HYDERABAD: On the World No Tobacco Day on May 31, we spoke to people who journeyed from indulging into the habit of smoking, which even became an addiction for many to coming out clean towards a better and healthy life.
Factors such as peer pressure, identity building, fashionable lifestyle and the company were some of the factors which smokers cited for getting into the habit of smoking.
Anushka S started smoking casually with her friends and eventually fell into the habit of regular smoking which went on for four years before she finally decided to quit.
“I wanted to stop smoking completely, knowing the health hazards and I could finally stop it three months back. I stopped hanging around with people who smoke and going to smoking zones to keep them company. I feel good now and would never want to go back to it”
Shakeb Z, an IT professional was a heavy smoker for six years and quit smoking around four years back.
“ I started smoking because of the peer pressure in the college to fit in the group and soon became addicted to it without even realizing how one puff turned into a whole packet a day. But it was my sheer will and change in my perception about life that helped me come out of the addiction. It’s been four years and I haven’t smoked again and will never go back to it”.
K Siddharth shared his journey from being a chain smoker to coming out clean of the addiction as he said, “ I was a smoker for a period of seven years. I used to smoke 3-5 cigarettes a day, which over a time became 20-25 cigarettes per day. My near and dear ones advised me to quit smoking for the sake of my health. After two months, I was able to come out of the habit slowly and its been four years I haven’t smoked a single cigarette.
Zuhab Shaikh who got into smoking as a teenager said that he took up the habit to look cool but later realized that it was not helpful in any way. “ It's been six years that I have been smoking on and off. I am sure that I will be able to quit completely whenever I decide. So the process is still ongoing”.
Many celebrities have also quit years of smoking, such as film stars Hrithik Roshan, Konkana Sen Sharma, Shahid Kapoor, Rajnikanth, Mahesh Babu, Kamal Hassan, Vijay Devrekonda, Arjun Rampal and many more who have set an example before the people to give up on the addiction of smoking.
