Restarting unhealthy Habits
Posted by swissyfit@reddit | GenX | View on Reddit | 198 comments
I had an appointment with my psychiatrist last week . he is probably late 60's age compared to my late 50's.
anyhow he told me that he had recently started smoking cigars and drinking fine whiskey in the evening. his view was that developing this habit late in life would unlikely be the thing that kills him.
I quit smoking 13 years ago after a 26 year habit which I loved. pressure from society finally forced me to stop.
but I've decided once I leave switzerland and retire to a humble cabin somewhere, I will start smoking hand rolled American spirit tobacco again as it is unlikely to kill me and I can be a grumpy old man ?
crazy right ? that's why I am seeing a shrink š
EnjoyingTheRide-0606@reddit
I quit analogs for vaping in 2014. The cost was too expensive. It took 3-4 years to quit vaping but by the end of year 1, I was not using nicotine anymore. I just truly enjoyed the act of smoking!
Universespitoon@reddit
This a first for me, interesting..
"analogs"
I have never seen cigarettes called such before.
Ok, new one, thanks. I think?
Bromodrosis@reddit
Cadillacs, yes. Analogs, not so much.
thatWitchAmen@reddit
I smoke Cadillacs! Newport 100s in a box!
EnjoyingTheRide-0606@reddit
It was a term used by the vapers I knew. Seriously once I figured it out with a really nice set-up, I came to hate analogs. The smell today still makes me sick!
pinkbungalow@reddit
Same lol. I recently realized I'm just generally more analog. Clocks, calendars, restaurant menus, pens, paper, stick-shift - i like to hold things other than my phone. Glad to have all those genx skills.
BahBahSMT@reddit
I quit drinking 6 years ago and sometimes when I think about maybe drinking a little again here and there, I just canāt handle the idea of feeling remotely buzzed, potentially sad or depressed from it and even minutely hungover. I sometimes miss the ritual or social aspect but I just canāt bring myself to try it again.
swissyfit@reddit (OP)
Dont do it. I quit for 3 years and I thought I was free forever. I started again 4 years and I hate it. Its 40 days without a drink.
BahBahSMT@reddit
Yeah I donāt even want a drink. I never do since I quit. It was time.
IngvaldClash@reddit
Wait- youāre a recovering alcoholic and your psychiatrist was talking about drinking whiskey and smoking cigars?
Iād consider reporting this behavior.
Thatās insanely reckless of them
This-is-Fifty@reddit
I only wish I could do that. Iām the kind of person who, if I smoke, I smoke ā a pack a day. I canāt handle it, so unfortunately I canāt smoke. I quit for the nth time two months ago.
chaaaadddd@reddit
Man, that's not crazy at all. Get your cabin, live your life.
I love smoking, but I keep it to one cigarette a day, in the evening.... maybe 2 on weekends. I love boozing too, and I usually keep that to two or three. Iām very happy, Iām very healthy, and I have a ton of fun with no real stressāother than the usual job stuff, and even that doesnāt follow me past 5 PM.
I fill the rest of my time doing what I enjoyāplaying piano (poorly), reading, riding my bike, and working on old cars and motorcycles. So what if I smoke and drink?
Youāre not signing up for an eternal subscription to existence here. And at your age, the only opinion that should matter is yoursāeveryone else can take a number and wait behind your happiness.
FuggaDucker@reddit
You do you. Live your life.
This GenXr supports you.
JiuJitsuNinja43@reddit
I discuss my therapists dog and his recently deceased wife with him. Itās therapeutic for me to realize he has issues like everyone else. Probably crosses a line but idc.
Babeā¦.. you do you. No judgments here. I was doing edibles at the gay bar earlier on a work night lol
StartKindly9881@reddit
Please ā¦. Smoking and drinking are not good for you. Harsh to the system. Itās your body, but donāt bitch and moan when your annual checkups come back with bad news. What a waste of money.
Economy_Row_6614@reddit
GelatinousGoober@reddit
Donāt bust me up
Special_Context6663@reddit
I did hallucinations for the first time at 49. Fuck you Nancy Reagan. That shit is a lot of fun.
DodgersLakersVentura@reddit
My hate for that gigantic-headed woman and her ājust say noā BS is strong. I couldnāt score weed in the summer of ā86 in San Diego because of that nonsense (shoutout to my brothers for hooking up lil sis).
marcduberge@reddit
Amen
Dost_is_a_word@reddit
I quit smoking at 53, the 5th time stuck, then my husband died and shockingly didnāt make me start again, he has been gone for 2 years
For the first time in my life I ate and drank pop, fast food and went from 55 kg to 88 kg in 18 months.
Iām 81 kg now, at 56 trying to lose weight for the first time is strange.
