In Scotland, the average smoker spends £1,750 a year on cigarettes which is an incredible amount of money.  Especially when you consider the majority of people who smoke come from low-income and high unemployment areas.  £1,750 is a heck of a lot of money for anyone and you could pay for a really fantastic holiday with that money.  However it’s not just the cost of the ciggies you need to take into consideration.  There are many other hidden expenses most people don’t even consider.

Health Insurance - If you have taken out an insurance policy you will end up paying more for it than if you didn’t smoke.  You might feel that this is penalizing you however it simply comes down to “the bottom line” for insurance companies.  As a smoker you are more likely to become sick and need medical care.  Therefore you will be charged more.

Car Insurance - Although smoking isn’t going to make your car insurance more expensive with all companies, there are some insurers who will offer discounts to non-smokers.  This might seem a little odd.  The problem is that most smokers smoke whilst driving and this increases their chances of having an accident.  So because smokers tend to have more accidents you will be penalized financially.

Home Insurance - Unfortunately there are a number of smokers who are not very careful about their cigarettes and leave them unattended.  Sometimes people fall asleep whilst holding a cigarette and this then goes on to cause a house fire.  The Association of British Insurers claims that smokers are 35% more likely to make a claim on their house insurance and that in 2006 £394million was paid out by insurers for fire damage.

Employment and Income - Because smoking is so bad for your health, smokers tend to take a lot more sick days than their non-smoking colleagues.  Although there are many employers who will pay their employees for the days they are off sick, many don’t.  So if you are off sick you don’t get paid and this will greatly affect the amount of money you earn.  

And because of the number of sick days smokers take per year, many employers refuse to employ them.  So if you are currently looking for a job and you are a smoker, you’re going to find it more difficult thus reducing your chances of getting a well paid job.

Slashes Your Car Value - When smoking in your car the tar and nicotine will get into the fabric of the interior and make it stink and look a disgusting yellow/brown colour.  This becomes deeply ingrained and it would be fruitless to try and get rid of it.  Therefore a non-smoker is highly unlikely to want to buy a car from you.  Which means as a smoker, you’re going to have to look for another smoker to buy your car.

Pay More For Rental Properties - If you want to rent a property you will find that many of them say “non-smokers only” which means you will need to find a landlord who is willing to rent to a smoker.  If you do find a smoker-friendly rental property, you will also probably need to pay for the place to be redecorated and carpets thoroughly cleaned.

I really hope that people who currently smoke try to find a way to quit smoking cigarettes because it’s a truly horrible, unhealthy and expensive habit to have.

Let’s face it, smoking is a really horrible and disgusting habit that most people hate.  However all too often people start smoking when they are young and want their friends to think that they are “cool.”  Of course, there’s nothing cool about smoking.

By the time people see sense about their dirty habit they are addicted to the cigarettes and find it incredibly difficult to give up.  Just as the tobacco industry is big business, so is the industry for quit smoking products.

You will quickly realize that there are many products and services on the market to help you give up smoking.  Some of them will work better than others and sometimes it simply depends on the individual who is trying to give up.

Often the reason people feel the need to light up a cigarette is due to stress and also boredom.  A lot of people think that smoking relieves stress however it actually just causes you to become more stressed in the long run.  This is why you need to think of ways that you can deal with any stresses without turning to your packet of cigarettes.

Try some other stress-relieving products instead such as stress balls or even a puzzle such as the Rubik’s cube.  Try just about anything that will divert your mind and your hands away from your cigarettes.  However be careful about snacking on unhealthy foods.  This is one of the reasons so many people trying to quit end up putting on weight.

Some people who quit try to do so quietly without telling anyone.  The problem is that if you have friends and family who smoke they might try to offer you a cigarette when really they shouldn’t.  This is why you need to tell them.  You might even want to avoid people who smoke so that you don’t feel tempted.

There are also products the help you wean yourself of cigarettes such as nicotine patches, gum and the e-cigarette.  Make sure you give one of more of these products a go because they might just work out well for you.  You might as well try as much as you can.  OK, so they cost money but so do cigarettes.  The money you save by not buying cigarettes can be spent on these quit smoking products.

Find others in your position to talk about what you are going through.  Either find friends and family who are wanting to give up or go online.  There are many quit smoking blogs and discussion groups that you can look at.  By doing this you can share ideas and even just vent about how you are feeling.

If you want to try out some quit smoking techniques that are a little bit more unusual you can look at laser therapy.  Basically beams of laser are used to stimulate your body’s own production of endorphin hormones.  This in turn helps you ignore the cravings for cigarettes.

Hypnotherapy is also very popular for all sorts of different things whether it’s depression, weight loss or even quitting cigarettes.  Basically you’re put into a state of deep calm which allows the hypnotherapist to give your subconscious positive thoughts about quitting.

If the above tips are not enough for you, a further smoking cessation technique is acupuncture.  Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese medical treatment which has become very popular in Western countries.  In the UK you can even receive acupuncture free on the NHS because it has been proven to work on so many different ailments.

Hopefully you will now have a good idea of what options are available to you.  Just because you are addicted to smoking today, doesn’t mean you will be addicted for the rest of your life.  You need to take control of your life in order to live happier and healthier.