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222369 tn?1274474635

Habits versus addictions

This may be a weird question. But is there a difference between a habit and an addiction? I broke a nearly 10 year smoking habit and have never looked back. The pills seem different some how. How come so many people can break a smoking habit without AA or any after care, but opiate addiction is so much different? Just looking for some opinions.
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Avatar universal
Oddly enough I was developing a smoking habit cuz my Fiance is a smoker and so I got started.  I really didn't enjoy it all that much but I felt compelled to do it.  I knew I had to stop when I couldn't laugh hard without coughing.  I had a seizure last Weds and every since I haven't smoked a cig at all.  It was surprizingly ez I wish the pills were that ez.  My husband has been struggling to quit smoking forever & he's getting ready to try again.  It just goes to show lots of ppl suffer from addictions and it makes me feel better to know that I'm not the only one.
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228686 tn?1211554707
I know EXACTLY what you mean! Last time I stopped methadone I couldn't touch a cigarette to save my life. It made me physically nauseous, I'd actually gag from trying to smoke! Curious side effect there. I wonder how common it is?


There's a curious philosophy that seems prevalent always you're getting into, "That if it's good or enjoyable, than it must be bad for you." I've been reading Pirsig again and he gets into the entire concept that we teach our children early "not to do as they please".

Why is "doing as we please" a bad thing? Why is there an assumption that if we do as we please, we'll go out and rape, pillage, and burn? I wonder if we didn't teach our children such repressive behavior early on, perhaps we'd grow up to have a better handle on how we deal with excesses and pleasures.

Pirsig is making more of a comment on our school system, by the way, not just parenting technique. He believes (and I agree) that our school systems are designed to crush all creativity, any pursuit of desire, and turn children into "cogs" of the social machine. Freedom of expression and pursuit of desire are considered negative traits that we have to learn to suppress and not pursue.
    
This is why I shouldn't come on here when I first wake up! How I went from cig's and opiate addiction to this...I just don't know! It just happens! Perhaps more coffee will help. :)
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Avatar universal
I think that there is an old addage that best describes what I am seeing in what my husband is willing to risk and what I am reading of other people with the same problems.  The crime fits the punishment.  I do not mean that in the correct sense that it is a crime but only that "the crime" is a metaphore for the enjoyment and the "punishment" is the degree of difficulty in leaving the drug behind.  You would know wether given the choice with absolutley no repercussions, would you enjoy a cigarette or the high more?  

I am sorry if I miss the mark here, I too an trying to figure things out.
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232264 tn?1191248480
Had 2 say it! Whats funny is when i quit those mother beepers i quit smoking at the same time it just seemed to work like that i had absolutely no desire for them after my last pill !! cool huh i guess i got lucky? but i think too many people see smoking as a relief i dont care what anyone says its not! Its a stimulant and a mighty good one at that! LUNGS are important sorry not to preach just lookin out!
Joshua
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232264 tn?1191248480
DoNt SmOKE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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228686 tn?1211554707
Well... it's a good question. I think it's partly because of the difference in effect, and partly a social issue. Opiates are a synthetic form of something that's supposed to be produced naturally in the brain at appropriate times. So generally, if someone is taking them to "feel good", so to speak, there's something already going wrong in their system for them to adapt to them so readily. There's various ways of getting that "natural high", and I think as children we achieve it on a regular basis through imagination, play, exercise, etc...(I've got a hypothesis on all this, but won't get into here).    

Normally you have to "work" as an adult to achieve this high, and synthetic opiates are a quick way to achieve it. But by taking them we change structures in our brain and our way of thinking. So we're talking about long term damage, and it takes an equally long time to heal and return to normal. It isn't easy, going around feeling *wrong* (referred to as a state of being here) for months, years on end. So relapse is a not surprising.

Cig's on the other hand...different chemical reaction there, a quick *fix*, short term stimulant (after a fashion). It's NOT a chemical that's naturally produced by the body, it's totally foreign. So it has no real place there. By removing it, the body (and mind to some degree) reverts to a "normal" state in a fairly quick time.