Bobloblaw878@reddit
I've told my SO that when I turn 80 I might give myself permission to have a smoke or two. I gave them up at 46 after smoking for 30 years. It was hard so I won't take the chance until then but I think about it.
cutie_k_nnj@reddit
For me itās camel crushes at 92!
Weak_Work_3589@reddit
That was my dad. It ultimately killed him at 75. Way too early. Please donāt. I wish he hadnāt. Miss him dearly.
dawnyaya@reddit
My dad restarted at 50 after 10 years off. Lung cancer got him at 52
Weak_Work_3589@reddit
Sorry for your lossšš¼
mamac2213@reddit
I told my friend the same sort of thing. Was a pack a day smoker for 25 years and quit 14 years ago. But if I were to discover the world was going to end immenently, you betcha I would go straight for that pleasure again. But until then? Still resist...
Mr_Pogi_In_Space@reddit
And it's probably why you're still alive and not fighting cancer in your late 50s.
But yeah, ultimately, it's you choice. If your quality of life makes you feel you don't want to live in your 70s or 80s then do what you want to do.
Unusual_Memory3133@reddit
My grandma smoked from age 12 and died at 96. So thereās that.
Mr_Pogi_In_Space@reddit
Yeah, my FIL never smoked and died of lung cancer. We hear all about people who never wear seatbelts and survive car wrecks or those who do but still get killed. I still wear my seat belt every day
EnjoyingTheRide-0606@reddit
Asbestos caused that, I figure. My uncle died from it, too.
Mr_Pogi_In_Space@reddit
I still remember the ads that will play nonstop
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EnjoyingTheRide-0606@reddit
My uncle was in the Navy 1952-1960. There it is.
He also grew up near an industrial area with a massive train yard nearby. He played there in the 1940s.
BDamage707@reddit
genetics . Not everything affects everyone the same .
FearlessLychee4892@reddit
Exactly. I had a grandfather that died of lung cancer at 70 due to smoking. And the decline happened sooner. Watching him wither away to almost nothing each day basically took smoking off the table for me. The genetics are certainly not on my side.
Lung cancer is a horrible to go, but you do you.
BDamage707@reddit
My dad beat the lung cancer but the COPD got him
Scoobysnax1976@reddit
my great grandmother smoked at least a pack a day for over 80 years and died at 99, of an accident. She could easily have made it past 100.
Irving_Velociraptor@reddit
I write about oncology. Smoking not only increases your risk for a bunch of cancers, it reduces your survival, makes treatment less effective and the side effects more severe.
stemandall@reddit
Former smoker here. On a recent vacation I smoked a bunch of rollies and I paid for it later. Smoking tobacco destroys your vascular system and lungs. Just not worth it for me.
CriticalWork116@reddit
Actually as an older person. I fully support this doctors mindset
Adolph_OliverNipples@reddit
Chewed tobacco from 13 to 45. My buddy, also a tobacco user, got colon cancer, so I quit in solidarity.
I immediately put on 40 (more) pounds, he beat the cancer, and he now chews againā¦.
Iām still a quitter, but Iām considering starting again if I make it to 75. Being fat will probably kill me first though.
MaximumJones@reddit
Admirable_Trouble574@reddit
Holy shit this made lol
TheKungfuJesus@reddit
I quit about 20 years ago. When I did it I planned to start again at 75 but one drunken night a couple years back I got my hands on a smoke and after a few drags I was disgusted by it and no longer have dreams of my morning coffee and cigarette. When it comes to drugs I have done more mushrooms than I ever did back in the day. Lesser scale but more frequently because itās a good time.
cnew111@reddit
My dad had smoked for decades, starting in high school, quitting when he was in his 50's. He always said he would start smoking again at age 70. He made it to age 78, but hadn't pick up cigarettes again. Oh and he died of lung cancer, even though it had been about 25 years since he'd smoked. The oncologist said that "you pay for the sins of your youth".
Kodiak01@reddit
Mandatory Old Dogs PSA
newgloryhole@reddit
I think itās true that if you smoke, you simply donāt like yourself. Once you say, āwait a minute I like meāā¦.then you will quit for good and not look back.
Funny_Editor5152@reddit
The pleasure of smoking doesn't come from doing yourself harm. I like myself and I like smoking and I like cake and sometimes I even like to drive fast.
Acceptable_Mirror235@reddit
A character in book I read started smoking again when he turned 85 . The idea intrigued me and i mentioned it to my mom.
Now my mom, who was very overweight in her 30ās and 40ās, before adopting regular exercise and strict eating regiments . She now says when she turns 90 sheās going to eat whatever she wants .
I guess at some point life becomes more about quality than quantity . But I think late 60ās would be way too young for that attitude .
