plz plz PLZ talk me out of smoking to lose weight

[waytoosleepy]

let me preface: i have never ever found any appeal in cigarette smoking, and never wanted to partake. weed is the only thing ive smoked and that was brief; i basically switched exclusively to edibles bc the smoke inhalation's just not good for me (i get respiratory illnesses quite easily). i think nicotine smoke smells gross, i don't want yellow teeth or a scary looking liver, it has never even remotely appealed to me

BUT

i work in a field where my status of employment is contingent on how i look. i see people getting hired, who may not be as experienced as i am or have the skills that i do, but they are skinnier than me. and i'll acknowledge, i do have the privilege of being straight sized, i'm much smaller than i was years ago. but i am not as small as these people. and despite the fact that our field revolves around "fitness" and "body conditioning" (idk why i'm beating around the bush so much, it's dance. i work in dance), no amount of working out or eating healthy or toning my body will get me to their size

bc the gag is, they are all, and i mean ALL (and i know this from personal experience, whether it's my own friends, or people i meet in passing, work acquaintances, people i follow or am mutuals with on social media, etc. and etc., this field is a very VERY tight knit small world) smoking cigarettes, on ozempic, on adderall (literally just to lose weight, i cannot tell you how many people have told MY neurodivergent @ss TO MY FACE that they faked a diagnosis to get it), or some fking combination of the three. the ones who are rich enough get body sculpting plastic surgeries and then peddle diet teas & their workout classes. they can also get crazy level veneers and teeth whitening so they don't care about any teeth issues. and they're the ones getting hired

i can't compete with this sh!t, at least not by actually healthy or affordable means.

- i've been unpacking my diagnoses and contemplating the possibility of an overarching ASD or ADHD diagnosis, which means i would technically would qualify for something like adderall. however, i just know that would throw me in eating disorder territory (i've had experience with this before). i have a family member who takes adderall, raves about how it helps her lose weight, this sh1t makes this woman FORGET TO EAT. like for a whole day. and she looks gaunt. but i can't act like it doesn't have some form of appeal bc that would probably the most accessible to me right now

- obviously the surgeries are a no go, that's not even remotely in my tax bracket

- ozempic is off the table. 1) again the eating disorder thing. 2) even though again, because my family has a history of type 2 diabetes, this is something i could technically qualify for, i can't do needles. i have something similar to pretty severe vasovagal syncope related to needles, think fainting at the sight of blood, but instead i get pretty violently nauseous at the act of needles entering my body. i only interact with them when absolutely necessary, so vaccines, yearly shots, bloodwork, etc. (i have no piercings, tattoos, or plastic surgery for this very reason). so something i would have to inject in myself WEEKLY? not gonna happen

which makes me feel like cigs are my only option to at least somewhat level the playing field. which fking sucks BC I DON'T WANT TO DO IT but idk what else to do. i'm so desperate at this point that i've looked into if nicotine patches or lozenges help you lose weight lol

so i don't know what to do. i can't remove my fking ribcage. or make my shoulders less broad. but this is the job i'm most qualified to do. i can't get hired anywhere else that's more stable bc the job market has been trash for like 2 years now

so please, PLEASE, give me anything talk me off this ledge. stupid, intellectual, whatever. maybe not scary (i've seen enough scare tactic smoking PSAs to last a lifetime), but just something, bc i'm tired of feeling like there's no other option

[davidthecoder]

Yeah, smoking to lose weight is a terrible idea. Don't do it.

If the goal is to lose weight because it is a job requirement to look a certain way, and everyone else is using performance enhancing drugs, well...

I can understand your frustration with that. It is true in many other fields as well, where the people that are not on these substances are at a disadvantage. And so they feel compelled to seek them out, merely to remain competitive in their field.

It is sad really.

Obviously there are much better ways to be more fit rather than smoking cigarettes. I think alot of the most fit people just exercise and eat right, which is pretty basic but pretty sure it works and doesn't require something like Ozempic to achieve.

