After 25 years of hard-core Kodiak dipping, today marks the six-month anniversary of being 100% tobacco free. But I didn’t “quit”. Even if I remain dip-free for the next ten years, I will never claim I permanently quit this habit. I did it too long to be so arrogant. I know Kodiak is a dogged enemy of mine waiting for a moment of weakness to strike back. I just like to think I stopped – it sounds safer. Although I have made efforts in the past to stop, this time is markedly different. I am as confident as possible I will never have a dip again. Remarkably the urges have stopped, even on my bad days. I am posting this note to hopefully inspire or at least assist others in “killing the can.”
Why did I stop? To save money? No – a few dollars a day is meaningless to me. I wear $2,000 suits, drive a $100,000 car, and waste much more money on things other than dip.
For my health? No, like others, I foolishly think I am immune from disease (even though I had painful graft surgery on my gums ten years ago).
The reason I stopped? The answer is easy. To avoid the physiological distress caused by the urge to dip in a social situation where I am unable to do so. We’ve all been there: work or social functions, unable to dip, and suffering because of it, or making excuses to leave to give in to the urge. Having been tobacco-free for six months, I can definitely say it was worth it – it is so much more enjoyable to be social without having to fret about how I could sneak away to put in a dip. I can play golf with strangers without having to worry about spitting on their line. I can go to a friend’s house and enjoy watching TV and having a beer without squirming to find a way to dip.
But, alas, how did I do it? One word: hypnosis. I found a hypnotist in my area and went to two sessions. It worked for a few weeks, with a few slips in that time. Ultimately, it didnÂ’t hold. So I tried it again. With another hypnotist. Wow. This guy used a process where he associated dipping with vomiting. He recorded the twenty-minute session on my phone, and instructed me to listen to it morning and night for 30 days. The vomit-dip association didnÂ’t happen instantly. But I stuck with it and 30 days later, the urges were practically gone. I can honestly say the thought of putting Kodiak in my lip and spitting into a cup now disgusts me. I feel embarrassed for my old self for publically displaying such gross behavior for 25 years.
I didn’t know this guy before I went – someone else found him for me. I haven’t spoken to him since. (I probably should thank him!) But I feel guilty not putting his name out for others to see: Steven M. Rosenberg, located outside Philadelphia. (215) 782-8414. I cannot recall the price for the session, but it was a few hundred dollars or so.
A few other tips. First, try ginger chews. Try several different brands and sizes for the ones you like best. I liked the larger sizes. You can put it in your gums, and it gives you a little kick. Obviously it is not quite the same as dipping, but it is the best substitute I could find.
Second, try fake dip. I tried many different brands, and found a few that performed OK. I primarily used it on the golf course, along with ginger chews.
Third, the first few days are brutal. Brutal. There is no way to avoid this. It is as if you lost your best friend (cliché, I know, but so true. Remember, your friend didn't die, he just went away for an indefinite period of time). Plan ahead, put your head down, and get through it. I slept much of my first few days, “wasting the days away.” Here is the key: remember how tough it is as you get through it. It gets better, slowly and gradually. Then, a week or two later, when the urge starts to creep in for a quick dip, just remember how tough those first few days were. You don’t want to put yourself through that hell again. This thought helped me get through it. I was pitting my current self (the urge to dip) against my future self (going through that hell again the first few days of stopping). The future self won out, and the urge subsided. After a few weeks of going through this process, the urge passes quickly. So, ironically, the harder the first few days are for you, the easier it will be for you to resist the urges in the few weeks that follow that hell.
