Why Don’t I Find Cigarettes Addictive?

[Tom9348]

So about a month ago I purchased a pack of 20 cigarettes just out of sheer curiosity as to what they tasted like. I found the taste to be somewhat pleasant actually, but I got absolutely no buzz or anything whatsoever from them. It took me a month to finish the pack. I haven't purchased any more since. Whilst smoking this pack I never felt any kind of urge to smoke another in any hurry and since finishing the pack I have had no urge to smoke any more. Obviously I'm glad I didn't find them addictive but curious as to why since most people get addicted to nicotine. 

[nicebloke1]

Because a lot of folk started at a younger age maybe??

[Tom9348]

Nice bloke- yes but what does that have to do with addiction? 

[ToraToraTora]

Did you thoroughly chew them?

[bhg481]

I think it's an addiction that just grows slowly; I've heard that heroon is just the opposite and a single dose can addict you but I've no personal experience.

[douglas9401]

I'm the same with lager, tried it and never became an alcoholic.

 

Funny old world.

[Ken4155]

^

That's because the 'hit' from heroin is instant.

[Tom9348]

Yes but I've heard quite a lot of people who say they became addicted to cigarettes off their first and can't go a day without smoking a full pack 

[barry1010]

Because it doesn't trigger a dopamine release in you, we are all different.  Count yourself lucky

[nicebloke1]

Well in my view an addiction can start when lets say you mix with your gang of friends who smoke and you tend to copy them to keep in with the crowd regardless of weather you like them or not. I tell you this from experience by the way, I hated them when I first started, they tasted awful, but after a time you get to like it. I would think its much about the same as your first time taking the drugs they take today, but the latter is a guess because I don't have experience with such. Other than that I can't think of any other.

 

[Tom9348]

Barry- so people who are addicted to cigarettes, do they get a 'rush' feeling when they smoke? When I smoked I felt nothing at all

[ichkeria]

You smoked approximately two thirds of a cigarette on average in one month, so you would have been in a substantial minority had that alone made you addicted. Nicotine addiction in a complicated thing, like many addictions. Everyone is different. Some US research showed that about 85% of daily smokers are addicted. This figure falls significantly, as you would expect, the less you smoke. You would have been very unlucky to have developed a dependency on one packet in a month.

[Tom9348]

Ichkeria- so people who become addicted have lower impulse control resulting in them smoking more cigarettes rather than them sticking to just one in a single day and because of the increased amount they become addicted?

[ichkeria]

No I didn't make any comment about people other than to note that everyone is different. I am just quoting statistics.

[Prudie]

I'm just stunned that you didn't comment that your first few made you feel sick, dizzy or cough. I'm an ex smoker but never considered their main function was to give me a buzz.

[Atheist]

A genuine new smoker, who actually inhaled, would undoubtedly cough violently, feel dizzy, then sick, and only have another if (s)he was desperate to join the grown-ups club.

Tobacco isn't like 'real' drugs which give you a pleasure rush.

[Tom9348]

Prudie/Athiest- no I didn't get any of those symptoms at all, just drew the smoke in, exhaled it out, didn't feel a thing and actually found the taste to be rather pleasant if I'm honest. It was a pack of Richmond cigarettes 

[juliecarlstan]

Because Your Super Lucky! Seriously tho, do you hang around friends who smoke? I have a need for a cig when anxious. Also, I've heard its people who are orally fixated that get addicted to smoking more easily. I've smoked 25 years, tried to quit a few times. smoking becomes part of every daily routine,

[PAC1960]

It's interesting how experiences with cigarettes can vary so much.