One thing my brother said to me last summer keeps echoing in my head. As a substitute to alcohol, and cutting I picked up smoking 5-6 years ago. I am 50 now. My brother said to me, "We all have vices, and if that is your only one I can deal with it.". I thought that was a compassionate statement and put it in perspective on a sort of scale - Good, Bad, or Life Threatening.

OK, OK, I hear you all shouting - cigarettes cause cancer, they are life threatening - I know I watched my Father die from Lung Cancer. But compared to a real present threat, such as cutting or suicide, it can be a temporary fix.

I am presently trying to stop smoking. I am down to four cigarettes a day. I'm trying to substitute healthy habits when I want a cigarette to relieve my anxiety or anger. Take a walk, a shower, write a poem, whatever.