Addiction :: essays research papers

Addiction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  We have all seen the ads on television that show a lady talking and breathing through a hole in her throat. There are also ads that show kids in situations where their peers are trying to get them to smoke. Twenty years ago these types of commercials were not available, instead you had Joe Cool, Marlboro Man, and many beautiful people who are shown as popular and attractive people because of the cigarettes that they were smoking. The truth is it was all a falsity. Those people who smoke will experience more pain and heartache in their shortened lifetime than that of non-smokers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  While I have never smoked, I have seen what it can do to not only those who do smoke, but the people they know as well. Both of my mom’s parents have smoked ever since she had been born. Smoking was not an unusual sight to her. She was also not aware of the adverse affects that smoking has physically, mentally, and emotionally. Nicotine, which is the drug in cigarettes, has been said to be one of the most addictive drugs. Both of my grandparents were addicted, my mom followed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It has been seven years since my grandma has died from smoking. She didn’t get a chance to have a surgery, or any other form of assistance to help her live longer. She died in her sleep of emphysema. This hit my mom very hard as she was close to my grandma. Her death led my mom to attempt to quit smoking several times, all failures. I couldn’t understand why it was so difficult. I had watched my dad kick the habit 4 years prior to my grandma’s death. In my eyes it should be easy to quit something that is so harmful, to not only yourself, but to those around you as well.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  My grandma’s death also led to a few changes in my grandpa’s life. He began to think he didn’t have anything else to live for and constantly would smoke and drink. Both of which has caused him many medical problems in the past year. It appears that among other things, he too has emphysema. With this, he has come close to dying two times in the past year. What is worse is that he knows what is wrong and could do something to change his situation. Where he wouldn’t be able to live forever if he was to quit smoking, he would at least make it a few years longer.