Smoking and Stress
Muriel Crawford, author of Smoking: 201 Reasons to Quit
Smokers often believe that smoking is a stress reliever. However, studies have found that the only stress that smoking relieves is the stress caused by nicotine addiction itself. A smoker who has not had a cigarette for a while begins to experience stress from nicotine withdrawal. Smoking relieves that stress, but stress begins to build again as soon as the cigarette is stubbed out. So a smoker goes through daylong cycles of stress from nicotine withdrawal, followed by temporary relief when he or she smokes a cigarette.
Thus, smokers have more stress than nonsmokers or former smokers. Smokers have a real Catch 22 when they try to quit smoking, because stress makes quitting harder. This is the most important reason that 21% of American adults still smoke—even though 70 to 80 percent of them say they want to quit.
The good news is that if you are a smoker who wants to quit, there are many things that you can do to reduce stress and attain your goal. If it stresses you not to have something to do with your hands while you are trying to quit, find a substitute. Knitting, whittling, texting, sketching or whatever appeals to you most. If not having a cigarette in your mouth is stressful, again find a substitute—maybe carrot sticks, hard candy or gum. One woman says she got off cigarettes by sucking lollipops. A man says cinnamon sticks worked for him.
Does it stress you to be around other smokers and inhale their secondhand smoke? Then you will have to explain to them that you must forgo their company or they will have to forgo the cigarettes when they are with you. You might be doing them the greatest favor of their lives. Studies show that social groups often quit smoking en masse. So you might influence them to quit with you.
Many smokers have serious causes of stress in their lives that have nothing to do with smoking. It will be easier for you to quit smoking if you first deal with the problem causing the stress. A June 2010 article, published in the medical journal Addictive Behaviors, states that addicts who avoided problems in their lives, rather than dealing with those problems, were more likely to experience cravings when trying to recover from their addiction.
For example, do you have a job that you hate? Maybe you need to bite the bullet and change jobs, even if it means taking a pay cut, or moving to another area. The stress from working at a job that you hate can hurt your health whether or not you smoke. This stress could prevent you from quitting smoking.
Is your marriage causing you stress? A marriage counselor might be the answer. In extreme cases, separation or divorce is better than a toxic marriage. For a woman in a physically abusive marriage, there is help at battered women’s shelters. Don’t let anyone dissuade you from reaching out for help in such a situation.
Is worry about debt keeping you awake at night? Maybe you need to move to smaller living quarters and otherwise simplify your life. Here a financial counselor might help. Smoking itself costs you in lots of ways. Cigarettes are $5.50 or more a pack now and going up. Insurance costs smokers more than it costs nonsmokers. Smokers have more illnesses that keep them from working. Some companies won’t hire smokers. You’ll have less financial stress if you can quit smoking.
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Some people who are trying to quit smoking relapse because they get over-extended with volunteer, church and other activities. People who are especially talented or efficient may be bombarded with requests for help. Everyone should learn to pick and choose, especially if they are trying to quit smoking. Never accept a request for help until you have thought it over carefully. Go home and consider whether saying “Yes” will be a positive in your life, or it will result in stress. Practice saying “No.” Tell the person who made the request that you just can’t fit the work into your schedule.
Many people, most of them women, have a stressful life because they are caregivers to a sick or disabled family member. Woman may find herself having to work and take care of the home and children. Simplifying life and getting as much help as possible is essential in these situations. Consultation with a social worker might provide some solutions. If the caregiver is trying to quit smoking, reducing these sources of stress as much as possible will help her (or him!) succeed.
Some sources of stress are easier to eliminate than others. Certainly, soldiers in combat have stresses that are unavoidable. They may return home with post traumatic stress syndrome. Accepting psycotherapy for post traumatic stress syndrome is often difficult for soldiers. But recent reports say that the military is trying to convince them that reaching out for such help is a sign of strength, not weakness. Again, smoking creates a Catch 22 for soldiers because it increases stress. Treatment may enable them to deal with post traumatic stress syndrome and increase their chances of being able to quit smoking.
Written and Copyrighted (2010) by Muriel L. Crawford, author of Smoking: 201 Reasons to Quit (2009) (Dillon & Parker Publishing LLC), a book available at many brick-and-mortar bookstores and from most online booksellers, including Amazon.com and Barnes&Noble.com. Also available through the book website, www.ReasonsToQuitSmoking.com. The Purpose of Smoking: 201 Reasons to Quit is to motivate smokers to quit and provide ideas about how to quit. The book has won seven book awards and many enthusiastic reviews, some of which are posted on Amazon.com.
Visit Muriel’s website to learn more about smoking and stress. Remember also to keep visiting The Ultimate Stress Blog.
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