View Full Version : smoking/dipping on the trail
jbrecon2
12-05-2009, 13:01
As a dislaimer....i know its a horrible habit....please dont judge me. Especially since i'm an icu nurse and see its deadliness every day. However, I have used some form of tobacco since i was 14. Through multiple years in the army, middle east deployments, and years of late night studying in college, and many traumatic experiences it has been the one constant in my life. Cigarettes for many years, but now mostly snuff. When I was on the trail before there were a good number of smokers smoking away. However I would really like to taked this oppurtunity to quit once and for all. At least cigarettes and dip. I'll always have the occassional pipe or cigar. Has anyone else dealt with this? Anone able to quit while hiking? anyone not able to kick the habit despite the added expense and weight?
Its especially ironic becasue i often tell my girlfriend one of the reasons for doing this is i somehow believe this will make me a healthier person for years to come and probally add years to my life. I have already cut back ALOT, but i cringe every time i swipe my card for another 5 bucks to support the habit.
Jim Adams
12-05-2009, 13:18
You can do it! I smoked 2 1/2 packs a day during both of my thrus and although I quit 5 years ago, I never tried to quit while on the trail. It was no problem for me to quit smoking and didn't bother me a bit...I just got tired of the coughing, threw the remaining pack in the garbage and have never gone back...but thats just me...everyone has different levels of will power HOWEVER!!!!!...I started my 2002 hike dipping 2 cans of Copenhagen a day and vowed to quit during the hike. I simply hit the trail with the last can I had and when it was gone I refused to buy more...IT WAS THE HARDEST THING THAT I HAVE EVER DONE IN MY LIFE! I was successful but it was so iffy at times that I don't know how I did it. Haven't had a dip since. Good luck and know that alot of others will have their good wishes with you also. Hang in there, concentrate on every aspect of the trail that you can and just try to stick with it. YOU CAN DO IT!
geek
highfisher
12-05-2009, 13:24
I've been there myself, but it's not that hard with the right motivation. Myself, was going to the hospital christmas eve morning to have 4 stints put in and seeing the look on my daughters face, so I no longer smoke, oh I still dip but its all natural snuff, I know personaly it's a hard habit to break, but it's becoming less and less a habit. Good luck on your goal ..
jbrecon2
12-05-2009, 13:32
thanks jim and highfisher. yeah Jim, the copenhagen is difficult to give up. i'm ok without cigarettes, but my God i love Copenhagen. perhaps the best substance on earth. that is my mindset, and that is what i'm up against.
Jim Adams
12-05-2009, 13:34
thanks jim and highfisher. yeah Jim, the copenhagen is difficult to give up. i'm ok without cigarettes, but my God i love Copenhagen. perhaps the best substance on earth. that is my mindset, and that is what i'm up against.
SO TRUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
geek
I smoked for over 30 years and had a tough time quitting, but finally did it. Keep trying, but don't let it mess with your head too much.
I ruined a bunch of otherwise great hikes by looking at them as opportunities to quit smoking. In all cases, I wound up nasty and walked out to get smokes.
My advice is to keep those projects separate. Quitting is tough enough, no need to ruin your fun at the same time.
Figgsy13126
12-05-2009, 15:21
Kodiak is the best stuff on this earth!! jk....Im hoping that on my hike i will be able to quit my terrible habit. However, i will probly jump off a cliff if i cant have a dip on the trail...what to do, what to do.
I quit on springer in march 04, then to reward myself after a 30 mile day from newfound to mountain mammas i smoked a whole pack right there and then. Quitting on trail is tough. I didn't smoke after that pack for another 5 months, but damn i was tempted. I started again after the trail, moment of weakness. The trail isnt necessarily the place to quit smoking. Still, there's nothing like a smoke, a sit down, and a smile when you reach a vista.
cough.
cheers
Figgsy13126
12-05-2009, 15:24
I think the best bet...at least for me. Is to quit prior to my hike. This way i can put the extra $8 a day away for better things to waste my money on during the hike. Like Jack Daniels.