Acceptable_Stop2361@reddit
She should start before 90. My dear departed Dad used to worry about what he ate when his health was really failing in the end. I would tell him, Dad, you're 83. If you want ice cream then have ice cream. Be happy.
MadWifeUK@reddit
We brought my Granny home from the hospital to die. She was 86, had dementia and had actually survived breaking both hips two years and a year earlier, so she had beaten a load of odds for that. She wasn't eating much at the time. She did have a banana once, and her younger sister was running around saying "She can't have a banana, she's diabetic!" Calm down Betty, it's not like it's going to take 20 years off her life.
Trick-Mechanic8986@reddit
If I ever crave a cigarette, I just smoke a joint. Problem solved.
Antique_Park_4566@reddit
That's worse. You'd be better off smoking the cigarette.
Rude-Fortune6583@reddit
How do you figure that?
Antique_Park_4566@reddit
Just from studies and podcasts etc I've heard over the years. Some quick searching this morning does show there's different opinions and results on it so maybe it isn't more harmful than cigarettes in terms of lung damage.
Rude-Fortune6583@reddit
Hey thanks for the response! Gave me a perspective I didnāt consider to look at. I always figured itās natural, not processed or pumped full of chems like tabacco these days so maybe it is I who is wrong.
Trick-Mechanic8986@reddit
I have the luxury of age and lots of past employment based contaminates that make even tobacco smoking safe by comparison. Thats how life works sometimes. I do try to minimize the negatives by growing my own legal cannabis and dry herb vaping when I can. That said, smoking anything isn't a good idea if you are young and healthy.
Ok_Arachnid1089@reddit
Thatās some seriously misguided advice. You must be American
blueblocker2000@reddit
Same but PCP. Puts a skip in my step and I can't feel the cops baton me.
Trick-Mechanic8986@reddit
Starbucks really missed the boat on PCP.
Jpkmets7@reddit
Vegaprime@reddit
I roll my own with pipe tobacco. Like maybe 50 cents a pack. I do smoke them mostly like a cigar though. A lifetime smoker but that night time weeze has went away.
ZestyXtal@reddit
I smoke pipe tobacco, it is superior to cigarettes imo. I highly recommend it šØ
Upbeat-File7090@reddit
Wow wow wow, wait a minute, "after leaving Switzerland for retirement..." thats the real issue here to address: aren't you supposed to get to Switzerland for retirement? I mean, I know the grind there is real but Switzerland is arguably one of the most beautiful places on earth, If I were you I'd speak to my shrink about that instead...
Now in all seriousness, I'm also an ex smoker. And of course I miss it (I might go back later in life, for sure), but the bigger question here is if im prepared to live with the potential health drowbacks of that habit. I mean, do you have a solid fanily / social networl around you to help later in life? For me thats what's stopping me on my travks because my partner is 18 years older than me and we have no kids, meaning that whatever helth struggle I'm meant to deal with I'll go through alone, so at that point I'm not really that interested. I know it kinda sounds selfish in a way (It sounds like if I wanted to dump my health issues onto someone else), which is not the case, but the reality of the potential health risks of it means that youd need help to get through them, which in my books is no longer worth it.
Darkwing873@reddit
Thank you, talk about a sad tale-
Mpnav1@reddit
Three Non Blonds, shit, I donāt even know the name of the song was!
atlredneck@reddit
Wait I thought it was 4 non blondes?
mamac2213@reddit
At our age, it's down to 3.
atlredneck@reddit
Good point lol
jmg733mpls@reddit
If the world keeps going on this trajectory, I will 100% start smoking again
Korvanacor@reddit
Weāre all going to need something a lot harder than nicotine at this rate.
Successful-Letter-53@reddit
Yupā¦ Iām too scared to start smoking anything againā¦ and thatās why I keep a little chocolate bar from the dispensary in the cupboard ā¦ just a smidge does the trick when things get too heavy and I need to escape for a couple of hoursššš
minapaw@reddit
I loved my Natural American Spirit tobacco. Rolled my own for about 15 years. I quit in 2017 but I still like the smell of it, my wife still smokes the filtered, pre rolled NAS.
Admirable_Trouble574@reddit
My Dad did the same thing with cigarettes at 60-He hadnt smoked since his late 20ās.
He was in great health, the classic ātall and leanā with a āgene lotteryā natural 6 pack.
At 63, he died of aggressive lung cancer.
Dont. Fucking. Do. It.
dezertryder@reddit
I smoked for 25 years, every time I want one I think of Peter Jennings the news anchor, that restarted smoking after the stress of 9/11, he was dead of lung cancer in 4 years.
EyeSuspicious777@reddit
I used to be the biggest pothead in high school and college.
But those days are behind me, and now I just smoke weed everyday.
