You Can Stop Smoking

It sounds impossible and has daily challenges, but if you put your mind to it, your smoking days can be over.

If you smoke, going a day without a cigarette may seem nothing more than a pipe dream. However, that dream can become a reality if you're willing to fight for your good health. Need a little incentive to help you along the way? No problem.

Like any good or bad habit, cigarette smoking is not a free endeavor. In fact, it can be extremely expensive. On average, a pack of cigarettes runs approximately $4.80. Smoke a pack a week and you're looking at $250 down the tubes. Smoke a pack a day and you're losing about $1,750 a year. While $1,750 doesn't seem like too much to spend on something you enjoy, you should know the costs don't end with the cigarettes and lighters.

Ever tried selling a car that you've used as your own private smoking cabin? How about selling a home you've smoked in? No one wants to buy something that is permanently stained with the unpleasant smell of cigarettes.

Now that you know the financial cost of smoking, you should consider some other costs of smoking as well. What other costs?

How about this one: If you saved $1,750 a year from not smoking, you could probably go on that family vacation you've been dreaming of and your kids have been begging for. You could even go visit Aunt Flora across the country.
Or this one: If you stopped smoking, you could be more productive at work, because you wouldn't have to run outside every hour to suck down a nicotine stick. And your coworkers won't mind being near you, because you'll smell better.

And don't forget this one: You'll welcome smoke-free restaurants with open arms, instead of moaning and groaning as you excuse yourself for a post-meal smoke.

Oh yeah, there are other costs as well. They're the ones you've heard about over and over, but for some reason they haven't been enough to help you quit. Maybe hearing about them one more time will do the trick.

Hop online and search for any disease that pops into your head. From asthma to yeast infections, bronchitis to headaches, cigarette smoking puts you at increased risk for them all. Actually, as more studies on the dangers of smoking take place, it is becoming evident that smoking may be a contributing factor to practically every condition under the sun. In the strange event that smoking doesn't increase your risk for suffering a certain disease, smoking will increase your likelihood of complications from the disease.

Need more? Of all the people who die in America each day, approximately one out of every five dies due to smoking-related diseases. Some of the most common types of smoking-related death include lung and heart diseases, but individuals who smoke and have diabetes and other dangerous conditions also die frequently due to their smoking habits. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, men who smoke chop about 13.2 years off of their life expectancy, and ladies trim 14.5 years.

So whether you're appalled at the thought of wasting thousands of dollars, being controlled by cravings during the important moments of your life, or dying years before you've completed your bucket list, kicking smoking to the curb isn't just a good idea. It's a money-saving, family-saving, life-saving idea.

As if there weren't enough reasons to stop smoking already, some businesses - primarily in the health sector - have started to screen potential employees based on their smoking history. Hospitals and other health-related agencies see smokers as being against the goals of their organization.

While the majority of job opportunities continue to be available to smokers and non-smokers alike, there may be a day in the future when you either lose your habit or lose your ability to find meaningful employment. Why not nix nicotine before it costs you even more?

Until next time - Live Life Well,

John Aaron Villarreal
www.johnaaron-massage.com