Why Is It Difficult To Quit Smoking?

It is hard to quit smoking due to many reasons. Firstly, cigarettes and other forms of tobacco contain a very addictive drug Nicotine. Nicotine affects your body and brain in many ways. Nicotine, just like tea or coffee acts like a stimulant, makes you feel more alert. It charges you up.

It also makes you calmer and more focussed in any possible situation. Nicotine is also said to act like an anti-depressant. It makes you feel happier. Many people smoke their way out of depression. Same goes with stress. The more the person is stressed the more he will tend to smoke. It acts like a stress- buster.

Nicotine can get you addicted to it like very fast. It doesn’t take long for your body and brain to get addicted to it. It tends to make you feel sick and uneasy if you haven’t had your dose of nicotine for a while.  You start showing withdrawal symptoms. You start having strong urges to smoke again. Irritability and uneasiness are the most common withdrawal symptoms. The urge to smoke can be as strong as the urge to eat or to have sex.

Nicotine withdrawal symptoms are rough but they don’t last forever. There are many ways to cope with these withdrawal symptoms. For instance, you can talk to with your doctor about wanting to quit smoking and he can prescribe quit smoking medication. These medications reduce the withdrawal symptoms and make it easier to quit.

Another reason that makes quitting smoking difficult is that it becomes a part of your routine. People look at smoke breaks to relax. A smoke break can be while driving, with your friends, reading the paper etc. It becomes a smoking routine.

Most smokers agree that a smoke after a meal is among the most amazing things. Smokers can list so many reasons as to why they need to smoke. It can vary from wake-up smoke, stress smoke, and etc. But, the actual fact is that they are addicted to nicotine.

It is no surprise that two thirds of adult smokers who wish they could quit find it extremely hard to quit. People who undergo surgery for lung cancer recover and start smoking again. A single cigarette contains 2mg of nicotine. So, whole pack of cigarettes contains around 250 hits of nicotine. So your body receives 250 mgs of nicotine every day. No wonder it becomes difficult to quit. Apart from this, your gender, genes, brand of cigarettes and mental stability play an important part.

Gender also plays an important part in having a hard time quitting. A research conducted in 2004 by the University of Ohio states that women find it harder kicking the butt than men. This is directly connected to thinking that they will gain weight if they stop smoking.

It is believed that out of 10 smokers, only one manages to successfully quit the habit. Quitting can be done with the help of nicotine replacement therapy. Some need heavy medication to help them kick the butt. It doesn’t matter how long you have been smoking, your body immediately starts repairing itself the moment you quit. It’s never late to kick the habit.