Every day there are more smokers, not only adults, but also teenagers. Why do people deliberately poison the body and risk their health? The reasons for smoking are different for everyone. Some "lighten" stress, some don't want to be the black sheep around friends, and some kill time in this way. Addiction takes on catastrophic proportions, destroying a person not only physically, but also psychologically.
Why does smoking addiction occur?
To answer the question of how attractive cigarettes are, you need to understand how nicotine affects the body. The first cigarette is not delicious. After inhaling tobacco smoke, dizziness, nausea, coughing occur, tremors in the limbs may occur. It seems that all these feelings should become a motivator to not take up smoking. But if for some reason a person continues to smoke, then the body gradually gets used to nicotine.
In the first months, smoking is a pleasure. Certain processes occur in the body within 10 minutes after the first breath. Adrenaline production increases, a person begins to feel euphoria, the speed of thinking and concentration increases, and a feeling of calmness arises. But over time, the joy of smoking gives way to real addiction. Nicotine enters the metabolism, and the body gets used to the constant presence of this substance in the blood. When the concentration of nicotine decreases, the nervous system tells you that it is time to refresh yourself. It makes you want to reach for another cigarette. The time from smoking the first cigarette to nicotine addiction is individual for everyone. It usually takes a year or a year and a half.
Studies have shown that the psychology of nicotine addiction is different in men and women. Men smoke because they are used to it, they like to play with cigarettes in their hands and feel the aroma of smoke. The reason women smoke is to enjoy the process itself. In addition, tobacco companies themselves encourage the weaker sex to smoke by producing their products in beautiful boxes with different flavors. In the circle of smoking friends, a girl with a cigarette and a glass of wine feels supported, a desire to talk, to share her secrets appears.
Psychological reasons for smoking in adults and adolescents
How many people, many reasons. Teenagers mostly take up smoking because they feel peer pressure. A teenager wants to be like everyone else, to be "one of them".
Recruitment to the group of smokers takes place among people who have no idea. The same situation can arise in couples where one partner smokes and forces the other to join or the relationship ends.
Another reason for smoking tobacco among teenagers is a sense of independence. Of course, this is an illusory feeling that allows you to grow only in theory and only among your peers.
Family relationships are largely a prerequisite for future nicotine addiction in a child. If one or both parents smoke, it is more likely that their children will smoke in the future.
Social networks, tempting advertisements on the Internet and on television, bright billboards on the streets, all this unconsciously encourages young people to smoke. Just out of curiosity, he has an above average chance of smoking.
The reasons for starting to smoke in adulthood are somewhat different, although in some cases they are similar to teenagers:
"attention deficit hyperactivity disorder" , translated means desire to do at least one thing. Some do it by going shopping, some by gnawing sunflower seeds, eating food, playing computer games, etc. Smokers, on the other hand, keep their hands and mouths busy with cigarettes, and enjoy the taste of smoke and the sensation of nicotine in their bodies;nervousness . Stress at work or at home causes constant irritability. How to get out of the situation and calm down? For some, smoking is the only way out. Smoking in the fresh air or while drinking a cup of coffee becomes a kind of ritual. Of course, you can find many other ways to relax, but not everyone wants to do it;shyness and inability to communicate with people . If a person is naturally reserved and does not know how to talk to strangers, then every pause in the dialogue turns into torture. In such situations, smoking is a kind of substitute for communication, a "plug" for interruptions;weak will . After getting involved in the process of smoking, you can become a real household addict. Weak-willed people cannot do it alone, no matter how hard they try to break free from addiction. There are many reasons: I will quit tomorrow, I had a hard day today and a cigarette won't hurt, I will finish the pack and definitely quit. You cannot cope here without qualified professional help;the misconception that smoking is not as harmful as they say . If there is no risk to life, it is foolish to give up the things that bring pleasure;problems with family, work, friends, mental pain from losing something or someone . Cigarettes help you escape from the realities of life and immerse yourself in peace, at least temporarily;solitude . People whose only friend is a cigarette will not give it up voluntarily. With their help, the feeling of uselessness goes into the background for a short time.
Regardless of the reasons for starting to smoke, people do not quit smoking. The desire to inhale the smell of tobacco smoke is ignored. A person, often, on a subconscious level, takes up smoking every time, dragging himself into tobacco addiction.
