| health information | healthy lifestyles | smoking | why do you like cigarettes?

Why do you like cigarettes?

It's not a question that you've probably asked yourself that often, but why do you like cigarettes? For some people it's because they believe that they can't live without the effects of smoking, such as relieving stress and giving pleasure. For others it's because smoking is associated with fun and social activities, such as a break from work or meeting with friends in the pub.

If you do smoke, it is likely that you have a powerful relationship with your cigarettes. And, just like trying to end any relationship, when you try to quit the sense of loss can be overpowering. The best remedy is to understand your relationship with smoking so that you can replace it with something else that will give you the same pleasure and sense of reward.

Key Points

Cigarettes often fulfil physical, emotional and psychological needs, even if we don't realise it

Cigarettes often give a sense of pleasure. This pleasure comes from the relief of nicotine cravings.

Cigarettes can be used as a crutch in difficult times or situations.

Cigarettes can offer a way to form and maintain friendships in social settings.

Cigarettes can be used as a distraction in difficult situations - by giving your hands something to do.

Understanding why you like cigarettes can offer an insight into the issues you will need to address if you want to give up.

Keeping a diary of your smoking habits for a week or two will give you a clear picture of your relationship with cigarettes.

Why do you like smoking?

Everyone has different reasons for smoking and tobacco is used to fill many needs. Some of the key reasons are the physical, emotional and psychological effects that cigarettes have; they can also be used as a tool when socialising. According to a spokesperson for the British Psychological Society (BPS) http://www.bps.org.uk, understanding your relationship with smoking will help you to be better prepared when you give up.

My relationship with smoking:

I enjoy it

It helps me to relax

It calms my nerves when I'm feeling stressed

I like to smoke to unwind after a long busy day

I find having a cigarette gives me something to do

Having a cigarette helps me to think

I like to reward myself with a cigarette break after I've done something I didn't want to do

Smoking helps me to bond with my friends

Keep a smoking diary

If you've been smoking for a long time, it is likely that your relationship with smoking will have changed over the years. Maybe you started when you were young because it was fashionable or your parents smoked. But the reasons why you smoke today are more likely to be because you use it as a way to break up the day or socialise with friends.

Giving Up Smoking (http://www.givingupsmoking.co.uk) recommends keeping a smoking diary for a week. During the week you write an entry every time you smoke, detailing:

the time

place

what you were doing

who you were with

how you felt before having the cigarette

how you felt after having the cigarette

At the end of the week, you will be able to see if there are any trends or patterns to your smoking and how you felt before and after having each cigarette. This will offer an invaluable insight into your relationship with cigarettes and may reveal habits that you weren't aware of.

If you would like to have a go at filling a diary in, Giving Up Smoking have a free downloadable chart (in pdf format): http://www.givingupsmoking.co.uk/images/downloads/My%20smoking%20diary.pdf

How nicotine causes 'pleasure'

Many people find that cigarettes give them a feeling of pleasure, yet this feeling is really a fake. What is actually happening is that the nicotine in the cigarette is satisfying the withdrawal cravings that have built up since last cigarette. Each someone smokes a cigarette it creates and reinforces a pattern of addiction.

Nicotine is a very powerful drug, which alters two chemicals in the brain, called dopamine and noradrenaline. It takes just 7-10 seconds after you've inhaled cigarette smoke for the nicotine to enter the bloodstream and reach the brain. Once in the brain it produces a so-called "nicotine rush", which seems to make you feel great. However, this is soon replaced by cravings for the next cigarette.

How cigarettes can be an emotional support

Smoking can be used as a support for a range of different concerns and situations. Research by Dr. Stephen Joseph from the University of Warwick, and published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences, explored the uses of cigarettes. He found that introverts typically use cigarettes to feel less shy and enhance their social skills, whereas people who were prone to worry, and especially those who are depressed, use them to control negative feelings.

"In some cases, often unknowingly, people use cigarettes as a crutch to get them through difficult times or situations," explained a psychologist. "It becomes ingrained in their personality that they always cope well when smoking and facing the particular event or situation, and they're reluctant to stop in case they can't if they don't have their crutch with them anymore."

Because of this, Dr. Joseph suggests that finding ways to improve or treat the reasons behind the need to smoke - such as improving your social skills or seeking professional help to overcome worrying situations - could help many people who use cigarettes as a form of support to quit.

Smoking socially, to relax or for enjoyment

"Some people associate cigarettes with social activities," said Naj Dehlavi, from the organisation Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) http://www.ash.org.uk. "They smoke with friends, at the pub or at social gatherings." Likewise, many people enjoy having a cigarette as a way of winding down at the end of a long tiring day.

For these people, smoking and cigarettes are associated with fun, pleasurable activities and they appear to help with enjoyment and aid relaxation. However, the reason for the apparent relaxing quality of cigarettes is because they're relieving the nicotine withdrawal symptoms produced since the last cigarette was smoked, explained Naj Dehlavi.

Smoking to relieve stress

The idea that smoking can relieve stress is linked to the cigarette pleasure principle - the addictive feeling that cigarettes have a built-in ability to solve your problems, provide pleasure and help you feel better. But this is only an illusion, says Giving Up Smoking http://www.givingupsmoking.co.uk. "There are plenty of better, healthier ways of dealing with stress, such as learning relaxation techniques. Reaching for a cigarette may provide comfort and a feeling of relief, but in the long term they're damaging your health and creating an addiction."

Smoking provides something to do

It might not instantly seem like a good reason to like cigarettes, but some people do say that they smoke because it gives them something to do. "It's a boredom reliever - it breaks up monotonous situations, offers something different to do when you're having a coffee break and even gives people something to do with their hands," explained a psychologist.

"But there are plenty of better options that won't harm your health, yet still give you something to do," he added. For example, other activities include doing a crossword, handiwork crafts such as painting or needlework, gardening or playing a computer game.

Action Points

Take time to think about why you like cigarettes - and be honest.

Fill in a smoking diary for one week.

If pleasure is your key reason for smoking, consider that the pleasure comes from satisfying your nicotine craving.

Consider ways that you could achieve the same results as smoking that don't involve cigarettes. For example by using relaxation techniques or developing a hobby.

Summary

Understanding the underlying reasons why you like cigarettes can offer a first step to getting a handle on your relationship with smoking. By discovering how smoking fulfils your needs, you will then be able to find ways of replacing it with other activities and actions. When you want to make the step, this will help you to make the change from smoker to nonsmoker more easily.

If you haven't thought about your relationship with your cigarettes, why not give it a go? The answers might surprise you.

Links

Helplines

NHS Smoking Helpline Tel: 0800 169 0 169 (7am to 11pm) Quitline Tel: 0800 00 22 00 (9am to 9pm) NHS Pregnancy Smoking Helpline Tel: 0800 169 9 169 (Midday to 9pm)

Giving Up Smoking - http://www.givingupsmoking.co.uk
Action on Smoking and Health - http://www.ash.org.uk
British Psychological Society - http://www.bps.org.uk

		email a friend	bupa.com \| website legal notices \| cookie policy \| © Bupa 1996-2009 \| accessibility \| investors \| contact us	back to top