Steps to quit smoking

Hello all! Long time since I last posted something! So here I am! Back!

My first article since months is going to be about a very sensitive subject: Smoking!
After some research here are the steps to do so... Read carefully and enjoy!

Want to die? Quit reading. Want to live? Then continue reading. According to the American Heart Association, approximately 26.2 million men and 20.9 million women in the United States are smokers. Smoking is well known for its damaging effects to the lungs, skin, heart and brain. The steps to quite are setting a program, joining a support team and for extreme cases Medical therapy

The first step to quit smoking is setting a program. There are many ways to do this, for example one can each month smoke one cigarette less than the last month. This is a long and smooth transition to quit smoking and to feel less frustrated by the desire to smoke. Another way of setting a program is to do activities with family and friends that will keep your mind away from cigarette. Indeed the less you think about cigarette, the less the desire to smoke one will cross your mind. Plus family will always be there to help you because they care about your health. Including family in your program is a big plus in order to stop smoking the death stick. And finally you should include major dietary adjustments. Cleaning up the diet can be a helpful tactic. Often times, smoking is done in conjunction with the consumption of fatty foods and alcohol. Replacing these foods with more nutrient-dense options like fruits and vegetables will help avert you away from smoking.

The next step is to join a support team. When joining a support team you can have access to precious advices from ex-smokers, they will tell you that it is a difficult and long way but they are the proof that it is still possible thus giving you some hope. Also in support team you are in company of people who are in phase of quitting. So that you will know that you are not the only one trying to escape from the evil grip of the cigarette. This is more a psychological effect that helps you and your ego greatly, especially when you feel the urge to smoke. Finally if you are about to have a nervous breakdown and have a cigarette you can always ask someone to take cigarettes away from you so that you won’t be able to give in to temptation.

The final step is a Medical therapy; and it is used for heavy smokers. It could be Acupuncture. In fact acupuncture is one of the oldest known medical techniques, and it is believed to work by triggering the release of endorphins (natural pain relievers) that allow the body to relax. As a smoking cessation aid, acupuncture can be helpful in managing smoking withdrawal symptoms. Another aspect of medical therapy is Nicotine Replacement therapy. This involves "replacing" cigarettes with other nicotine substitutes, such as nicotine gum or a nicotine patch. It works by delivering small and steady doses of nicotine into the body to relieve some of the withdrawal symptoms without the tars and poisonous gases found in cigarettes. This type of treatment helps smokers focus on breaking their psychological addiction and makes it easier to concentrate on learning new behaviors and coping skills. Finally the medical therapy could be a Non-nicotine Medication. This therapy consist of using (absorbing) a substance that will fool your nervous system. There are 2 substances recommended by Doctors. One is called bupropion, it has an effect on the nicotine receptors in your brain through a chemical associated with the pleasure of smoking cigarettes. The other is called varenicline, this medication acts like nicotine and fools the receptors in the brain into believing they’ve already had their dose of nicotine.

Smoking is bad for your health as it takes away years from your lifespan, one should quit smoking by setting a program, joining a support team or by using a medical therapy.

Beirut On Fire

I was studying like a normal university student when I feel like it is time I check Facebook. I open ad the first post that shows up is by Samer Karam who posted this an image of a big black smoke screen coming from Beirut. I will let the image speak for now and update this section as soon as I have more information

Image by Samer N.

Image by Samer Karam

[UPADTE 1] It seems to be a warehouse full of tire burning down


[UPDATE2] Now that thick smog over Beirut has faded into the invisibility of night, I turned to the evening news for some answers. Unfortunately they were few and far between as most stations buried the inferno story deep into their newscasts, if they even covered it at all.

Despite plenty of teasers of smoldering fire footage above, the actual report only lasted about 20 seconds. It was just a "read" i.e. no reporter was on the scene and the anchor provided some vague commentary with no indication of who, what, why, etc.

To be fair it was a busy news day with an explosion in Damascus and a reported arms shipment confiscated at the port of Beirut. But none of these stories took up that much time either. So where did the newscast go? To the ruling regime of course!


[UPDATE3] It has been confirmed to be a warehouse full of tires (since 1993 and still stocking until now) that was burning down yesterday afternoon in the Burj Hammoud district. The causes and the responsible of this ecological disaster seems to be until now unknown. Luckily there has been no collateral damage knowing that in Burj Hammoud there are a lot of fuel tanks. 

[UPDATE4] It seems that this fire was caused willingly to extract metal and sell it (Source: L'Orient Le Jour, Greenpeace)