News from the Noteworthy from Tobacco-Free Communities: Delaware, Otsego and Schoharie
Yes, There Is Hope, and Help, for Quitting
The first anniversary of my mother’s death from Alzheimer’s disease at age 86 will be on November 14 this year. On November 20, six days later, comes the Great American Smokeout, an annual event since 1977 that encourages smokers nationwide to quit at least for that day. My mom smoked for 40+ years, up to two to three packs a day before she finally quit at age 61, in 1999.
Since beginning my position at Tobacco Free Communities: Delaware, Otsego and Schoharie in December 2019, I have learned smoking affects every organ of one’s body, and increases the risk of contracting many harmful and lethal diseases, including Alzheimer’s. I understand much better now why my mom struggled to quit, why it is so important to keep trying to quit, and to not feel ashamed if you relapse. I also hope if you smoke, you use GASO as an opportunity to try to quit.
My dad, two brothers and I didn’t think my mom would ever be able to quit. She had tried several times before, but they didn’t take. My mom had also inherited her dad’s, my grandpa’s, strong physical health, which seemed to immune her from respiratory or heart diseases or cancer. But she wasn’t fully immune, especially as she aged. In the years before quitting permanently, my mom was getting bronchitis annually, sometimes several times a year. She was diagnosed with sleep apnea in her mid-70s, but had suffered from it for probably a decade before.
My mom also had depression and anxiety for decades before being diagnosed and treated for it in her early 50s. I now know that the nicotine in tobacco often worsens them. Nicotine gives smokers and vapers pleasure and relaxation initially that only lasts a few minutes, followed by the need for more. Their anxiety increases because of the need for more.
