New Steemit incentive to quit smoking as a group!

in #life7 years ago

I have been a smoker since I was 16 and now I would like to stop for good with a bit of help from Steemit.

My mother is coming to see me here in Bali soon, to say hello to our new born baby and I would very much like to be a non smoker in this period. And if I can do a month, then why not two...or three... or four? Yeah, you get the idea.

What do I know about tobacco?

I learned recently that it is mostly just the chemicals & preservatives that poison us when we smoke cigarettes. And some argue that tobacco in its original natural form is actually good for us.

Indeed there are many indigenous populations who smoke home grown tobacco regularly yet do not experience the same lung cancer rates as us in the developed world.


http://www.e-cigsdiscountcodes.co.uk/smoking-ages/

There is even a clinic in Jakarta where they are treating all kinds of diseases, including cancer, by smoking organic home-grown tobacco.

So why quit?

I have tried this natural tobacco and it is pretty harsh and not all that pleasurable, so whilst I do smoke it sometimes, I still smoke my preferred brand of the region. Which at the moment is Sampoerna, a local blend of tobacco & cloves which has a lovely sweet flavour. It crackles and pops when you smoke it and has a whopping 14mg of tar, 1mg of nicotine. So I am in no doubt about the health implications of these.


https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kretek_Sampoerna

I did try a vaporiser for a while but after a few months my lungs felt worse than they did when I was smoking.

The main reason I want to stop is because I noticed my 22 month old son Esteban puffing away at a pencil a few days ago, blowing imaginary smoke into the air after each puff.

And this didn't make me feel good. Which most things do!

So, now is the time to make a change. And this time it's not just for me. It is for my children too.

Children copy us instinctively as you can see here...

...and whilst I don't mind a little 'dip dip' of Bintang (the local beer) from time to time, I don't want to be responsible for influencing his belief system around the subject of smoking. Though clearly this subject is much more complex than the generally accepted idea that all tobacco is plain old bad. When Esteban is old enough I will teach him what I have learned.

My Plan

Steemit is the perfect place to create a group in which we all quit on the same day, sharing our experiences and supporting each other with daily blogging and even vlogging if we choose.

If we can create a decent sized group and all resteem and upvote eachother consistently, we might even make a bunch of Steem whilst we are doing it.

Further Incentive

If each of us puts 10 Steem Dollars into a 'holding account' before the project commences this will give us some pre-promotion funding, widening the potential size of the group, and giving a further incentive for us to go the full distance and quit forever, because at the end of a 3 month period those who are still not smoking will split the pot between them. Those who fail to make it to 3 months will be giving their 10 SBD to a good cause and potentially even make this back (and more) through their daily publicised efforts to quit. Which speaking from experience can be quite fun to read about or watch in films. There is nothing quite like seeing other people in pain...especially whilst puffing on your cigarette!

The Tag

I don't know for sure what I would like to call this incentive yet.

Here are some suggestions off the top of my head:

  • quitsmoking
  • stopsmoking
  • nomoresmoke
  • exsmokers
  • steemitsmokers
  • steemitxsmokers

Thoughts anyone?

The Rules

  • Must post a film of you smoking your last cigarette on the given starting day.
  • Must write a daily update on how you are feeling throughout the 3 month period
  • Must post using the allocated tag, to keep the group in one place.
  • Must interact with at least one other member of the group a minimum of once a day.
  • Must post a film expressing your feelings upon reaching the 3 month point. Should you make it this far :)
  • If there is any suspicion within the group that a person is lying, further proof will be required. This may be in the form of video testimonials from friends and co-workers.

It will be tricky to know for sure if people are telling the truth. So, the films I believe are essential for us to be able to judge this for ourselves.

And let's face it, honesty is rewarded here, so even if you fail and post honestly about it, you are likely to earn more in rewards than your initial investment.

In Conclusion

I belive this is a great incentive to quit. We can support each other as a group and benefit financially not just from the money saved by not buying those cigarettes, but also from the Steem accumulated through our daily posts and the shared pot at the end.

I am looking forward to hearing back from any smokers out there who are interested in giving this a shot.

Now is the time my friends!

Sort:  

What a brilliant post Sam. If only teenagers knew how addictive smoking is they would never start. I quit 2 years ago but unfortunately I am still hooked on nicotine as I have to have nicorette spray with me all the time.
Good luck but you will have some bad nicotine withdrwal days so be prepared

Many thanks for your comment. I will have a vape on standby for those first few days and hope the cravings will go quick enough. I have done this before five years ago (lasted for 18 months!) and was able to exercise every time I felt like smoking. Which was great! Let's hope I have the energy for that system this time :)

What a great idea! I don't smoke, myself. I guess that's mostly because I always hated it when my dad did in front of me. I hated the smell, so now I have a big disliking to anything smoke-related.

I hope many people will join this cause and I wish you all the luck. Hope you're succesful!

Interesting!!! So, perhaps if I keep smoking he won't smoke in the future???!!!

No, my mind is made up. It is time.

Many thanks for your positive words :)

Great initiative Sam ! I quite smoking almost 2 years ago and I have to say that I feel amazing.
Beside the money which I save on daily basis, I see improvements in breathing, resistance and any other physical activity.

I know that is not an easy task, but at the end YOU gonna enjoy all these benefits (others around you too) , you gonna end with more money into your pocket, no more lost time when you go to buy cigarettes, also you gonna have more free time , at least one hour in plus from nowhere !

