The problem that I identified in my infographic is difficult to resolve but as people become more aware, they will realize how much they are giving up for little in return. Breaking habits, such as tobacco use, pressures individuals to begin seeking alternatives in hope to relieve stress and anxiety. There are many alternatives to using tobacco products such as nicotine gum, e-cigarette’s, and sunflower seeds just to name a few. Substituting tobacco use for other alternatives can be a healthier decision to make, but getting rid of the mentality to need something like tobacco is a far greater achievement.
The road to freeing ones self from using tobacco is more like being prepared to mountain climb but rather packed to go up a slippery slide in the park. The bottom of the slide is climbable but as you become more elevated with a steeper slope you lose the ability to think rationally and slip a step and end up back where you started. After many failed attempts to make it, you begin to seek other routes. With a greater perspective of the situation, finding a more plausible way up the slide can be achieved.
When its time to finally make the decision to quit using tobacco there are many ways to support it. In an article posted on the Washington Post by Abby Philip, after conducting a small study with 15 heavy smokers (19 cigarettes a day), 12 of them continued to quit smoking 6 months after participating in the study. The participants of this study were treated with hallucinogenic drugs along with therapy over a 15-week period. Matthew W. Johnson, the studies lead author, is an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (Smoking-Attributable). Johnson believes that the treatment targets addiction and has a bright road ahead of itself as a medical treatment. Johnson talks about the role-taking place when treated with the hallucinogen stating, “That kind of personality openness is consistent with addiction recovery,” then gives insight of the mind set the patients inquire by saying, “They have these ‘aha’ moments where they believe ‘wow, I can do this’ ” (Smoking-Attributable).
Although, treatments like this are very rare to participate in due to the legality of the medicine but taking a trip out of the country may open your options. With more awareness of the harm tobacco is causing to the health of users and second hand users along with more interest in treatments with psychedelic’s we can progress as a healthier population. We are skeptical of the benefits to using psychedelics as treatment because of the way media has portrayed frightful events that had taken place under the influence of hallucinogens. It may not be what it is hyped to be and it may not be beneficial to some but it has had a greater turnout with 80% of treated patients continuing to say no to tobacco. Traditional quitting methods and hotline calling support have 1 in 4 smokers were able break the habit. In 2010, half of the smoking adults said they were going to quit smoking, yet 480,000 deaths a year are attributed to tobacco use. With results like this, they’re should be far more news and awareness of psychedelic treatments (Smoking-Attributable).
Works Cited
“Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Years of Potential Life Lost, and Productivity Losses — United States, 2000- -2004.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 13 Nov. 2008. Web. 16 July 2015. <http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5745a3.htm>.
jstar9838 
I hate to say it but how will you get people to quit? Or want another alternative? As a previous smoker, I was told by doctors I had to quit because of my heart, yet even then I was sneaking a cigarette here and there. I tried the ecig but it was not the same. How do you propose to help people continue with the alternatives? My husband is still a smoker and he had used the patch at 20 and at 24 he is still a smoker. While the alternatives are good and do help people quit, they also need a help system or they will fail. And even then it is ultimately up to them. I was smoking since 15 and at the age of 18 I had to quit. My health did not really change my mind but the thought of the future did. Did I want my children to have to take care of me and did I want to choose a substance over them like my parents did? Heck no, so I decided to use the ecig. I used that for about six months then quit it when I had the flu, it was just not appealing anymore. I am now 19 and pregnant, and thankful that I was smart enough to think of the future and kids, because with out that I would not have quit. Overall, you need to focus on how to get people to quit, and how to make sure they see it through and not give up, which I am sure you found statistics on but did not use in your blog post, which is understandable. And I am not trying to be mean sorry, I am just used to debates where we have to get dirty haha. One assumption I think people will agree with is your alternatives. However, as I just explained, it is not the alternatives that matter but the person in general. And everyone is different so using a statistic for something like this will not be accurate, especially if you do not have the information on those who failed to quit all the way. Also, the method your approving is to substitute one drug for another, which is not helpful, trust me. I started drinking more after quitting smoking, which led to having to become sober from that as well. Substitution is never the answer, because the person will rely on it more than they should.
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I would have to disagree with your opinion on whether or not substituting is the answer. Every decision we make is substituting one thing for something less important. I don’t see myself as a quitter, so I like to view any situation like this as another step to being a better you. Acknowledging yourself for making good decisions will help to build confidence and an ability to see yourself through harsh times. Making short term goals are just as important as making long term goals. In any situation where want and desire overrule the necessity of life, think of the trade off and make a goal to achieve. Short term goals to achieve in 30 second increments or 15 seconds can be helpful to keep busy and your mind off unnecessary choices. One substitute I found to be helpful was eating sunflower seeds. I always have a couple bags of sunflower seeds in my car which has been vital on road trips and nodding off sets in. I have empathy for people attempting to quit, one generous friend can be quite persuadable even if you don’t usually smoke. I believe that the overall best thing to happen is to make tobacco illegal. We need to make the decision to save tobacco users from themselves because of the fact that advertising companies have manipulated our minds into thinking we need and want cigarettes to release stressful tension and to socialize. In America, more than half of the tobacco users say they attempt to quit using but still 480,000 deaths are reported here in America linked to tobacco use. That is outrageous when comparing 40,000 casualties a year from car accidents in america. But these are just statistics and are probably just summed from one populated area for the entire nation.
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