Lucky_Zin@reddit
When I quit smoking 16 years ago, I told myself if I made it to 75, I could start smoking again. Now I doubt if I would if I make it to 75. I'm 57 now.
Glass_Translator9@reddit
Wow, the psychiatrist violated a boundary by disclosing that personal choice to you.
Is the doctor encouraging you to smoke again???? Please for the love of God, do NOT do this. Smoking is one of the most destructive things you can do to your body. You saved your life by quitting. Do you want cancer or to be stuck on oxygen like my precious grandmother?
Iām not saying this moralistically! Please do NOT go back and get a new psychiatrist!!!!!!!!!
IngvaldClash@reddit
I agree. That psychiatrist crossed a line that I wouldnāt tolerate.
w1r2g3@reddit
Reminds of the grandma in little miss sunshine that took up heroin.
caryn1477@reddit
I wouldn't continue seeing a psychiatrist who actually encourages smoking. Yuck, wtf?
standingdesk@reddit
Iām interested in starting smoking again because I think I could do it casually without getting sucked into the pack a day habit I had for many years
notabadkid92@reddit
Evening for me only. Don't even think about it during the day.
standingdesk@reddit
This seems very reasonable
Coffee_24-7@reddit
I keep it to 4 a day on average.
AmericanScum76@reddit
Be careful. I tried this and I became a full time smoker again. Iāve quit again and itās been 8 years without a cigarette. I consider myself an addict just like an alcoholic or drug dependent. I canāt look at it any other way. I do not have an addictive personality except with cigarettes. I can touch them.
standingdesk@reddit
That would be terrible for sure!!
darkest_irish_lass@reddit
I watched my father in law due from COPD and lung cancer. It was an awful way to go.
I also watched my father die from a stroke about two months after he started smoking again after retiring.
Is smoking the thing that will kill you? Maybe, maybe not. And your choices are your choices. We all die from something.
Korvanacor@reddit
My great aunt developed emphysema from smoking. It was like she was drowning for 10 years before it finally took her.
Ok-Customer4709@reddit
This is not the first time the thought hasn't crossed my mind.
Fickle_Tap7908@reddit
Iāve always said I will begin smoking again when I hit 80.
swissyfit@reddit (OP)
Men in my family die young . No one made it over 70. I can't wait till 80 ...
Ok_Arachnid1089@reddit
Nicotine is the most pointless drug ever. Smoke grass like a normal person
BrightAssociate8985@reddit
š¼Weed, whites, & wineā¦
Ok_Arachnid1089@reddit
āAnd give me a signā
Putting that one on right now
Secret-Avocado-Lover@reddit
Actually nicotine by itself, not in tobacco form, is being studied for help with memory loss, Parkinsonās, mental illness and even cancer.
Ok_Arachnid1089@reddit
I live in the U.S. where most medical breakthroughs are only available to the wealthy so thatās inconsequential to me.
ParsleyMostly@reddit
Be happy. Seriously, thatās it. There is no point in avoiding cigs if youāre miserable. Sacrifice the living years so you can live longer in misery? Fucking farce. A lie.
If you want to be super healthy and avoid cigs, booze, and fatty foods, then go ahead. If it brings you joy, then find it there, friend. If thatās not your jam, and you want to go out rat pack style, then thatās cool, too. We gotta stop shaming people for their personal choices. There is no single right way to do life. Weāre all just treading water until a bus or disease or ex or tooth decay or bad salad or whatever takes us out. Live. Find joy.
cscramble1@reddit
Right. In the end we all die. As a nurse I see it weekly, a bleed or bacterial infection or diabetes or chronic pain weakens the system. Then, it's a bit closer to whatever end is coming, it you aren't taken out by a drunk driver or cancer first. The idea that we will all live to long age is inaccurate, especially once you see the variability that can take you out.
No-County7603@reddit
This!!!!!
Vonraider@reddit
I lost a friend to lung cancer. You don't want to go out like that, it was bad.
swissyfit@reddit (OP)
No off course not. Wouldn't want to wish a lot of illness on anybody. We don't know what we will die off and even if we try to limit the risks it could happen. Ive seen cancer, strokes, heart attacks dementia. At the age of 32 , I lost a friend who died in a car crash.
blueboatmich66@reddit
I quit in 2012. I want a cigarette so badly. The world is making me want to sit on my patio and have one right now. They are so fucking expensive now.
MartinBlank96@reddit
I always joke that on my deathbed in my 80s I'd kinda like to try crack. Or maybe just snort a line, just to see what it's like before I go. Hopefully i have one of those caring hot nurses who will flash me before I go blind completely. Wait, what were we talking about? Lol
ketoste@reddit
I say if the world is ending, I want to try heroin. I want to feel whatever it is that will cause you to totally ruin your life.
