[MargaretR]

I have smoked for 50 years and that makes it harder to give up. I have been smoke free a few times in my lifetime but always lapsed in less than a year. I recently admitted a 35 a day habit to my doc.

The public smoking ban will help people who are less addicted to give it up, and will lesson the number of people who become addicted in the 1st place - a good thing!!!

But what can we poor addicts do to lessen the impact of our addiction?
The factors which cause us problems -
1 - the cost
2 - the cough

My websearching has revealed to me that those crafty 'pushers' the tobacco companies have increased the likelihood of serious addiction by adding chemical addictive poisons to the already poisonous tobacco - the swines!
So I decided, as a start, to smoke only tobacco that is the unadulterated original tobacco leaf that will provide only 3 harmful sustances - nicotine, tar and CO2, instead of all the extra junk like formaldehye and acetate etc etc etc (the list of the stuff they add would cause this thread to be too long, and our lives too short)

1 - the Cost
Two weeks ago I got a rolling machine, filter tips, papers and 'hand rolling' tobacco. I soon added a cigarette holder and cigarette case as extra 'ladylike' requirements. The case means that I can make a days supply in about 15 minutes and dont ever need to roll one in public, the cigarette holder prevents the paper from getting soggy and stops the tip falling out.
This has cut down the cost of my bad habit. The tax on hand rolling tobacco is much less than on ready mades, and if you can import your tobacco you save much more.

2 -The Cough
Within days I was smoking fewer (down from 35 to 20), and they tasted better, and was coughing less on waking. My sense of smell is also better. Those additives must be really nasty stuff because I can feel the craving for THEM! - but I am still having a nicotine 'fix' so dont feel 'deprived'
I started this mainly because of cost and the fact that I rarely get a chance to smoke away from home - so who is to see that I am smoking 'on the cheap'
The improvement in my taste smell and the cough reduction convinces me that the most harmful chemicals in cigarettes are the additives.
I know that I still have an addiction to nicotine which I may likely tackle after my body has stopped craving the additives.
I feel I have taken one small step towards 'the cure'

I want to know if any of you have had similar benefits from the change to hand made