Posted by judyb on 5/25/2001, 7:26 am
Junkie Thinking
Updated 6/16/00
JUNKIE THINKING: "One Puff won't hurt"
RESPONSE: "One puff will always hurt me, and it always will because Im not a social smoker. One puff and
Ill be smoking compulsively again.
JUNKIE THINKING: "I only want one."
RESPONSE: "I have never wanted only one. In fact, I want 20-30 a day, every day. I want them all.
JUNKIE THINKING: "I'll just be a social smoker."
RESPONSE: "I'm a chronic, compulsive smoker, and once I smoke one, Ill quickly be thinking about the next
one. Social smokers can take it or leave it. Thats not me!
JUNKIE THINKING: "I'm doing so well, one won't hurt me now." RESPONSE: "The only reason I'm doing so
well is because I haven't taken the first one. Yet once I do, I wont be doing well anymore. Ill be smoking
again.
JUNKIE THINKING: "I'll just stop again."
RESPONSE: "Sounds easy, but who am I trying to kid? Look how long it took me to stop this time. And once I
start, how long will it take before I get sick enough to face withdrawal again? In fact, when Im back in the grip
of compulsion, what guarantee do I have that Ill ever be able to stop again?
JUNKIE THINKING: "If I slip, I'll keep trying."
RESPONSE: "If I think I can get away with one little "slip" now I'll think I can get away with another little slip
later on. And the slipping will get stronger and the trying will get weaker
JUNKIE THINKING: "I need one to get me through this withdrawal." RESPONSE: "Smoking will not get me
through the discomfort of not smoking. It will only get me back to smoking. One puff stops the process of
withdrawal and Ill have to go through it all over again.
JUNKIE THINKING: "I miss smoking right now."
RESPONSE: "Of course I miss something I've been doing every day for most of my life. But do I miss the
chest pains right now? Do I miss the worry, the embarrassment? Il rather be an ex-smoker with an
occasional desire to smoke, than a smoker with a constant desire to stop doing it.
JUNKIE THINKING: "I really need to smoke now, I'm so upset (or depressed, or whatever)."
RESPONSE: "Smoking is not going to fix anything. I'll still be upset or depressed or whatever, Ill just be an
upset/depressed smoker. I never have to have a cigarette. Smoking is not a need, its a want. Once the crisis
is over, Ill be relieved and grateful Im still not smoking.
JUNKIE THINKING: "I'm Bored"
RESPONSE: Smoking is an "activity" or "something to do" only for smokers. Im really not "doing" anything
when I smoke except still sitting/standing there. The rest of the world survives occasional boredom quite well
without inhaling life-challenging chemicals.
JUNKIE THINKING: But theyve been smoking on TV and in the movies for years! There are even magazines
devoted to tobacco products!
RESPONSE: Thats right. They were on TV for years, I wasnt. Im still alive; many of them arent and they
departed this vale of tears in prolonged and painful ways. And the smiling faces in the magazines now are
risking painful and disfiguring surgery later, at which point they wont be smiling at all.
JUNKIE THINKING: Its so nice to go out for a breath of fresh air and a cigarette.
RESPONSE: Fresh air? Ive got to be kidding. And face it, sunny days are one thing, but how many days do I
huddle out in the rain with the rain hitting the cigarette and turning the cigarette paper that
disgusting yellow color? How many times is it windy and it takes forever to keep a match or lighter lit long
enough to light the cigarette, and then how often does a gust of wind come up and blow the ashes into my
eyes? And when its icy outside, freezing my face off is bad enough, but when it defrosts, theres this bizarre
yellow condensation around my nostrils. Now THATS attractive.
JUNKIE THINKING: Smoking makes work go faster.
RESPONSE: Most jobs where you work indoors are in companies which ban smoking in the workplace.
Some companies wont hire me if I smoke. And everytime I stop for a smoke it actually prolongs my work,
since Im not busy accomplishing it.
Ray Bannon, as3
Message Thread:
« Back to thread
