This week, we're getting away from our usual Show and Tell format. We're not sharing pictures of cute crafts or decorated DSes. Instead, we sat down with one of our readers to discuss a pretty serious subject: smoking. Or, more specifically, quitting smoking. More specifically still? Quitting smoking by playing Pokémon. Reader Dan is doing just that, and we sat down with him to discuss his unusual decision.Next week, we'll be back to our usual format, but remember -- if you have something to show off, be it a collection, a craft, or yes, even a story (like Dan's), take some pictures or write it up and sent the lot to showmeit [at] dsfanboy [dot] com. We'll take care of the rest.
How long have you been a smoker, and what led to your decision to quit?
I was a smoker for five years. I started smoking later than most of my friends, at age 20, whereas the majority of my friends who smoke started smoking around the age of 16. I stayed away from cigarettes longer because I have chronic asthma, I was diagnosed with it at the age of two. But one day the girl I had a crush on said to me, "You'd look so hot with a cigarette right now." So I lit up and became addicted. Worst reason to do something ever. I started with Camel Lights and from there ran a gamut of all the popular and not-so-popular brands until settling upon Marlboro Lights as my personal brand. In the beginning, I smoked less than half a pack a day, but near the end, I was up to two packs a day. For a chronic asthma sufferer, this only worsened things tenfold. Not to mention that I was paying around $300 a month to feel like crap. It was because of these two reasons that I made the choice to finally, ahem, stomp out this bad habit.
"I just decided that I was going to play Pokémon instead of smoking. So I went down to the local Target and purchased Pokémon Pearl." |
I can't really say for sure what made me choose Pokémon to help me quit. Back when Pokémon Red and Blue first came out, I was addicted to those games. I caught them all, even borrowing a friend's Gameshark to help me get the elusive number 151, Mew. After that, I more or less forgot about Pokémon for 10 years or so. It was only while getting trophies in Super Smash Brothers Brawl that I was reminded of all the different Pokémon, and I became sort of nostalgic for the series. Then one day in-between rounds, I just decided that I was going to play Pokémon instead of smoking. So I went down to the local Target and purchased Pokémon Pearl.
How does it work? Walk us through the process.
I decided that every time that I wanted a cigarette, I would turn on my DS and play some Pokémon. But the thing about going from two packs a day to cold turkey is that at first, you always want a cigarette. So the first three days, I did nothing but play Pokémon non-stop. My routine was to sleep extra late (because if I'm not awake, I'm not craving a smoke), play Pokémon for about 8 hours with breaks to stretch and eat, read Pokémon walkthroughs, F.A.Q.s, strategies, and websites, and then sleep. Experience has shown me from previous attempts to quit smoking that the hardest thing is to be around other smokers. Unfortunately for me, every single one of my friends that I see on a regular basis are smokers. So for those first few days, I went into seclusion, locking myself in my room and not answering my phone. After the initial push, it just required the willpower to keep playing Pokémon instead of smoking.
How long have you been doing this now? Any backsliding?
Today marks day 40 without cigarettes. The 10th day was the first day I saw my friends since I made the commitment to quit, and was the one time where I slipped. My friends and I like to drink some, and to celebrate my quitting we drank a little bit more. After they left that night, I found a wayward cigarette and lit it up. I took three puffs, retched a few times and quickly stamped it out. I blame the whole experience on the booze. [laughs]
Do you think this would work as well with other games? Got any suggestions?I think this worked so well for me with Pokémon because I had a previous Pokémon addiction when I was 15. As a previous Pokémaniac I knew what to expect with the new generation of Pokémon games. In the past I have also been addicted to other games, such as World of Warcraft. The reason why World of Warcraft was not helpful to curb my addiction was that as much as I played it, it made me rather stressed out, and caused me to crave more cigarettes. I tried playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl, but when I play that game I end up getting too into it and playing too hard and I end up needing a break every 20 or 30 minutes. And what would I do during that break? I would smoke. Pokémon worked well because it was able to engage both my mind and my hands for an extended period of time, and I needed no break from Pokémon. To help you in the process of quitting smoking, I would recommend any game that is able to grab your mind and keep you entertained and engaged for an extended period of time.
Any words of wisdom for other people trying to quit?
The best advice I can give to anyone who is trying to quit is this: Just keep with it. The longer you go without smoking, the easier it is to go without smoking.
As a former smoker (three years off now!), this blogger fully agrees. Thanks for taking the time to talk with us, and good luck with the quitting!
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)
4-17-2008 @ 9:58PM
Alisha Karabinus said...
I took a lot of walks when the craving hit. Wish I'd thought to try a little gaming as replacement... but then again, gaming made me want to smoke!
4-17-2008 @ 4:56PM
paulypies said...
Congratulations and keep it up!
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4-17-2008 @ 5:35PM
Fululian said...
Why do you want to push people into stopping to smoke. Isn't this a personal decision after all...modern times.
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4-17-2008 @ 6:11PM
hvnlysoldr said...
Free will is a very hard concept to understand. The truth that people will and choose to do evil causes anger.
4-17-2008 @ 6:37PM
andy said...