Jack Tarlin
12-05-2009, 16:11
I chain smoked filterless Camels for 20 years. And I used to smoke WHILE hiking, even uphills. There are folks who've told me they never ever saw me without a cigarette.
In a couple of weeks, I'll hit 22 months without one.
If I can do it, anyone can, and this includes you.
Best of luck!!
P.S. I'd try and quit BEFORE you get out there and not while en route, but whatever works.....
Many Walks
12-05-2009, 17:22
We met one guy who ran marathons and actually started smoking on the trail. The problem you'll have is so much time to think about stuff. If you can turn your thoughts away from tobacco toward other things (sure it will be food) you'll have a better chance of quitting. Just so you know I'm not chiming in without experience, I also chain smoked filterless Camels and dipped Skoal for decades, but finally quit. I just got tired of it controlling my life. One of the best decisions I ever made. You can do it, but it will take all the will power you can muster. Wish you the best and enjoy your hike!
XCskiNYC
12-05-2009, 17:36
... i cringe every time i swipe my card for another 5 bucks to support the habit.
Cigs are only 5 in nj? I'm gonna start riding over on the PATH to buy my smokes.
DrRichardCranium
12-05-2009, 17:49
I've been there myself, but it's not that hard with the right motivation. Myself, was going to the hospital christmas eve morning to have 4 stints put in and seeing the look on my daughters face, so I no longer smoke, oh I still dip but its all natural snuff, I know personaly it's a hard habit to break, but it's becoming less and less a habit. Good luck on your goal ..
If people want to quit using dip, they should work where I used to work in the late 80s: the Dana Farber Cancer Insititute.
We were using a cell line in the lab derived from squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. I saw photos of people who had developed this type of cancer..Holy crap, what that does to the victim's face would give you nightmares! I've never been a tobacco user, but I can't imagine using dip after seeing those photos!
dilligas
12-05-2009, 18:49
http://quitsmokeless.org/
This web site helped me stop dipping two years ago.
Lots of good info...
The pictures of persons missing parts of their face helped.
I still miss it today , but refuse to fall off the wagon.
GOOD LUCK
I dip and it is tearing my mouth up! I got to quit.....thanx for starting this thread.....throwing it in the trash again.....maybe this time i will do it?
Nicotine is bad stuff. I gave up everything, even alchohol, but the smokes is by far the hardest. I still smoke every once in a while I just can't seem to get rid of it long term. I once saw a show though that took someone who'd never smoked before and exposed them to clean (whatever that is) nicotine in a larger than normal dose and believe it or not it was no different to them than shooting up heroin or anything else that gets you high like that. They were completly plastered. I guess the point to that is that it is in fact an addictive drug regardless of the tolerance factor that disguses the effects of it. I can't be in bondage to something like that, but I am.
warraghiyagey
12-05-2009, 21:25
Peach Skoal. . . yum. . . never smoked til I got on the AT in my whole life. . . been smokin for 3 years. . . . :-?:confused:
Nomaderwhat
12-05-2009, 21:43
Well you can use this hike to quit, I however, will be smoking a cigarette with every beer. I figure, all the other health benefits outweigh the deadly chemicals. I'm half joking.
Yes, I have to quit everytime I hike. You can do it.
If you are worried about cold turkey and you will see folks smoking on the trial and in town, take some nicorette gum. It does take the edge off the really bad cravings. Once you huff up an up, you will not want a cigarette. It is after dinner that you will miss it. Brush your teeth and chew a piece or nicorette. Then gradually wean off the gum.
It is a horrible habit I still stuggle to overcome every day. None of us that have been there are judging you at all. We are cheering you on.
vamelungeon
12-05-2009, 22:44
I smoked for 37 years from age 12. Looking at pictures of people with cancer had no effect on my habit, being around people with emphysema didn't either but wheezing at night did, and not having the breath to climb small hills did too. I used Chantix to quit. I had tried before but unsuccessfully, the Chantix made the difference for me.