Criseyde2112@reddit
Same! If I have a terminal illness breathing down my neck, or (god forbid) ALS like my mom had, I'm totally trying heroin. Or LSD. Or fentanyl. Might as well.
I kind of want to be the grandmother who dropped acid and hijacked a school bus full of penguins.
afternever@reddit
See... the problem here is that... my little brother, this morning, got his arm caught in the microwave, and uh... my grandmother dropped acid and she freaked out, and hijacked a school bus full of... penguins, so it's kind of a family crisis... so come back later? Great.
swentech@reddit
I know a guy friend of a friend that was a pretty straight arrow nothing but alcohol. Later in life he was diagnosed with terminal cancer and in hospice they give the patients OxyContin to kill the pain. As much as they want more or less. The hospice nurse told my friend, āwe arenāt worried about addiction at this point.ā He said it felt pretty good and he could understand why people get addicted to it.
Oxjrnine@reddit
āThey are toastedā
blueboatmich66@reddit
I just watched this episode again!
Emotional_Ad5714@reddit
If you can keep it to one cigarette after dinner, it's probably fine.
CleMike69@reddit
When I hit 60 Iām changing my diet to a steady stream of high end escorts š
TheHoodieConnoisseur@reddit
Nah, I quit smoking years ago and now itās just gross. I try to light one every now and then when Iām having drinks or playing golf or fishing, but I canāt make it more than a couple drags before Iām done.
Good whiskey, on the other hand, is just fine every now and then.
swissyfit@reddit (OP)
Leonard Cohen announced that when he turned 80 this fall he planned to once again take up smoking.
āItās the right age to recommence,ā Cohen explained to Jason Karkawish of the New York Times.
Karkawish wrote Cohenās plan presents a provocative question:
When should we set aside a life lived for the future and, instead, embrace the pleasures of the present
I say 67
cosmoboy@reddit
Leonard Cohen died 2 years later after a fall. Smoking was fine, he should have quit gravity.
hysteria110176@reddit
Ugh - as a former smoker, I still remember how sick nicotine made me the first couple times.
All my friends smoked though and I wasnāt a quitter and pushed thru to become a half-a-pack a day smoker for 10 years. Quit for good in early 2002 - more power to those of yall that didnāt suffer š¤¢
8limbssjm@reddit
I picked up pipe smoking at 57. I smoked the occasional cigar, but I find a pipe so much more enjoyable. Plus, it brings back fond childhood memories of sitting in my uncles easy chair, smelling the tobacco, and playing with his spinning pipe caddy and pipes.
LayerNo3634@reddit
There is a world of difference between smoking cigarettes all day and a cigar in the evening.Ā One is addiction, the other ritual. It's like food: an occasional treat is fine, more than that is bad for your health. Moderation!
Raynet11@reddit
They are way better (they being insert vice here) when you do them on occasion, whatever the drug, making anything a habit completely ruins the experience. I love chocolate cake but for damn sure it would be nothing special if I stocked up on cake and indulged in it throughout the day. I quite drinking and smoking habitually in my mid 20ās every few years Iāll get a in the mood for the coffee / smoke combo and Iāll buy some, enjoy the moment and then thatās that. If you are likely to fall back into a pack a day (nobody knows you better than you) and you are ok with that then go for it, live and let live. You have to live for yourself not what others will think, almost everybody has a vice whether they admit it or not.
KarmaBike@reddit
Itās like my dad, age 88.
Mom used to nag the shit out of him (now itās just passive aggressive nonsense) for eating, eggs, bacon and cheese. Now thatās most of his diet.
Heās like, āFuck it! Weāre all gonna die bitch!ā
JackFuckCockBag@reddit
If I live long enough to find myself single again (which I hope my wife and I both die peacefully in our sleep at the same time) I'm picking all of my old habits back up.
WasLeftUnsupervised@reddit
[ Removed by Reddit ]
More-Complaint@reddit
I smoked hand rolled cigarettes for about 25 years. I gave up 12 years ago, mainly for health and financial reasons. Two years ago I took up pipe smoking. It's the most enjoyable pastime I've ever had. There is so much that can be learnt and understood that the actual smoking of the pipe is almost secondary. It would never have occurred to me that smoking a pipe would be punk one day.
TXMullyGrubber@reddit
You donāt inhale cigar smoke. New evidence suggests nicotine has health benefits. Winston Churchill and George Burns enjoyed them till their dying days at around 100 years old.
SolomonGrumpy@reddit
So two people lived and now nicotine is good for you?
Ok_Web_8166@reddit
If you were a long-time cigarette smoker, you may find it hard not to inhale that cigar smoke! I couldnāt make the switch. Quit instead, about 25 yrs. ago.