The psychological reasons for smoking are obvious, but nicotine is also addictive on a physical level. In addition to increasing the activity of brain receptors, the alkaloids contained in nicotine are included in all body systems. Already after the first cigarette, he begins to actively adapt to a previously unfamiliar situation. And soon, certain doses of nicotine become the norm for a person, and in the future, as the body's tolerance develops, they need to be increased.
Psychosomatics of smoking
Scientific studies have proven that the main reasons for smoking are psychological in nature. Therefore, it is easier to get rid of the physical desire for nicotine than to break yourself psychologically. A completely adequate person, if he talks about the harms of smoking and its consequences, nods his head and immediately lights a cigarette. Why does this happen? The answer lies deep in the human subconscious. Embedded programs, no one knows how, run without permission and become addictive.
Why can't people quit smoking even if they have a strong will? He does it because he feels like it. What made you smoke when you were young is what keeps you from kicking the habit now as an adult. And it's not a simple curiosity or a feeling of euphoria that leads to smoking. Now these are completely different reasons - psychosomatic.
Each time one takes a puff of nicotine, one feels comfortable and relaxed, but not in any way pleasurable. All smokers have their reasons for not quitting:
- In the morning, nicotine along with coffee helps you wake up and recharge your batteries;
- at a party, smoking after a glass of cognac allows you to feel double peace;
- at the moment of emotional stress, you get relief with the help of cigarettes;
- nicotine triggers mental processes (according to the smoker).
Quitting smoking once and without the possibility of recurrence is possible only in cases where a person has convincing motives or stops the desire to inhale tobacco smoke.
The main reasons for quitting smoking
Health problems are the most common reasons for quitting smoking. In second place is the fear of destroying relationships and family. And only then is it possible to develop a conscious desire not to spoil your health and not to spend money on cigarettes. The main diseases caused by smoking include:
- problems with the heart and blood vessels;
- stroke;
- cancer;
- bronchitis;
- ulcers;
- emphysema.
Recurrence of previous situations may also occur.
Increasingly, crime chronicles include materials about fires caused by smoking. For some, these are just situations that happen to someone out there and have nothing to do with them personally. But when the problem affects relatives, friends and even neighbors, the thoughts of quitting smoking come closer.
In many countries, the government is actively fighting against smoking. For example, the relevant measures have been adopted:
- prohibition of smoking in public places;
- increasing the excise tax on tobacco products;
- writings and pictures on boxes warning about the dangers of smoking;
- "Information attack" by mass media, teachers, parents, company and enterprise managers;
- ban on advertising of tobacco products;
- punishment for illegal trade in cigarettes;
- Prohibition of sale to persons under 18 years of age.
For non-compliance with all these rules, various types of punishments are provided, from fines to compensation for damage to the health of others.
How to quit smoking?
Today there are enough ways to get rid of nicotine addiction, but the main thing is the desire of the smoker himself.
- Nicotine replacement therapy. This includes medications, gum, patches, nasal sprays, etc. that contain small doses of nicotine. includes. A person using this or that product continues to receive nicotine, but in its pure form, without harmful impurities and smoke. Thus, it is easier to quit smoking because there is a gradual cessation of smoking without withdrawal symptoms.
- E-Sigs. The so-called nicotine inhaler causes mixed opinions among experts. Indeed, in most cases, addiction develops precisely because of the very process that relaxes a person on an emotional level. The use of e-cigarettes mimics smoking, but without the consumption of harmful carcinogens and resins by the lungs. In addition, there is no tobacco smoke that negatively affects others.
- Encoding. There are many private drug addiction clinics that provide services to get rid of tobacco addiction. There are three coding methods: hypnosis, instrumental and Dovzhenko method. With the help of hypnosis, a person is informed about the harm of smoking and possible complications. Instrumental methods include acupuncture, which affects different nerve centers, and laser directed at different areas of the patient's body. The Dovzhenko method is the oldest way to get rid of addiction. It consists of two stages. In the first one, the smoker is informed about the dangers of smoking, and in the second one, the aversion to tobacco and smoke is instilled. The doctor and the patient decide which method to choose.
- Psychological help. As in the case of coding, the psychological impact occurs within the walls of the clinic. Individual trainings and group trainings are held there. The help of experts increases the chance of completely quitting smoking by one and a half times.
Nicotine addiction is one of the most common in the world. Along with this, there is also alcoholism, drug addiction and gluttony. If a person does not realize in time that his condition is harmful, it will lead to extremely undesirable consequences.