Article
by Pippa published in Prevention: Australia's Best Health Magazine,
March 1993.
Congratulations!
You've finally decided to give up smoking! Having made this death-defying
decision you should now be warned of the unforeseen hazards of 'giving
up'.
What
exactly is an ex-smoker? If a person who has never smoked is a 'non-smoker',
and those currently smoking are 'smokers', then ex-smokers are those
engaged in 'ex-smoking' - an entirely different breed. The first difficult
fact you must face is that an ex-smoker can never become a nonsmoker,
no matter how hard you try. It's analogous to trying to become a virgin
having been a 'non-virgin'.
We've
all heard that giving up can be a traumatic experience. During the giving
up period, friends and relatives can expect dramatic changes in the
personality and behaviour of the potential ex-smoker and they should
be well prepared. It is often the loved ones that suffer most during
this trying period.
A
dangerous and often unexpected side-effect of ex-smoking is increased
productivity. This is largely due to an upset in biological rhythm.
The smoker is conditioned to periodically stopping for a 'smoko'. Many
do not recognise this and call it a 'thinking' break. It generally requires
putting down the tools being used and picking up a cigarette instead.
Remember, this action is not under conscious control and, in the early
stages, the ex-smoker will still reach for the invisible cigarette.
He/she
finds his/her thinking is temporarily out of order as a result of the
nonexistent cigarette. But gradually, he/she remembers to forget to
put down the tools, regains control of 'thinking' and finds that he/she
is capable of continuing with the job in hand without stopping periodically.
A
side-effect of this side-effect is increased tiredness, which leads
to better sleep at night. Many smokers are insomniacs and find it difficult
to get out of the habit of waking up during the night for a cigarette.
(Though smokers, of course, do not understand why they have this need
- they believe they wake up during the night because they can't sleep!)
The
Missing Limb Syndrome
Another
side effect of becoming an ex-smoker is a form of the 'missing limb
syndrome'. Over the years, the smoker has grown to accept the cigarette
as a part of his or her person - an extension of the index and middle
fingers of (usually) the right hand. Truly dedicated smokers have this
appendage attached to the lips. Adjustments are made for simple locomotive
tasks (like, for example, allowing for extra space needed when walking
through doorways) and the ability to talk with the mouth half-closed
becomes a practice skill. Telephone smokers even have a special dialect.
The removal of this growth is traumatic for some ex-smokers who fail
to make the necessary adjustments.
Many
find they have an overwhelming need to put substitutes into their mouths,
and since food is the common and socially acceptable thing to deposit
in the mouth, many put on weight. Ex-smokers are also inclined to get
drunk twice as fast as non-smokers or smokers because of poor hand-mouth
co-ordination.
The
rhythmic sip-puff-ash, sip-puff-ash is upset and replaced by sip-sip-sip,
or by some, guzzle-guzzle-guzzle. This side effect can last for months
and even years and needs to be managed with care. Finding other hand
and mouth habits is recommended, preferably socially acceptable ones
like knitting.
Friends
and relatives who are aware of these side-effects should be able to
give the potential ex-smoker the type of support needed in making necessary
adjustments to the new status. But some ex-smokers have more trouble
than others and many need professional help. Relaxation therapy and
stress management courses are worthwhile. Most importantly, don't let
them give up giving up!
Enormous
Rewards
The
rewards for undergoing this ex-smoking ordeal are enormous. A longer
and healthier life is highly rated, but ex-smokers also gain a new sense
of freedom and the satisfaction of having conquered a major foe.
Our
society is currently undergoing a change and it is possible to envisage
a society in the future where there are three distinct classes or castes.
Non-smokers would be the elite, a privileged and growing group who have
never known the trauma and social stigma of smoking. Ex-smokers would
be a medium class, while the lowest strata of society would be the smoking
class. These unfortunate individuals will struggle to survive, but will
rapidly die out.
In
the more distant future, the stupidity of our current social stratification
will be difficult to understand. They will read about smoking as an
activity for social outcasts and perhaps anthropologists will study
smoking as a mass suicide ritual.