NeutralNobrake@reddit
My dad smoked since he was a teen, quit in his 50's for 20 years. Then my mom died. I'm sure he just said fuck it, doing what I want. Lived for another 12 years after that smoking like a chimney
Shartfer_brains@reddit
This post sponsored by Marlboro?Ā
DarwinGhoti@reddit
I have a complicated relationship with nicotine. The very fact that after decades without, smoking a cigar sounds amazing, means I wouldnāt be able to stop at just one in the evening. I do agree that I could use a bit more vice in my life
frank11979@reddit
Smoking a cigar and smoking a hand rolled cigarette are two very different things. Premium Cigars come from an all natural dare I say Organic approach to the plant, process and creation of the cigar. You don't inhale large amounts of smoke and the small amount you do inhale is not filled with chemicals. It seems that if there are any health benefits from smoking a cigar it is most likely the 1 hour long breathing exercises and calm moments of the process. Kinda like meditation.
A recent study show that the two are not the same at all.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK586217/
ifeelnumb@reddit
Everyone focuses on the death and not on the illnesses. If you're willing to accept the tradeoffs, live how you want. It won't kill you, but it will complicate recovery of chronic disease.
Sukalamink@reddit
My cardiologist smoked cigarettes and cigars
New-Geezer@reddit
My cardiologist ate meat.
csdirty@reddit
I know lots of doctors who do things that are bad for their health.
Do not follow the lifestyle and habits of doctors to determine what will result in a long and healthy life.
wormee@reddit
I smoked and drank for decades but quit 14 years ago and wouldn't dream of starting again. Why would I want to diminish my quality of life in my golden years?
impossibilly@reddit
It sounds like your psychiatrist is going through something and should talk to somebody.
One_Purple_3242@reddit
I was thinking the same thing. Why is he telling this personal information to his patient?
Criseyde2112@reddit
Yeah. Boundaries.
Alternative_Sort_404@reddit
I believe āTherapistā is the occupation most likely to be IN therapyā¦ kinda makes sense
jondes99@reddit
He was. It was OP.
vomputer@reddit
Psychiatrists are people and are quite often in therapy themselves.
Substantial-Use-1758@reddit
Iām still thick on the fact that your psychiatrist seemed to be encouraging tobacco and alcohol use š¤·āāļø
2_Bagel_Dog@reddit
Unfortunately now behind a paywall, but the prestigious medical journal Tha Lancet once described the intelligence of asking an aged pensioner to quit smoking.
I keep the pdf of this on my work computer, even though I never smoked and don't really like it, because the sentiment is a good one to remember.
Carry On Smoking
utvols22champs@reddit
A good Cuban cigar is like pure Colombian blow. Itās wonderful but you canāt do it everyday, just on occasion. If thatās your thing, I say go for it.
Kalorama_Master@reddit
Wait until you try Bolivian flaky Coke made from the high altitude, traditional coca plant, not the crap tropical strain
MarkItZeroDonnie@reddit
Exactly. The standard American diet is much more lethal than an occasional cigar.
swissyfit@reddit (OP)
There is a family history of substance abuse. Grandfather heroin, Father alcahol
I have had gambling , alcohol and smoking addictions.
Smoking is the only one I could consider starting again
Alternative_Sort_404@reddit
You do you - but I absolutely hated being a slave to nicotine and gave it up for that reason, 25 years ago. Had one stint sharing smokes with a co-worker for a month or so a few years back, and that convinced me it wasnāt worth it. It really isnātā¦
SpacerCat@reddit
And then nobody will want to come near you because youāll reek of second hand smoke all the time.
chemicallunchbox@reddit
Slippery slope.
MoeBlacksBack@reddit
Swiss miss?
Mguidr1@reddit
Why leave Switzerland? I thought that was a utopia.
__redruM@reddit
If you have to do nicotine, vapes, but itās good for a month at best, and then itās just a useless if small monkey. Then switch to patches, taper off, and repeat in 3-6 months.
diggstown@reddit
There's definitely something stronger than nicotine in whatever you're smoking.
Antique-Brilliant535@reddit
If you can do it within moderation, and enjoy, go for it.
But, if it starts affecting your life/health negatively, well, you know the answer.
cab1024@reddit
As someone who drank and smoked weed from 16-47 and smoked nicotine from 16-30, but has been sober the last 7 years, I do not crave either everyday or really at all. I do drink non-alcoholic IPAs and beers for the last couple of years, rarely more than one in an evening, and I'm surprised at how often I go to bed and the can is still half full. The new non-alcoholic beers tastes exactly like I remember. I even like Heineken Zero and I didn't really like it when I drank. My point is I don't crave the buzz anymore, and that was a big part of nicotine, besides physical and mental addiction. Frankly life is much better without any of them, so I'll keep off them as long I can, which is not hard right now.
