This is a rather strange thread I guess. Basically I had some sort of bad cold or maybe a flu. When I’m sick my desire for tobacco goes down the toilet so I was only snuffing once or twice a day. That was just for five days, surely not long enough to break a heavy tobacco habit of 8 years. But the desire didn’t come pack. It’s been over a week since I got better and the greatest number of times I’ve snuffed in one day is maybe six. Today I’ve only snuffed one single time since I woke up, compared to before the flu when I would start to feel sleepy and foggy-headed 45 minutes after my last pinch. It’s just so peculiar I felt like starting a thread about it. I still do like snuff and will continue to use it and perhaps I will go back to heavy use. But really the addiction is gone for now, like a light-switch was flipped.
Good for you , I found I wasn’t addicted to tobacco itself, Having no withdrawal symptoms while hospitalized or cravings. My addiction is the consumption of this pleasureful plant in most forms. Unlike cancer sticks which I struggled for years to kick. Must be something in those coffin nails that cause such insanity
It doesn’t always happen but last night was one of those when I awoke at about 4am and knew in my brain that the nic was low plus I was cold as we’re having some snow and ice currently and I also had to go to the loo, so nothing else for it but to get up and have a good snuff and a piece of nicotine gum for extra insurance as I still don’t have my snus order yet. I don’t want to have to take a snus during the night if possible but maybe it might be ok. Think the more nic I take the more I need to keep topping up. Can’t imagine livng without it but I suppose that is the way of all addictions. For me smokng did have an extra strong pull which also took me decades to overcome. I think it must be whatever they are adding to the smokes. At least I’m not addicted to anything else!? Everyone has some kind of obssesion or dependancy on something or other. Probably largely an emotional crutch of some sort be it cake or painkillers or yoga? or whatever.
I had flu that messed with my taste buds for weeks after the flu ended. Guinness tasted like sour cream. Suffice to say my taste buds got back to normal eventually, and I was back pouring it down my throat. I’m wondering if a similar thing is happening to you @horus92
Just shows we’re all pretty different or at different stages. I’ve got Aspergillosis which can apparently be between 50-90% fatal and I still want to snuff all of the time. I would probably benefit from having this habit switch flicked to off but no sign of that happening so I must prepare for a forced abstinance.
I snuff like a fiend when I’m working at my desk. But like others, when I’m out and about, I don’t take it and don’t miss it
When I got mononucleosis on it’s typhoid variation (extra nasty version, that is: less pain but more fatigue and lack of will to do anything for a couple of weeks) a few weeks ago, my desire for snuff was gone. And after getting better I realized that, even in normal circumstances, it would be pretty easier for me to quit than if I smoked cigarettes. Perhaps the brain reacts differently to different ways of nicotine intake. Also, withdrawal from snuff seems fairly similar to lack of coffee: perhaps you feel a little sleepy and that’s it. With cigarette withdrawal we have the angry stage, the restless stage, the anxious stage, the “I hate my life” stage… I wasn’t a big smoker, nor did I have a well developed addiction, and I still managed to feel pretty miserable when I stopped smoking without snuff. With snuff, it’s been a bliss. I also think that smoking cigars without inhaling the smoke and smoking pipes gives me more similar sensations to snuff than to cigarettes, so I think withdrawal symptoms should be lower than those of cigarettes. Also, @JakartaBoy is right: is great to have easy nic and refreshment when one is on a sedentary position, but if I’m on an “on the move” day, I can do with a couple of pinches or three and feel quite dandy.
I’ve never found myself to be chemically addicted (well…I had a year or two dalliance with cigarettes about a decade ago, but quit with only minimal effort). That said, I find that I’m “addicted” (in a way) to the tobacco hobby. I love all things pipe and snuff, plus some cigars thrown in during the summer by the pool. It’s not the nicotine that I crave - like most of you, I can go days or weeks without it and never feel a craving. It’s the experience. There is something about the ritual that goes along with fine tobacco, the taste experience, and the overall act of enjoying the leaf, that just soothes the soul. To me, it’s the same as saying an enthusiast of fine wine can do so without being an alcoholic, or that folks who like spending an evening at the casino can do so without being a gambling addict. It’s a hobby (and a damn fine one, I think), and it’s “addictive” in the way that we all have a sort of addiction, so to speak, to the things we enjoy.
There is a phenomenon that hasn’t yet been explained whereby the rate of lung cancer is higher in people who recently quit smoking. There are two prevailing theories: The first is that it might be that, despite causing lung cancer, smoking may also provide a protective effect. the second is that it might be that the body ‘knows something is wrong’ and the person loses the craving to smoke. The second theory is the more popular because these patients often report that they quit because they just didn’t feel like smoking any more. If this is true, then perhaps other illnesses can have a similar effect, even mild ones like the one you had? http://cancergrace.org/lung/2009/11/30/can-smoking-cessation-be-a-presenting-symptom-of-lung-cancer/
There’s growing evidence that addiction is not strictly a chemical thing, but hinges heavily on psychological factors. A change of circumstances or social milieu can alter cravings. This applies just as much to hard drugs as it applies to tobacco or alcohol. Here’s an article that recently came out which touches on some of the studies: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/johann-hari/the-real-cause-of-addicti\_b\_6506936.html
I find that, like many others here, my addiction to snuff or nicotine, seems to vary. I realized the other day that I wasn’t snuffing as much as I normally do. I don’t know why that is. I think it is psychological. Thats the only thing I can think of… I sometimes take out one of my many cigar boxes of snuff, each one has their own brands inside, and pinch from almost all of them, getting a huge nicotine rush. Other times, I just randomly grab 2 or 3 tins and will use them all day. I seldom think of selecting a rotation. I just want the taste or nicotine of the snuff. This is an interesting thread. Addiction is a strange beast. I’ve gone through many in my life. Stress seems to stimulate my own addiction to snuff. But then again, when I am chilling out and relaxing, I still like to snuff. Who knows?
@cpmcdill: I just read the article you linked to. Very good information. I could totally relate to the “Rat Park” theory, 'tho it has nothing to do with snuff use, the heroin experiment I can relate to in a very personal way. It was 20 years ago, and I was like the isolated, unhappy rat. Moving to a new life with snow and horses, cats and goats, lots of good things to do…got me clean and kept me so.
Good article. Funily I was just listening to this guy on the radio taking about his theory this morning. I’ve often heard of these positive results in Portugal and if true then it would seem to be a good thing to adapt widely. The guy told of an instance in an Arizona prison when a prisoner was withdrawing and getting out of control and pleading for help so they put her in a cage out in the sun with no water and basically left her to cook to death. She’s definitely not addicted now. Seems we can learn a lot from Rats. Brings to mind the term Rat Race. Life hard a yard. I pretty much keep to myself as I find most people are actually draining and can add stress to your life so yes snuff is probably a substitute friend.
For me smokng did have an extra strong pull which also took me decades to overcome. I think it must be whatever they are adding to the smokes.
Actually I think it’s the Carbon Monoxide (CO) that we are/were addicted too, since it’s “relaxing”. Kind of in the same way as breathing in a brown paper bag to calm yourself…
I think I may have to agree about the Carbon Monoxide. With snuff I usually feel more alert but, not to the point of anxiety.
When I’m sick my consumption of snuff goes up, probably because I’m bored and want to feel better.