To smoke, or not to smoke

[J.C.]

Doug,

I admire your way of thinking and writing.

A Happy Mother's to your mom.

Hugs

J.C.

[nancy c]

YOU GO DOUG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! my husband is in the hospital ill and today the dr let us wheel chair him outside for 10 minutes to have a cigarette. He has a nicotine patch on so only one cigarette can be had 2x a day--because smoking is an addiction and the person that sent that pm needs to do so research.Besides the fact you don't judge other people!!!

By the way--are you a writer????? How wonderful you write!! take care,nancy c

[dani hobbs]

First, I want to say how awful it is that someone would attack you as they did, when you need support, and to use a PM to do so is so very cowardly.

Second, as I have posted before, I witnessed the true depth of addiction to nicotine when I learned from her husband, 3 days before her death, that my sister had needed to chew Nicorette gum all through her battle with SCLC--that's how powerful the addiction is. And, I have to add, that I am not naive with regard to addiction, due to my professional and personal experiences.

However, third, and most important, if you are receiving chemotherapy or radiation therapy or any kind of treatment, I am under the assumption that you want to live, to extend your life, to fight the cancer and not give in to it. Therefore, would it not be prudent to stop smoking, as it will enhance the treatment's ability to help you? My husband was a smoker since age 16. He has been smoke-free for 12 years and it was a decision he made of his own volition....nothing I, or our very young child, said or did would sway him until he was ready. He used the gum to wean himself off the smokes & he was h--- to live with, but he started to feel better, to breathe better, within weeks of stopping smoking. So, maybe you should consider laying down the cigarettes & picking up the gum...for the sake of living. Just my thoughts on the subject, with no malice or proselytzing intended. Written in memory of my sister, Darlene.

[OhioKat]

I think that you answered that beautifully. You definetely handled it in a much nicer way they I would have. Especially the line about the food stamps and cigarettes.

Those two things have absolutely nothing to do with each other, and the fact that they tried to connect the two just speaks volumes about that persons prejudice against persons who require assistance from food stamps.

I was a smoker and I quit after in between the time of finding the mass in my lung and actually having the diagnosis confirmed. It was one of the hardest things I've done in my life. I have no doubt I could pick it back up in an instant.

I've actually told many people that if my cancer would ever get to that "this is the end" kind of point I'll stop off & pick up a pack on my way home from the Drs.

Congrats on handling this person with grace and dignity.

[Haylee_38]

Way to go Doug, You did a fantastic job of answering

the pm. My mom was a smoker and did not quit after

finding out she had lung cancer. The doctor even

told her if smoking helps keep you comfortable then

smoke. It was the one thing mom had left that did

help her to be more comfortable. You are such a wonderful writer and I enjoy reading your post.

Haylee

[SDianneB]

If you have the PAX network on your cable system, tonight is the "Cold Turkey" show. I think 8:00 central time, but am not sure.

This show can be really funny at times, really sad at times, and sometimes inspirational. It gives an "in yer face" look at addiction though -- from people in all walks of life. They are gathered away from home and not told why, then are informed once they arrive that they will all quit smoking. Ack! Through the episodes, some leave, and the remaining contestants begin to open up and really discuss their addiction and reason(s) they really would like to quit. A few have walked off once they found out what was going on.

If you still can't quite wrap your mind around the concept of nicotine addiction, this show might show you inside some people who aren't close to you, and how very powerful it can be.

One warning though -- it can be what you might call brutally honest. They don't often sugar coat their addiction and after a while, they stop trying to pin the responsibility on everyone else and put it into their own hands where it belongs.

I can't say everyone would "enjoy" this show,but it does give a good insight into the issue.

Di