My first cigarette

My first cigarette

Often tobacco is the first drug people take, so let’s look at why people choose to smoke and perhaps it will let us explore why people choose to try drugs even when they don’t know how they will affect them.

If tobacco smoking was discovered tomorrow, it is unlikely that any responsible government would allow the sale of such a harmful drug. Today however 47.5% of men and 10.3% of women smoke a total of 6 trillion cigarettes a year worldwide.

My first cigarette and last cigarette

Like most teenagers I smoked my first cigarette when I was 14 and I was at secondary school. I was in a group of friends and all of my friends smoked except me. Zohra was the girl who convinced me to smoke every morning she asked me the same question have you done your homework? Followed by would you like a cigarette? I was worn down  over many weeks.

Why I don't smoke

Cigarettes are fun. Cigarettes are cool. Cigarettes are sexy. These are what TV, films, tobacco industry and people who like smoking would like you to believe. But I disagree.

First, I am genetically allergic to cigarettes, the smell makes me nauseas. Actually two of my college roommates smoke. They are all beautiful girls, smoking in a graceful way. Bu I just cannot stand the smell.

My first cigarette

Many people will always say you have to try things to know whether you like it and in many cases that is true but I have never ever felt the urge to smoke a cigarette. I guess that mainly stems from the fact that I come from a family where no one smokes. The only person who has ever smoked in my whole extended family that I can remember is one of my uncles (who has now completely kicked the habit).

My first cigarette

Everyone says that the first cigarette is the worst. For me it wasn’t that bad at all. I remember being with my girlfriends in the forbidden area of the school playground having sweets and reading girl’s magazines, whoever saws us could think that we were lovely and innocent girls in their 11s. We were not at all, we were about to have our first and not last smoke.

My first cigarette

 

I first smoked in the summer of 2005, the first summer of my freedom, the summer after I graduated from High School. 

My First Cigarette

I have a clear memory of my first cigarette. At the age of thirteen I was beginning to exercise some independence, and I was enjoying the loosening of parental monitoring that comes with being a teenager. A group of friends and I had headed to Bournemouth beach for the day. We were fuelled by a sense of newfound maturity, and a current of excitement ran through the group – for an entire day we would be free from any kind of parental interference, and we weren’t going to waste the opportunity.

My First Cigarette

I was 12 when I had my first cigarette. Or 13. In all honesty, I don’t remember. Similarly, I don’t remember the make of the cigarette, who I was with or where I was. I do remember how terrible I felt afterwards though. Not only because of the coughing fit that came on and the odd sensation of dizziness that came with it, but because of the shame that I felt.

My First Cigarette

 

I can't say I was the most rebellious of teenagers, however smoking was one of the things I did experiment with as a youth. I suppose compared to most, my first cigarette was quite late into my adolescence, it was at my 6th form “prom” (I emphasise this word as it was actually a typical English school disco, not even close to the American proms you see on numerous teen-flicks). This must've made me 16/17 years old. 

Syndicate content

All of the content on TalkingDrugs is produced by volunteers, if you would like to get involved email: volunteers@talkingdrugs.org