Please don't let this f4ckers anymore to cheat you.

All what smokers do now is to slowly pay for their death.

haha! Yes, that's basically what we are doing hey. Paying for our slow death! Though it is a little more complicated than this given my recent research into natural tobacco and indigenous cultures who all smoke yet have never heard of cancer.

Still, I know what I want to do... and I will get it done. With or without a Steemit group for support. No doubt you will be seeing many (hopefully not too stressed out) posts from me during this transition to freedom :)

I don't smoke anything, tobacco or otherwise, so I can't really join in. If you see smoke billowing around my head, it's either because I will have finally bought a black powder firearm, or I'm hanging out by a bonfire.

That said, I have family members who can't kick the habit, so what little moral support I can offer is yours if you need to quit.

Many thanks. I was hoping to find lots of smokers here willing to give this a try. But instead, I have found lots of sensible non smokers... all of whom have been very supportive with their words here. So, thanks for that. And no doubt I will post my way through this journey, alone or as a group. Either way is good. And all support will be massively appreciated :)

Good idea...I am still pondering....quit..or not...quit or no ?. I have tried to quit twice and fail. :)

Quit quit quit!!!!! Come on.... I can't believe you are even questioning it! It seems like no one else is even considering the idea so it would be just you and me, which would be great!!! Message me back. I would REALLY love to do this with someone on Steemit. And especially YOU!!! You have been such a great support for me, so now let's support each other and make some Steem while we do it :)

Awesome plan! Do it!
I also started when I was 16 and I quit six months ago. The longer you wait the harder it will get. The first days are horrible, but after a month or so you start forgetting about it. That´s the best moment of all, when you suddenly notice: Hey wow, I haven´t been thinking about it during the past 2 days!
The most important rule: keep yourself busy (mentally and physically) in the meanwhile.
Good luck!!!!!!!!!!! :)
Resteemed

Wise words there. Thank you for that. Yes, I've done it once before for for a total of 18 months and mostly kept myself busy with exercise. Not sure why I started again??? Congratulations on your six months. I will be joining you soon :) And many thanks for your support!

I quit about 10 times/day at the moment (used to be 20).
It is a filthy habit ... but ... I enjoy it. Like so many habits, smoking has triggers.
One of the best aids I have ever come across is Allen Carr's Book, the easy way to quit smoking. I found an online version in Google Docs:
Allen Carr's quit smoking Guide
I am not one to enter a contest without the aim of success, so I need to rationalise my thinking here. Will report back!
Thank you @samstonehill, very good thinking and well constructed mechanics as to the integrity of the challenge!

Thanks Ed for your response here. Only just had time to get to this now. I did read Allen Carr's book some years back but didn't implement his techniques. However, now is the time...with or without the support of Steemit. Though I would love it if you joined me!

Some people suggest teetotal abstinence from smoking.
Others suggest switching to vaping, because it's healthier.

No, I think the way to go is to become more refined.

To smoke often is to cheapen the experience.

For me, I smoke a cigar only after I do something amazing.

And I mean amazing. An expensive, highest-quality cigar stays in my fridge, always tempting me. But I resist.

I simply resist it because I know it will be much more delicious when I've done something great.

How great?

Really great. If I smoke more than one cigar in a month, my life is either way too awesome, or I'm cheapening the thrill by doing it more than is proper.

Being addicted to a thing is weakness. Break your mental addiction before you break your physical addiction, but you must break the addiction.

Then take control of yourself, and smoke when and because you want to, aware that smoking is not healthy. It must be done infrequently. There is no other way!

You need to smoke only when you want to.
Not because nicotine wants you to.

Sounds like someone speaking from experience there. Many thanks for sharing that. Wise words.

Indeed, what I seek is the freedom to make my own choices and not have them made for me by an addiction to a drug. Never say 'never'! Better to say 'moderation' :)

Though to begin with I think it will be total abstinence, just to remind me what that feels like.

I love the idea of a quality cigar in the fridge. Could have done with one of those a few weeks back when my daughter was born :)

Yeah, I agree with you about a cigar when your daughter was born. When I was born, I would've loved a cigar. Oh well. =p

But yeah, if you choose total abstinance, then that's your choice, and I know you'll make it. Remember that you can't stop all at once though.

What I'd do is cut it drastically, however.

Ration cigarettes or cigar portions for the next week. Let's say you currently smoke 12 cigarettes a day. On day one, smoke eight. On day two, smoke four. One day three, smoke two. And on the last day, smoke your final one, maybe with a sip of fine wine, and then you are at zero.

And you cannot divide zero. =]

That's what my plan would be, at least. I know it's troublesome to have a physical addiction overcome breaking a mental addiction. Drugs are extremely dangerous, and although I love 'em, safety and responsibility is more important than anything else.

Fantastic idea @samstonehill! Doing it for your kids, I'm 100% certain you will be successful in this huge change.

Kudos to you for making your effort public, and asking for support.

Thanks so much for your very positive words. I really appreciate that. And you will be hearing more soon on that which must be done :)

I don't smoke but like this good effort from your part.
As for tag, I suggest crude and simple "nosmoke"

Thanks for the comment. Yes, I like that tag idea though I realise now that I will only be stopping cigarettes. There are a few other things that won't be stopping. So perhaps nonicotine might work better, just to be crystal clear about what I am doing here :)

You're welcome

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