Living with the monkey on my back

For almost two decades I have fought the good fight to get the monkey out my back.

All smokers want to quit.

Even those die-hard ones, when they are truly honest with themselves will find that they would quit if they could.

For me, the catalyst was when my teenage daughter asked me for a puff. It was clear to us, that if I didn't change something drastically, my little girl would soon have the dreaded addition that I fought all my grown life.

The only obstacle for me was that I couldn't imagine life without a cigarette. The thought of waking up in hotels on my own with no cigarette to comfort me was depressing.

So we made a deal with the devil.

I would not smoke while in the country and would smoke only on my occasional travels.

Over the next ten years, this obsession was to steer the course of my life and, define me.

I gravitated to deals that involved travel and traveled where ever and whenever I could, just so I could light up.

The business expanded into other countries, and this fed the beast.

I then began to experiment with alternatives, nicotine patches, gum, vaping and iqos and all sorts, in an attempt to shake the monkey if my back.

In time the world has come to the realization that its nicotine that we are addicted to, but smoking that kills us.

Alternate delivery methods are able to feed the monster and keep it at bay.

They are now comparing pure nicotine to caffeine
(if you remove the combustion and tar and all the other crap)

It's been years since I actually smoked a real cigarette, yet I have never been this addicted to nicotine.

Maybe someday I will be able to go cold Turkey and quit, but for now, I am still fighting the good fight.

The author Allen Carr once said in his book "Easyway to give up smoking" that smokers who said they felt fine and were not feeling the adverse effects of smoking were like a guy who jumped off a 100 story building.
Halfway down, if asked how he was doing would answer,

"So far so good"

M Parak
Aug 2018
Accra