As the annual night of passage and the alcohol consumption that usually accompanies it approaches, I wanted to provide a heads up to the community, and especially to the newly quit. Combining drinking and a quit is a bad idea. Drinking lowers inhibitions, and can lead you to think "just one will be OK." It won't ever be OK to a nicotine addict. It will always, maybe not right away but always, lead you back to where you started - a smoker wanting more than anything to quit.
There is a wealth of information out there on the subject. From one article ".. both alcohol and nicotine are addictive and stimulate the part of your brain that acts on rewards,” explains Marina Picciotto, Ph.D, professor of psychiatry at Yale University, who studies nicotine's affect on the brain. “Taking one is like priming the pump, and it makes you crave the other.” menshealth.com
Mocktails or even seltzer and cranberry juice are a better idea.
This site is filled with anecdotes of quits lost after drinking. Please don't add yours to the tales of woe. Even when a quit is well in hand, it's a good idea to limit your consumption to one or two. A quit is a terrible thing to lose!
Celebrate safely and smoke free this year!
Nancy