Bitmush-@reddit
Totally understand. For many years - since childhood really, normal waking existence was just not enough- always needed a boost or a tweak or outright debauchery and hedonism. Over and over and over. Became a master at it. Now I like my coffee and nice food and I find that life goes up and down a hell of a lot more on its own and I enjoy the ride - there are still thrills, I just appreciate them more and Iām not trying to constantly turn every day into a roller coaster and paying the price. Itās like Iām much more sensitive to the joys of life than I was as a young person. Itās what I always strived for.
Ray_The_Engineer@reddit
I smoke a cigar, maybe once every 4 months. If that's enough to kill me, so be it. I probably do drink too much alcohol, it's actively a project for me to seek moderation in that.
kobuta99@reddit
Do you think having stopped smoking for years that your lungs reset to normal, as if you've never smoked at all? I've had young extended family who died in their 40s when their children were young from lung cancer, so there is no set time table that it needs X years of smoking before the diseases really take a toll.
I also hope you have a strong retirement fund, and have poured extra into medical care. Even if it doesn't kill you. If it does enough damage that you need oxygen canisters or other help in doing basic needs, good luck with that in a cabin somewhere.
pantstoaknifefight2@reddit
This. I'm five years from sixty and working hard to hit that milestone in the best shape of my life. I've seen enough people who let themselves fall apart during what will ultimately be the most physically challenging time of their lives. If you know you're going to lose muscle, now's the time to build up as much as possible. Supplemental oxygen, insulin shots, chemo, and dialysis are things to be avoided if possible.
docthirst@reddit
Yeah buddy, I'm with ya. Why the hell not. We have similar plans, although I'm not sure I can even find quaaludes at this point.
Aromatic_Revolution4@reddit
Former smoker here.
It might not be what kills you but after spending over two decades as a slave to your tobacco addiction, what do you really gain by volunteering to do it again ?
It's not like they've gotten any cheaper since you quit.
froction@reddit
I'm just waiting to retire so I can finally get some quality heroin.
Majik_Sheff@reddit
Here's the GenX answer.Ā No idea if you're being nihilistic, sarcastic, or both.
jondes99@reddit
I donāt see that option when I move the sliders around on my 401K calculator.
temerairevm@reddit
Itās unlikely to give you lung cancer, maybe. But inhaling particulate matter and CO into your lungs is a big risk factor for cardiovascular events (heart attack and stroke), and that can be more sudden. Smoking kills more people due to CV disease than lung cancer, but itās less associated in peopleās minds because other things also cause CV disease.
Thereās really clear epidemiological evidence that ER admissions for heart attacks increase on days when the outdoor air quality is bad. Bad outdoor AQ contains many of the same combustion pollutants as smoking (but at lower concentrations): mostly from power plants and traffic, also wildfires occasionally. So one cigarette could really hasten your demise, and the disease mechanism doesnāt care if itās natural/organic or what. Itās the combustion thatās the problem.
Kulahle_Igama@reddit
This is the correct response.
vomputer@reddit
I quit smoking twenty years ago. Maybe ten years later I smoked a cigarette and I thought I was going to barf my brains out. It made me feel so disgusting.
Csonkus@reddit
Do whatever you want, I donāt understand stopping a vice because of societal pressure.
Artoo76@reddit
Jeffrey? Is that you?! Youāre alive!!!!
Maximum_Locksmith_29@reddit
May I recommend pipes. It's a truly pleasurable way to smoke tobacco that is ONLY tobacco with no fillers. It tastes much better than cigarettes even hand rolled ones. It satisfies your oral fixation, which is part of it. There is a ritual to cleaning, packing and smoking that satisfies. You don't smell like sh7t afterwards like after cigarettes. It helped me quit and I never went back. Also. Only smoke like one or two pipes a day maximum since pure tobacco isn't genetically engineered to give you a jones. I think it's worth trying, especially since some very capable high quality pipes can be bought for as little as $20 now. Also, cigars but you will stink afterward.
TheTemplarSaint@reddit
Agree. Itās all the ābestā parts and more, without the drawbacks.
Can even turn into a hobby/thing to collect.
Chibi-Skyler@reddit
I LOVED the smell of pipe tobacco when I was a kid. Cigarettes were Daddy's "everyday" smokes, but on weekends and holidays, he's break out the pipe. He even had a round wooden pipe rack, and friends would gift him pipes for Christmas.
tampaforfun@reddit
My step dad started smoking again when he hit 60 and died of lung cancer within a year or two. He was smoking cigars and drinking mixed drinks enjoying life. Then he got stage 4 and died in about 2 months.
cleveland_leftovers@reddit
I miss cigarettes. I really do. Had my last in January of 2020.