Now socially...I thing cigarette addiction is understood and dealt with fairly well medically. But Opiate abuse isn't. It's so tied up in politics, social condemnation, etc... that this confusion alone causes a sense of hopelessness and despair in the opiate addict. Without a clear understanding of what's going wrong with your body and mind, how can one hope to cope and treat the problem effectively?
Most of the successful ex-opiate addicts I've talked to (who DON'T relapse) are VERY well informed on what's happened and is happening to them. They've risen above ALL other discourse on the issue and adopted a healthy way of life and level of "spiritual enlightenment" to see them through. I'm talking about those with and without the NA philosophy.

Here's a little secret; Practicing Christian Scientists have a VERY high success rate of dealing with this issue.
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222369 tn?1274474635
OK..a question then (by the way..I'm not bustin' your chops here..I'm just picking your brain..you have great posts)..by your definition..both are addictions. So, what makes someone with one addiction (cigs) able to kick it in highish numbers without aftercare (AA, Counseling) and the other (opiates, benzos) not? Just looking for your thinking.
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228686 tn?1211554707
Well, you can have both. Drugs are addictive, and those of us using them are addicted. But a habit is something you're doing regardless of a physical need, because you're seeking some sort of comfort or peace of mind (not saying you'll get it!)
Helpful - 0
284770 tn?1198180294
Interesting question Ga Guy!! lololo...I know my pills was an addiction but I also know that my smoking is one also!! lolo. All you have to do is ask my dear hubby what I'm like when I'm out of cigarettes and he will go on and on ranting about how horrible I am. The longest I've been without cigs is a day and that day was PURE TORTURE for everyone around me. I become very aggitated and angry and I feel like my body is trying to jump out of me constantly and I just go on this freaked out rampage until I'm able to get some relief. But thats fine with me cause I am no where near ready to quite smoking. I like it, and its a great stress reliever for me so as of right now I'm not ready to quite that:)
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Avatar universal
smoking doesn't get u high.  You don't feel like life is easier and can get more things done.......I don't think it has the same effect on endorphins.....when i am stressed..yes I do smoke more, but ....in a nutshell.....no buzz.

Nauty............
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222369 tn?1274474635
Some great answers. For me personally, the withdrawals were the worst by far after the pills. The smoking was rough, too. I actually believe that the smoking was killing me faster than the pills..but they are both evil. I just think that if I can quit smoking that I can quit these things too.
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Avatar universal
i think a habit is something we do often, with no obvious negative effect on our lives, that we can quit when ever we think we should.

an addiction is somthing we do often, with obvious negative effects on our lives, that we struggle to quit even if we really want/need to.

Helpful - 0
230843 tn?1200197755
Interesting point GA GUY.  I smoke and am back on the pain meds after a shoulder surgery.  I actually smoke the most when I am using the pills.  It's weird.  They make me smoke like a chimney!!  When I quit the pills in the spring.  I hardly smoked.  Maybe a couple cigs a week.  Very easy to walk away for me!

The pills, this time will not be so easy.  I have a feeling this time will be different.  I walked away pretty easy from the pills in April.  No W/D's, just a little lethargic for a couple days.  Barely any cravings.  I went into counseling and meetings.  I actually never knew if I was addicted or not.  But I had three surgeries last year and when it was time to come off  the meds, It was harder physically and emotionally than I thought!  It was cold turkey and I realized they had more control over me than I ever realized.  I then got into addiction counseling to see what was going on.  I Did very well.  The only time I thought about the meds was was when I went to meetings or counseling..

Now, I've had two more surgeries (one emergency) and one planned for the shoulder and I know this will be no picnic!  Now I know I'm addicted.  ****!  But, I will get off them when it's time and do what I need to do again.  Maybe I'll quit smoking then too. The smoking is a habit, the pills are an addiction...for me
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Avatar universal
i also think smoking is an addiction..BUT, for me, i have quit many times, and never needed after care, patch etc..For pregnancies, from the time i peed on the stick lol, i never took another drag, a sip of beer, nothing...And that was the best i ever felt in my life was being pregnant...I always wondered why can i do these things for the babies i carried, and not for me..Becasue after nuring them was over i was right back where i started...
ALL in the mind!!!  i now see this more and more now.
Hope this helps, only my opinion
R2R
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