Your best friend has recently started smoking.You want to ask him to stop it for his own health
Answers
I have been in your shoes for a long time now. I have tried and failed, rather miserably, at convincing my friends to give up smoking.
The important thing to understand is that people who smoke choose to do so despite its ill-effects. Do not make the mistake of believing even for a teensy bit of a second that they are oblivious to the dangers of smoking.
Cancer, lung diseases, heart attacks, deaths — they know it all too well. The horror story isn’t so terrifying for them because addiction renders the smokers tone-deaf to logic and reasoning.
They would enthusiastically match each of your evidence with excuses. Your concerns with callousness. And your advice with artifice.
I have gone as far as taking a few of my friends to Bodies - The Exhibition where actual bodies are preserved delicately but beautifully to depict the human anatomy. The section assigned to effects of smoking portrayed the horrific effects of the fatal addiction on lungs harvested from long term smokers (after their deaths). My friends, after the ‘ohs and ahs’, came out, went home, and… smoked, again. So much for that.
‘I’m young — I’ve time — I can stop whenever I want — My lungs are healthy — I’m not addicted — I smoke socially — It’s my life,’ I have heard every/any/all versions of this. It is almost a lost cause.
Your heart may be in the right place but unless you are someone of considerable influence in their life, the power of words isn’t going to help with your rescue mission. I’m sorry.
The best you can do is point them to therapy, send them in direction of professional help — even then they must be willing to follow through. Continue to voice your worry time and again but, in the process, be careful to not turn your presence into white noise — don’t be too pushy, don’t nag.
Tread carefully. Try your best but know that power doesn’t reside in your hands. Distance yourself if need be. Lastly, hope against hope for their good health.
I wrote a letter to urge him to stop smoking.
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Address
Dear friend ,
Hope you are in good health .
Smoking leads to great health hazards.It not only takes away the smoker's life but also his surrounding people's life too. Tobacco is severely injurious to health and can cause cancer.
You should not smoke because you still have to live for sixty years more . Your mother expects you to score well and get a great career . Please stop smoking so that you do not have to regret .
Pay regards to aunt and uncle.
Yours lovingly ,
Jishnu.