Yes its a choice, but its one that a large number of people regret. This article isnt trying to condemn people for smoking, its just one example of how you could go about quitting if you wanted to. Its ok to choose to smoke, and its ok to choose to quit (even though the latter is much much harder.)
4-17-2008 @ 6:39PM
Terrorbyt3 said...
Who said anything about wanting to "push" people into not smoking? This is just a story (my story, actually :D) about a guy who decided to quit on his own. This isn't one of those lame and infuriating "truth" or "the lighter side of truth" commercials. This is about a guy who made a personal decision to stop smoking.
4-17-2008 @ 7:07PM
Alisha Karabinus said...
So where exactly does it say EVERYONE HAS TO QUIT SMOKING NOW? Sometimes, people want to quit. Often, those same people have a difficult time quitting. That's all.
And this is a pretty unique way of doing it! Thanks for sharing your story with us, Terrorbyt3. :)
4-17-2008 @ 6:15PM
hvnlysoldr said...
Hi I'm a pokemaniac. I spent over 255 hours on one Blue file. 100 previous to that file. Another 100 or so between multiple Blue files. 30 hours on Yellow. 200 hours on Silver. Probably 20-60 hours on Pokemon Stadium 1 & 2. Helped my brother's Ruby files 30 hours twice. 40 hours on Diamond. Spent over $40 on Pokemon cards. And my brother had a Red, Yellow, Gold, Ruby, and Pearl.
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4-17-2008 @ 7:46PM
Fululian said...
So everybody agrees that smoking isn't worth any causes.
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4-17-2008 @ 7:59PM
GenSpec said...
Hi, I have been off the smokes now for just over 5 months after having been a smoker for 30 years. I find that the DS is the perfect diversion when the urge takes you to grab a fag. I agree with Alisha and have found games like Zoo Keeper and Puzzle Quest are great to keep your hands (and mind) occupied for short bursts.
Good luck with your quitting.
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4-17-2008 @ 9:29PM
manaman said...
Congratulations Terrorbyt3!
Keep it up, man! It's coincidental that today I bought a used DS game and the previous owner was a smoker as the game, case, manual, etc REEKS of cigarette smoke. It's really disgusting and if it causes me to get teary eyed, feel my throat close up and get a headache, I know that the previous owner must not have any sense of smell whatsoever.
As a suggestion for you, Terrorbyt3--and anyone else who may have used games that smell of smoke--you can purchase oils that you put a drop of into a dish of water and put that and any offending objects (ie, whatever reeks of cigarette smoke) in a box covered with a trash bag. Leave it, and the smells will go away. There are also gels that are in a canister that do the same thing but all you have to do is unscrew the cap. Make sure that you pick up something that REMOVES smells rather than simply covers them up. They do exist. Read the fine print.
Good luck!
manaman
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4-17-2008 @ 9:52PM
rudimentalist said...
Pokemon Diamond helped me get over a really depressing break-up with my ex-gf of a year and a half.
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4-18-2008 @ 12:28AM
marusame00 said...
I went cold turkey too not but 2 weeks ago. Ive been playing alot of smash bros, browsing the net with my wii, Playing halo 3, and playing oblivion. Course, i never really craved a cig that bad for some reason. I smoked about half a pack a day, and have done it for around 5-6 years. No more cigs, means no more awkward aiming ni H3.
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4-18-2008 @ 3:47PM
Roth said...
This reminds me of a drawing I did in 1998 junior high when the Pokemon series arrived to America.
Here's my drawing:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v427/rstrax/my_drawings/pokemon03.jpg
// Roth
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4-21-2008 @ 12:34AM
John said...
Hmmm I always hear that smoking is addictive and whe I saw you got addicted so easily I was amazed! I once smoked with a friend cause we were in the countryside and we had nothing better to do and it was fun but I really didn't feel addicted and I smoked a few times after that and one time I just got really dizzy so I decided I wouldn't smoke it anymore and it wasn't hard at all to stop.
Great story!
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4-21-2008 @ 4:10AM
Lucky225 said...
Terrorbyt3,
Been a while since I heard from you, never thought you'd be the subject of an applegeeks joke.
http://www.applegeeks.com/lite/index.php?aglitecomic=2008-04-21
peace :P
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4-21-2008 @ 11:25PM
cwhitely said...
congratulations man!
i sure wish i could get my brother to stop...ugh smoking is awful! but it's his life and maybe he'll find the pokemon for himself.
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4-24-2008 @ 2:23PM
eisor said...
i wish i could use pokemon to quit but unfortunatley im allready addicted to pokemon AND ciggs....
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5-05-2008 @ 11:25AM
milan said...
now you have to start smoking to quit Pokemon
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6-20-2008 @ 1:18PM
soroso said...
That's great to stop smoke by playing a game as opposed to replacing it with eating. But replacing one addiction with another addiction isn't actually solving the problem: having an addiction. What happens when pokemon is no longer interesting? Treating the problem of addiction is more important than treating what you're addicted to (and this individual, by the sounds of it, has a problem with becoming addicted to things).
It's good to not smoke, but notice that the danger of addiction has not been erased here (video game addiction is no better than any other type).
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