#WorldNoTobaccoDay: Doctor’s prank helps Durban North man quit smoking
“To stop smoking is the hardest thing. Not everyone can just stop so my advice to them would be to take it one day at a time," Sam Reddy.
IMAGINE your doctor played a prank on you about your health, prompting you to quit smoking.
That’s basically what happened to a Durban North man, Sam Reddy, who gave up smoking eight years ago, after his doctor (and friend) told him the left ventricle of his heart was damaged.
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In light of World No Tobacco Day on May 31, Reddy says it’s one of the best decisions he has ever made for his health.
“It’s actually such a funny story, but it’s one that changed my life for the better. I went to see my doctor the morning after a hectic night out. He performed an ECG but manipulated it to show that my left ventricle was damaged. He gave me the long talk about how I should make some lifestyle changes, starting with quitting smoking, so I did.”
Reddy was smoking about 40 cigarettes a day and because his dad had died of a heart attack, he immediately started to make the necessary changes.
“My sister and I lit up and smoked our last cigarettes and went cold turkey. I noticed a few weeks later that my sense of smell and taste became sharper and I started to feel more energetic. About six months later, I met my doctor friend at the golf course and he noticed I wasn’t smoking and asked why,” said Reddy.
Baffled by this question put to him, Reddy went on to explain the consultation six months prior only to be told that it was a prank.
“We both burst into laughter and he apologised for not calling me to tell me it was just a prank. However, it was one of the best things I have ever done for my health. I did gain some weight after quitting but I still feel much better than I did when I was a smoker,” said Reddy.
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So how exactly did Reddy go cold turkey from 40 cigarettes a day to none?
“Well, besides the fact that I thought there was something wrong with my heart, I set my mind to it. When I felt like smoking, I managed the craving by having a tumeric shot and eating carrots. It filled the gap. I was anxious in the beginning as well so I tricked myself as well,” he said.
Reddy bought himself a cigar which costs R300 and takes about three hours to smoke.
He told himself that if he went out and was tempted to smoke, he would light up his cigar, but did he really want to spend three hours smoking the same thing.
He also couldn’t take a few drags and put it out, which meant that if he did light it, he would probably be wasting R300 each time.
“To stop smoking is the hardest thing. Not everyone can just stop, so my advice to them would be to take it one day at a time. Set a short-term goal and until you are strong enough to resist it, don’t put yourself in social settings to tempt yourself. I quit based on 15 minutes at a time. I said to myself, I don’t want to smoke in the next 15 minutes and when that was over, I repeated this to myself.”
Reddy also said that vaping was not an option for him as there aren’t enough studies on them.
“I have no idea what is in these vapes. They could cause a number of illnesses and complications,” he said.
If you would like to quit smoking visit https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-no-tobacco-day/world-no-tobacco-day-2021
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