicted to the satisfaction they get from smoking a cigarette. Certain tobacco products contain toxins, carcinogens, and poisons that are all extremely harmful to the human body. 60 chemicals that are contained in a tobacco cigarette are cancer-causing agents (Wexner). It is these chemicals that make cigarettes as well as other tobacco products so addicting to their users. Over time the need for a cigarette increases and the harder it becomes to quit smoking. Some users turn to smoking alternatives in order to quit. The first thing a smoker will reach for is something that looks and feels similar to a normal cigarette.
Through public education, most elementary school kids can understand that smoking is bad for them and that cigarettes are additive. Cigarettes are addictive due to nicotine, a drug found in tobacco (“Quitting Smoking”, 2015). According to Schneider (2016), some of the greatest health problems associated with smoking include: lung cancer, other cancers, coronary heart disease, other heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, other vascular disease, diabetes mellitus, pneumonia, influenza, tuberculosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), prenatal conditions, and sudden infant death syndrome. As stated by the Authority of the American Lung Association in an article titled “Health
There are multiple arguments on whether who has the most virtù in the play, but when one has virtù, you must also have prudence. Callimaco, the main protagonist, can be seen as the most Machiavellian but not the most virtù. He is willing to do anything to carry out his goals, he holds the ability to deceive and disguise himself, and he also has advisors who are skilled in deceiving, yet his prudence is not all put-together. He is constantly hesitant about his plans and is not confident that they will go well. Lugurio appears to be the most virtù, yet his prudence is lacking.
Guess what? Even children who live in a smoking environment are influenced to become a smoker as they grow up; smoking has a huge impact on our younger generation as they are negatively influenced by this habit and we as adults are responsible for it. Many people don’t know this is a serious issue but they regard it as normality.
Some researchers say that it is the addiction to chemicals in the cigarettes together with cognitive dissonance, which make them still smoke. So with their thought process that the risk is small they will get sick becomes dissonant with other thoughts that they can be a smart and responsible person who can make reasonable decisions for themselves. So the theory can be said that that people are rationalizing that smoking is bad but they are not always rational in regards to the outcomes of their
How do you know when you are addicted to something? Is it a choice or just an effect? What most people do not understand, is that no one really chooses to be an addict. Being addicted to something such as drugs, alcohol, and food, is not due to someone waking up one day and choosing to not be in control. It is mostly due to deeper issues like depression, influences upbringing and where you live, things, which lead someone on the path for their search of an escape.
All tobacco products have a warning label on the package, and yet people continue to use it. I’ve heard of different reasons from different people. None of them make sense to me. The only borderline logical reason to me is growing up with that in your household. You don’t stand a chance after you get use to the chemicals. The smoke reels you in like a fish on a hook and you become a slave to the smell. Even if that is the case, I still believe you have a choice. A majority people start due to people in their family, but I’ve heard of less intelligent reasons. Two people told me they started just because the turned eighteen and they realized they were of legal age. I’ve been informed of someone finding cigarettes and deciding to try them. Another person told me they started because they wanted to prove they could smoke cigarettes and do “cool” smoke tricks. I’ve also heard a few people say they started due to peer pressure. A lot of people tend to use stress as an excuse, but a tobacco won’t solve your problems. An interesting reason I’ve recently discovered is social awkwardness. One person told me they would use smoking as an excuse to evade uncomfortable situations. Whatever the reason may be, an abundance of people have a difficult time quitting. One person close to me has described smoking as “muscle memory” and you also associate smoking with
Smoking cigarettes is a very deadly addiction that, unfortunately, 42.1 million adults in the United States and 6.4 million children have. The reason why so many people get addicted to cigarettes because of nicotine. Medicinenet.com says that nicotine is “Made by the tobacco plant or produced synthetically. Nicotine has powerful pharmacologic effects (including increased heart rate, heart stroke volume, and oxygen consumption by the heart muscle), as well as powerful psychodynamic effects (such as euphoria, increased alertness, and a sense of relaxation). Nicotine is also powerfully addictive.”
There are many causes which make people smoke, however it can be divided into two main causes: physical and psychological. First cause which is physical concerns the human body’s needs. Nicotine contained in cigarette is an addictive substance. It is the chemical which causes addiction. Nicotine reduces tension in the muscles and allows smokers to relax so they feel that they can relieve stress by smoking. Nicotine can also have a calming effect on people who are anxious and worried. This is why it can bring a feeling of tranquility and help smokers to cope with stress. Thus, people smoke when they are depressed, lonely or bored. Nicotine is absorbed by the smoker’s lung and intestines. Very quickly, nicotine can stimulate brain and certain types of nerves so heart rate and blood pressure go up; respiration increases. A little nicotine makes smokers feel more energy and improve concentration. As a consequence, these physical effects created by smoking play an important role in making people feel the need to smoke.
It’s not that easy to quit smoking cigarettes, it can be very hard especially for many people who have been smoking for years. Many people are addicted to this drug because of the nicotine that’s in the tobacco, which is very addictive. Nicotine is the most common word that most smokers use and is there excuse why they can’t stop saying “it’s so addicting”. Like heroin or other addictive drugs, the body and mind quickly become so used to the nicotine in cigarettes that a person needs to have it just to feel normal (Smoking). Nicotine is the main addictive ingredient in a cigarette that activates synthesis of a chemical called dopamine in the brain (Naturstopp). This is just one of the chemicals that are in a cigarette, there are over 599 more chemicals that are in a cigarette. To name a few there is acetone, ammonia, tar, benzene, cadmium, hydrogen cyanide, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides etc (Naturstopp). Some of these chemicals might not seem harmful, but it’s the burning of these chemicals that produce toxic and carcinogenic compounds more than 4000 of them (Naturstopp). Smoking cigarettes can be devastating; especially with each inhale you exhale.
Cigarette makers know that nicotine addiction helps sell their products. Nicotine is the main ingredient in tobacco that causes addiction. Nicotine activates the parts of the brain that control feelings and pleasure. It only takes minutes for the effects of nicotine to disappear causing the smoker to take another puff to keep feeling good. (Junior Scholastic, 2006) When you utilize tobacco products, nicotine is expeditiously absorbed into your bloodstream. Within 10 seconds of entering your body, the nicotine reaches your brain. It causes the brain to relinquish adrenaline, engendering a buzz of pleasure and energy. The buzz fades expeditiously though, and leaves you feeling tired, a little down, and wanting the buzz again. This will result in lighting up another cigarette. Since your body is able to build up a high tolerance to nicotine, you’ll need to smoke more and more cigarettes to receive nicotine’s pleasurable effects and obviate withdrawal symptoms. This cycle will only continue to repeat resulting in addiction. Although for many once they’ve reached this point it seems almost impossible to quit smoking even when they want to. ("Nicotine and Tobacco Add...
Smoking is a bad habit that is not only harmful to myself, but also to the people around me, namely my wife and children. They are the ones that receive the most harmful and the most concentrated amounts of smoke. I inhale through a filter, my wife and children do not.