Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Smokin' down the road

Dear Dr. R.V. Shrink:
I’m a recovered “inhaleaholic.” I smoked for thirty years. Now that my wife and I have retired I would like her to quit also. We just bought a new fifth wheel and take delivery by mid-summer. I think it would be great if she would quit before we start using the new rig but she is not open to the idea. She says it is too late to quit, too difficult, and too frustrating to think about. I totally understand, I was there once. Should I give up or keep trying to convince her?
--Butting Heads in Tobacco Row

Dear Butting:
I can think of several good reasons to quit smoking besides your wife’s health. Start with resale of the rig. When I was a kid I worked for the biggest Airstream dealer in the country. In the sixties the interior was a fleck paint coating. When we took in used units it was my job to refurbish, shine the exterior and clean the interior. A trailer owned by a smoker would be the biggest challenge to clean. I would spray the painted surface with a cleaner and the yellow nicotine would melt off. It was so thick you could see a distinct line where I had cleaned. Today most RV’s have more fabric interiors that will hold the nicotine smell forever. If she cannot quit, you may want to work out an agreement where she smokes outside only, or perhaps tries the new vapor Ecigarettes. Unlike Bill Clinton, I “really” never have inhaled, but I can imagine how hard it is to quit any type of nicotine delivery system. In the long run you will save a lot of money giving up this expensive habit that may eventually increase your medical expenses also. If safety, health and cleaning reasons will not help your wife decide to quit, and she doesn’t go for the smoking outside program, you will have a second hand fifth wheel full of second hand smoke. Good luck.
--Keep Smilin’, Dr. R.V. Shrink

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Smoking today is so yuck, most people have quit. New laws even prohibit its use outdoors too, like in public parks, on city streets. Where you gonna smoke. The majority does not want to see you doing it, so why try to continue it?

Penny said...

You can also tell her that her RVing days will be shortened and much less enjoyable when she's hooked to an oxygen tank. And nix on the electronics cigs. Why trade one bad, dirty habit for another one. And that's all it is...a habit. She is not willing to give up a habit. The body's "need" for the nicotine goes away within a week; the rest is just plain habit.

I second the vote for no smoking in the rig!

Cheese Queen said...

E-cigarettes is the answer!

She can continue to inhale her nicotine without all the messy, destructive effects on your RV and the rest of your environment.

Don't mention this to her, but it will also make quitting a lot easier (if she wants to), and if she doesn't quit, the negative health effects of just the nicotine are minimal compared to the other components of smoke.

Nancy said...

I would never buy an RV that had been smoked in, and I think more and more people feel the same way I do! It's hard to quit any addiction, but well worth the effort. She has to WANT to quit, though, if it's going to work. Maybe there's something you can think of that she really wants to help with incentive.

Ellen said...

People quit smoking all the time -- Mrs. Butting Heads can do it if she is determined enough. My father quit -- but only after he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. The cancer metastasized to his brain and he had to have brain surgery just to restore his normal function (he'd been behaving as if he had Alzheimer's or dementia). We made him quit. We cleaned the house, destroyed his cigs, refused to buy them for him. He was recovering from surgery, and had no choice but to chew the Nicorette we got for him. At first I felt guilty, but he became the proudest non-smoker I've ever known. He would ask us to bring neighborhood kids in when he saw them smoking, then show them the ragged scar along the top of his head and say, "This could happen to you!" He died soon after, much before his time.

If she keeps smoking, she'll likely die a miserable, lengthy, painful death, breaking the hearts of everyone who loves her.

You might choose not to publish this comment as it is so graphic, but it's real. It's the side of smoking that no one seems to want to talk about.

Forget e-cigs and vapor things and all that. They actually have MORE nicotine in them than tobacco cigs. It's not an answer, it's an excuse.

Mrs. Butting Heads can show her courage (she has it) and strength (she has that too, especially if she has children) by quitting. Otherwise, it's all just an excuse.

I wish this couple well. It's not an easy problem to face, but face it you must. Good luck to them!

Anonymous said...

Very sorry for your loss, Ellen, but thank you for your very personal and very important message. Maybe it will help save someone's life. Both of my grandfathers literally smoked themselves to death--one from lung cancer and one from emphysema. Even after being diagnosed they refused to quit smoking and both died way too young.

Unknown said...

When we were looking for an RV I had 9 yrs. not smoking and hubby still does. We walked through one that had been owned by a smoker obviously. Hubby was sickened by the smell and promised never to smoke in ours. 5yrs and 3 Rvs later he has kept his promise.

Take your wife to used ones checking them out and she might do the same.
Good luck.
Diane