Something that works for one person may not work for another, you've got to find what works for you. Nicotine is a highly addictive drug, and the non-smokers that say "Why don't you just quit?" have no clue.
I still DREAM about smoking. I still want to smoke, too. I just don't.
harryfred
12-05-2009, 23:36
For many years tobacco was my friend. I started snitchin' Pap's Mail Pouch when I was about ten by the time I quit in my late 30's I still chewed and would dip once in a while, regularly smoked cigars and occasionally a pipe, but he big thing was Camels up to three packs a day. you can't find a picture of me in those days I did not have a cigarette in my hand. Then short answer is I believe I was delivered from my addiction by a merciful God, but it still was not easy and I still get a hankerin' mostly when I smell a cigar or a pipe some times when I see a friend of mine take a chew. I know one little puff or just one little chew and I'd be hooked again.
The thing is all those years of puffin' away coupled with not taking proper precautions with the chemicals I use at work has trashed my lungs and that does take away from my hiking now. You won't ever hear me condemn some one for tobacco use but I'll be cheering you on to quit.:banana
Dipping/chewing was a "rite of manhood" in the South during my youth - bet that's how many of us started. Strangely enough - smoking wasn't.
Just wanted everyone to know that I bought my final 2 cans this morning.
drastic_quench
12-06-2009, 02:29
I smoke tobacco pipes. I don't inhale, and I don't smoke often - maybe twice a week. It's a nice, relaxing hobby, and it's very rewarding to smoke a pipe on a mountain top. I get a nic buzz depending on the blend (I smoke great tins, VAs, Englishes, etc) but I'm not at all addicted to nicotine. How could I be? I smoke so infrequently.
chiefduffy
12-06-2009, 06:13
JBRECON2, because of your Army toughness, you may be able to quit on your hike. You will be hell to get along with, and it WONT be fun. But it might be better than being around loved ones. I quit a 25 year habit of smoking and dipping on a aircraft carrier deployment. Everyone (including me) hated me. But I made it. That was 15 years ago and I'm still clean. I do enjoy the contact buzz around smokers, and still take my breaks around the smoke pit. BTW, I used the patch - helped me alot at first.
- Duffy
quit or don't quit, just don't throw your butts in the ground or in the fire ring. I get tired of cleaning out fire rings cause some inconsiderate bastard thinks they are entitled to trash the place.
Anyone that you talk to that's done a thru-hike will tell you the hardest part is mental. Stacking the misery of quitting nicotine on top of that can't do anything to help your chances of completing your goal.
I hope to be completely weened of any nicotine before my hike, but I stopped the smoking a couple of weeks ago in favor of the Nicorette. The gum doesn't completely satisfy mental addiction the way cigs do, but it does deal with physical cravings. I basically treat the gum like a dip of chew and just keep it by the gums. This might be even more effective for someone more accustomed to snuff.
I recall an older thread here on Whiteblaze regarding this where the consensus seemed to be that the failure rate of thru-hikers trying to quit on trail was really high. Better to deal with it before hand.
Even if you're still using the gum during the hike, it's still better than dipping in every way.
I've tried the patch but it didn't work well for me while being active, I'd sweat it off.
I did quit smoking on the trail. Not for any health reason, but it really did affect my hiking.
I started back up again later.
Chaco Taco
12-07-2009, 12:21
Im day 5 into the 50th attempt to quit smoking. Finally broke down and got on the patch.
I quit prior to my thruhike and started back up again in Fontana. Quit last year for 6 months and started back just after Traildays
vamelungeon
12-07-2009, 13:00
Im day 5 into the 50th attempt to quit smoking. Finally broke down and got on the patch.
I quit prior to my thruhike and started back up again in Fontana. Quit last year for 6 months and started back just after Traildays
I can relate to that. I "quit" a bunch of times, just like Mark Twain. I've been off of cigarettes 2 years now. I said earlier I had smoked 37 years but I was wrong in my math, it was 35 years. It was a real part of who I am and I enjoyed it but I'm glad I quit (hopefully for good).
