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If my opinion was actually able to be handled, we wouldn't have 'hit and run' comments like Forestyne's so yes, some people unfortunately can't seem to handle it. I simply stated 3 things that were true:
1) Smoking is a choice, it is not something out of anyone's control and the action to try a cigarette and become a regular or occasional smoker is a choice to be personally made.
2) One of the common reasons people become smokers in the first place is through peer-pressure.
3) Another common reason is why people become smokers is a way to cope through stresses they sometimes experience in life.
Do you not have anything to contribute to the debate you started with me to the point where you have to pull out an Oprah Winfrey gif from Tumblr? What I said is based on what everyone knows about smokers, basically those 3 points so why you are deciding to argue it by placing a gif of "So what is true" when you know those 3 points of my first comment is true.
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Yes smoking cigarettes is indeed a choice in the beginning, but after a while it isn't a choice anymore, it's an addiction. The person has a physical and mental dependence on it where -choice- isn't even relevant or in the picture anymore, they feel the need to do this, otherwise, they go through this process called WITHDRAWAL. And
WITHDRAWAL is what makes people fear quitting smoking, because it's an extremely irritating and long term physical/mental pain someone must go through that leads them to a wide variety of symptoms such as headache, depression, fatigue, irritability, difficulty focusing, and much more. Imagine going through your day having to deal and suffer with this, when you can just give yourself just a quick fix of nicotine by smoking another cigarette and solving the problems of your day. It's not that they choose to, it's because they physically/mentally feel like they
need to, not want to. Many addicted smokers want to quit, but it's the fear of withdrawal that hold them back. In fact, 95% of quit attempts end up in relapse. So yes, these people are victims. Instead of pointing our fingers and saying "Ah well, you screw up!" how about we help these people who do wish to quit, who do know the risk factors for themselves and their family, and support them? Jesus, imagine trying to help others who are addicted to other drugs with your mentality lol.
People mess up in life, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't sympathize with them, or look at a smoker as if they're lower than us. You don't know the circumstances of a person's life, the environment they grew up in, or their mental status. Most smokers are in lower economic status and half of the smoking popular have some type of mental illness, whether it be depression or anxiety.
Nicotine releases dopamine in the brain that gives you the feeling of pleasure, arousal, increased cognition, and decrease in anxiety and tension so yes it is used as a coping mechanism, especially when it's EASY to get your hands on. You just judge them as being, in your perspective, "teens who just wanted to fit in and be stupid." What you are doing truly is victim blaming those with addiction, don't ever become a counselor for this type of stuff lol.