[waytoosleepy in reply to davidthecoder]

hey, thanks for the reply

i guess that's the issue i'm running into. i'm an extremely active person, and i have the healthiest diet i've had in years. and still it doesn't seem to be enough. i've met a lot of people in the same boat as i am, we all just feel kinda stuck

the weirdest thing is, i've actually noticed amongst us that we sometimes lose weight when we DON'T work out. i assume its because we do a lot of cardio and strength training, so we just lose a lot of bulk. but not training/working out leads to injuries, injuries mean you can't get hired, yada yada

it's kind of its own can of worms; what "looks healthy" and therefore is promoted by certain industries as "healthy" is very different from what actual health looks like. for example, i actually did a group project in college about how a lot of men, either in hollywood or in, like, "gym communities," actually exhibit disordered eating/body dysmorphia. bc, if you know anything about working out, you know that certain kinds of muscle, especially the kind you see amongst action stars like those in marvel movies, is not achieved without starving yourself and/or reducing your water intake/taking diuretics. zac efron is a recent example of someone who's talked about this

it's something i wish we talked about more in our field. hopefully, it can improve one day (although i'm not suuuuper optimistic, but that's a me issue lmao)

[davidthecoder in reply to waytoosleepy]

Oh yeah, you actually brought up a really important topic that doesn't get spoken about as much as it should be. All of your insights about this are valid and a "real thing".

And you touched on the body dysmorphia. That is important to mention because you are also correct that it is a big part of this issue. As you know, social media plays a huge role in this. And before that was around, it was magazines and fashion shows that had a very obvious leaning towards extremely thin models.

Based on what you have mentioned so far, it sounds like you have a pretty good understanding and awareness about this. I would also venture to guess that since you are eating healthy and hitting the gym, you are likely to be in much better shape than the majority of us. Of course that is necessary for you to do what you love. In some fields, like yours, other people might not understand that extra effort that is required just to be hirable.

You mentioned Zac Efron, he actually is from my city. So we are all very familiar with him here. Similar to UFC fighters, they cut weight so hard that some of them are near death before they step into the ring. The average viewer has absolutely no clue what that is like, we just see the performance.

[Stippler]

I hope I am not being inappropriate with this reply. If I am, I am sorry because my intentions are good. I think smoking is a terrible idea because I know firsthand that starting smoking (even one time) is a one way ticket to a lifetime of addiction and health problems associated with addiction. Please do not take this lightly. After only one smoke, I was not able to stop, and now it is too late. It would definitely be healthier to exercise, walking or bike riding to lose weight and build up muscles. Exercise will also make you feel better, while smoking will make your anxiety be far worse. When I was your age I took life for granted, as though I thought I would live forever. But way sooner than you expect it, you will someday see yourself cruising 90 mph into bad health problems and you will suddenly realize you are out of time and the end is upon you. I am not trying to scare you but the decisions you make today will impact you the rest of your life. Nicotine is the most addictive substance in the world, or so I hear. I thought I could get away with trying it one time but for me it was nowhere near as easy to quit as I thought it would be when I started. I am sorry if my reply seems harsh, I just cannot underscore the seriousness of this decision. You are an adult, and it is your choice. I just wish that 30 years ago somebody had told me everything I have said here. Best of luck to you.

[Isinatra]

My take on this is the people you are talking about are damaging their body. They may be thin, but not healthy. You know a dancing career can, in general, rarely last a long time. Sometimes very short lived. Being unhealthy means being more susceptible to injuries. What does a young dancer do once they can’t dance? You know the answer. After those other people drop out, one by one, from health issues, you’ll be the last man standing if you make the right choices. Consider yourself lucky and think of a plan B or C while you still can. As I said…these are just my thoughts meant to help. 🍀

[LadyZen]

It took me several tries to quit smoking. Surprisingly, what finally worked for me was Wellbutrin and the Nicotine patch.