smoking and cancer...Susie

[Guest guest]

Susie said....

I'm just freaking out lately because of the lung

cancer in my husband's and my family ... these depressing reports on a daily

basis

I'm so sorry you and your family are going thru this. About 6 years ago my

Step Mother passed from liver cancer that had spread from her

colon...another that is caused by smoking. It is absolutely a gut wrenching

thing for a family to have to go thru. I hope you all find some kind of

peace....my heart goes out to you.

Susie further said....

Before all this, lung cancer was an abstraction ... not even the main reason

I quit smoking.

It wasn't for me either and I understand what you mean about the abstraction

thing...my primary reason was my Husband (a non smoker) just nagged me so

much I got sick of hearing it...but after watching what my Step Mom went

thru I now just pray I quit soon enough....29 years was a long time to have

smoked and I know plenty of damage was probably done to my body.

I wasn't complaining about my depression....I readily accept it as a

consequence of my bad behavior (smoking) but I still understand it from a

smokers point of view...and I guess I always will. I honestly view myself as

one of the lucky depression sufferers...my meds work very well on

me...something that not every depression sufferer can say. But I do feel

it's important that people understand it's a treatable illness and to

recognize it for what it is (often people who are depressed don't know it).

Anyhow...At the point I had quit I was feeling often ostracized...being

" kicked out " of people's houses to hang on the front step to smoke...always

being lectured by non-smokers. When I quit I made my DH promise me we would

never ask a family member or friend to do that. I felt it was more important

for them to understand we love them no matter their behavior. Yes being

exposed to second had smoke does not thrill me now and I do have to air my

house after a smoker has visited but it's not that often I have to deal with

it so I don't view it as any huge thing. So now I just try to be supportive

of people who say they want to quit. I know some honest information from a

ex-smoker can go a long way because often fear is mostly what is stopping

someone from quitting...and I feel if they understand what they are really

facing most times they will realize they can handle it.

Deb