SassyWindsor
12-07-2009, 13:42
quit or don't quit, just don't throw your butts in the ground or in the fire ring. I get tired of cleaning out fire rings cause some inconsiderate bastard thinks they are entitled to trash the place.
GOOD LUCK on this request. More butts per mile on the AT than any other litter. I have never seen a smoking hiker pack up a butt and you're talking to somebody thats seen at least one or two dogs leashed out of so many that are not.
Smokers should try hypnosis. Litterers should be flogged.:)
Chaco Taco
12-07-2009, 13:54
GOOD LUCK on this request. More butts per mile on the AT than any other litter. I have never seen a smoking hiker pack up a butt and you're talking to somebody thats seen at least one or two dogs leashed out of so many that are not.
Smokers should try hypnosis. Litterers should be flogged.:)
Always used to pack out my butts
I quit dipping Skoal about 5 years ago after about 24 years of dipping. Skoal was the only thing I dipped. I tried quitting before but always started back up. The biggest thing that helped me was my mother who has recently passed from cancer. One day she asked me to quit and I did. You have to have something to fight for, something else to focus on. You have to make up your mind and do it. You cannot doubt yourself. You just quit.
Okie Dokie
12-07-2009, 19:13
Heard a joke from a snuff user years ago:
Why should you never kiss a redneck cowgirl ? - she'll try to steal your "dip"...
My apologies, in advance, for treading on a somewhat serious thread...
chiefduffy
12-08-2009, 04:15
That's truly disgusting. And funny.
As a dislaimer....i know its a horrible habit....please dont judge me. Especially since i'm an icu nurse and see its deadliness every day. However, I have used some form of tobacco since i was 14. Through multiple years in the army, middle east deployments, and years of late night studying in college, and many traumatic experiences it has been the one constant in my life. Cigarettes for many years, but now mostly snuff. When I was on the trail before there were a good number of smokers smoking away. However I would really like to taked this oppurtunity to quit once and for all. At least cigarettes and dip. I'll always have the occassional pipe or cigar. Has anyone else dealt with this? Anone able to quit while hiking? anyone not able to kick the habit despite the added expense and weight?
Its especially ironic becasue i often tell my girlfriend one of the reasons for doing this is i somehow believe this will make me a healthier person for years to come and probally add years to my life. I have already cut back ALOT, but i cringe every time i swipe my card for another 5 bucks to support the habit.
this may help, knew a guy who looked similar to him when i was younger, kept me from picking up the habit, and i tell the story about that guy to anyone who thinks dipping is healthier than smoking
http://www.deseretnews.com/photos/2780764.jpg
njordan2
12-09-2009, 00:56
Nicotine is some amazing stuff. It is so poisonous that plants which produce nicotine can be dried, pulverized and the powder sprayed on other plants to kill them. All of them. Grass, weeds, trees all die when they contact nicotine. In humans 50mg of nicotine per kg of body weight will kill you. For Cocaine that number is 95mg, for arsenic that number is 135mg. So nicotine is twice as deadly as cocaine and nearly 300% deadlier than arsenic.
It's addictive properties are unmatched in the natural world. It overloads, then destroys and finally replaces the chemical dopamine receptors on brain neurons. This is the absolute definition of physio-chemical addiction: overloads so you feel good, destroys so you need more, replaces so without it you feel bad.
In fact nicotine destroys a greater percentage of these receptor than methamphetamines or even heroin! Just look at rehabilitation clinics, or whatch a rehab show on T.V. People are trying to quit doing meth or heroin or cocaine, but in rehab they let you smoke. They even encourage you to smoke by facilitating smoking and giving smoke breaks.
This is because they know you stand a chance of quiting heroin, but you do not stand a chance at quiting nicotine.
However, it seems a hike would help one quit, if for no other reason than physiological. Maybe quit the morning of the day you hit the trail and bring no nicotine with you. This ensures that you will go at least one day without nicotine, and then you are almost done. Just make it one more day and you will have quit forever!