As morbid as it sounds, if I was diagnosed with some quick-moving terminal illness Iād hop right back on the Marlboro Light train and puff my way to the afterlife.
At that point, might as well enjoy myself.
floofychaps@reddit
Oh god, yes. This, 100%. Although the price of Marlboro Lights in the uk is eye watering
tktv21@reddit
Marlboro Ice for me. Itās been 3 years but I still crave it every day
Continuum_Design@reddit
I thought Iād miss them but I took two seats at a wedding a year ago and about coughed up a lung. I stubbed it out and remembered why I quit.
I like having a tank for boxing and Jiu Jitsu way more in my forties than I liked smoking in my twenties.
PGHNeil@reddit
Iām actually to the point where the cravings are losing their grip on me. Iād rather just do things that I never had time for (like woodworking in my garage/basement, playing music for friends and family, gardening so that Iām not buying crap at the supermarket, going for walks in the woods like I used to as a kid, bike touring) and not rush being put in the ground.
warmfuzzume@reddit
Say you restart this at 60. You get addicted again and we all know how tough it is to quit. Then you hang on until 80 or 90. Will you have emphysema for the last 10, dragging around breathing equipment?
My father-in-law had it for years, he quit (too late) so he only had to use a puffer but he could barely walk up stairs and couldnāt do more than slowly shuffle around.
Compare that to my dad, who quit when he was in his late 20ās and never restarted. He exercised and was a super social active guy with a boat who traveled and had an amazing quality of life. He ended up with a rare blood cancer for the last 3-4 years of his life but even with weekly blood transfusions could do way more right up until the end than my father-in-law who was practically a shut in.
b-lincoln@reddit
My mother in law died of lung cancer last year as a lifetime smoker. My old work colleague died of stage 4 lung cancer in 2018. Itās not a fun way to go, I can assure you.
CelebrationFull9424@reddit
My dad 2012
Ok-Toe3535@reddit
My mother in law, 2017. Itās an awful way to go.
HighOnGoofballs@reddit
Cigars and cigarettes are not equally harmful, you donāt inhale a cigar
Eatmore-plants@reddit
Thatās terrible advice from a professional. Smoking is terrible for you no matter what age you start or stop doing it. At this age the smoking might not kill you but the negative effects on veins and arteries and lungs can make life horrible.
HistoricalTowel1127@reddit
Good for you. Never too old to start.
slade797@reddit
*LEAVE* Switzerland?!
Du bist verrĆ¼ckt, Freund.
swissyfit@reddit (OP)
I love Switzerland. I don't ever want to leave bern, but I could get kicked out.
I cannot afford to live here. I am unemployed Fighting for my rights as a father
Once my b permit expires i will be kicked back to london.
Hence , psychiatrist,
rubbish_heap@reddit
Thinking of getting some cigarettes myself - used to smoke Drum. Maybe some snuff and cloves.
BUT, I'm the one weird guy that thought it was easy to quit smoking.
kjmacsu2@reddit
Me too. I was a pack a day for 20 some years and just went Eh and stopped cold turkey. Never wanted one again. I think it was because it was more of self medicating for ADHD than an addiction.
MoneyWiseLawyer@reddit
I loved Djarum cloves back in the day. I remember licking my lips and tasting the cloves for hours.
SquirrelBowl@reddit
I certainly wouldnāt choose tobacco for this endeavor but I get your point
Trick-Mechanic8986@reddit
Tom Petty heroin late in life model.
SomePeopleCallMeJJ@reddit
I'm not so sure that logic holds up. In any case, it still increases the number of things that could kill him and, ergo, makes death at a younger age more likely.
Anyway, the guy's a psychiatrist, so I'm sure he knows how Freud died. Granted, Freud smoked cigars a lot, but still... jaw cancer sounds awful.
JustAGreenDreamer@reddit
The way I see it, if you get to a point where you have lived a good, long life, and every day feels less like āgotta make itā, and more like āeach new day is a bonus and a giftā, those are the days you are entitled to live was close to how you would ideally want to as possible. My great grandmother had heart disease, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol, but when she was 93 years old, no one was going to tell her she couldnāt eat pickles and bacon, which brought her joy.
MonkeyMan18975@reddit
"It's better to live a short life doing what you love opposed to a long life spent in a miserable way." -Alan Watts
That's not to justify being a dick to other people, but as long as the ramifications of my actions stay within the boundaries of my skin, there's nothing and nobody to say I shouldn't be able to do what brings me the least bit of pleasure.
MrBrawn@reddit
He probably has a healthier relationship to addiction than you do. It may not be the thing that kills you but remember why you quit in the first place.
OnehappyOwl44@reddit
Quality of life over quantity. Do what makes you happy.