Can I Become An Ex-Smoker? Watch Me Try .

This is the first post by Drew Grant, Associate Editor of our sister site, Crushable, about her efforts to quit smoking using the Become An Ex program.

Telling people you’re quitting smoking just doesn’t have the same social impact that say, kicking heroin or drying out from alcohol does. You never see an episode of A&E’s Intervention where worried friends and family trick a three-pack-a-day fiend into a small room so that Dr. Jeff VanVonderen can give them the option of rehab. Why not?

Well, for one thing, smoking is generally thought of as more of a symptomatic problem: It’s what you do along with drinking, or snorting cocaine, or what have you, and therefore isn’t the main issue for most people with “bad habits.” That’s why in AA or NA, you’re actually encouraged to smoke as many cigarettes as you need. In fact, there’s usually a 15-minute smoking break in the middle of meetings – because it’s best to quit the drug that’s going to kill you the fastest, and then worry about your “cigarette crutch” later.

The second reason that telling someone “I’m quitting smoking” generally doesn’t have the same dramatic reaction as other drugs is because it doesn’t seem that hard. Right? Much like your friends who can’t understand why you aren’t able to limit your drinking like they are, people are even less inclined to believe that cigarettes (which don’t even get you high!) require that much willpower to kick. Especially now that in New York City, for instance, the new tax has raised the price of those little cancer sticks to more than a dime-bag of pot.

But, as someone who has quit smoking before (for a year-and-a-half, along with drinking and any sort of recreational drug use), trying to stop this time around seemed like a way more daunting task. After all, when I quit before I was making a major life change; today I’m just over-stressed, sleep-deprived, and can’t afford $12.50 a pack anymore. And those first two things are what I believe smoking relieves – it’s that five-minute break, that hit of nicotine, that moment of relaxation before you realize you’ve become one of those chain-smokers who seem constantly on the verge of a meltdown while stubbing out one butt and immediately lighting another.

So when Blisstree asked if I wanted to blog about quitting using the Become An EX program, it dovetailed with these other reasons why I think about quitting: It doesn’t feel good to smoke during the summer (it’s like breathing fire); the higher cost; and the fact that I was asked because I’m the only one in the office who even smokes.

So far, even though EX hasn’t fully kicked my habit (the program allows you to pick your end date, and last Monday I picked mine to be July 28), it’s made me aware of not only why I should quit smoking, but also why I feel the need to smoke in the first place. What I didn’t realize is that this seemingly no-brainer stunt would end up being much, much harder than I thought. I guess I’m one of those people who thought that “I’m quitting smoking” was barely worth mentioning. Turns out, I need all the help I can get.