Greetings,<\/p>\n
Is nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) or using nicotine alone a sin? When I say nicotine, I’m not talking about cigarettes, vapes, or chewing tobacco. Though I understand why people associate those things with nicotine.<\/p>\n
I used to vape for years, most of the day, to the point it was embarrassing that I couldn’t live apart from my vape. I would never recommend someone starting. I decided to stop, I put down my vape and haven’t used one since. But admittedly, I have switched to nicotine-only products. I use nicotine-only products at the beginning and end of my day. I’m no longer the same person. I was waiting all day for a nicotine fix. I used it for anxiety and boredom. While driving, cleaning my house, every break at work, out with friends, and even lying in bed.<\/p>\n
If I don’t quit nicotine cold turkey, am I in error? Nothing can come before God. Not me spending time with family and friends, not food, not caffeine, not my anxiety, not even nicotine.<\/p>\n
Nicotine helps me wake up for the day, as someone with a lot of fatigue (that I had before even consuming nicotine), it helps me unwind as well. It doesn’t make me high. Nicotine alone does not cause the diseases that vapes or cigarettes cause, which comes from all their added chemicals and poisons. Yes, it can be something people become dependent on, but if you are tapering down to quit, is that wrong?<\/p>\n
I’m stuck. From the benefits studies I’ve seen on nicotine versus those who say it’s wrong altogether. I don’t know who to trust. All I know is it can’t dictate my life, but are people in error for simply using nicotine alone?<\/p>\n
Thank you for listening!<\/p>\n\t
If nicotine is being used to replace or extend your dependency on the drug, then you haven’t solved your problem. Nicotine is highly addictive. Its major downfall is that it narrows arteries, increases blood pressure, and boosts the risk of blood clots, heart attacks, and stroke. If you are actually using nicotine replacement therapy properly with the aim of weaning yourself off of nicotine, then that would not be wrong.<\/p>\n\t
Thank you.<\/p>\n
I made the decision yesterday to talk to my doctor about medication for my anxiety. I started medication. I realize that for me and nicotine, it’s been a complicated relationship. At first, it’s as if it tells you, you can’t control your emotions without me, then at some point, it’s as if I was demanding nicotine to help me. It’s a constant cycle of putting a band-aid on my problems and taking it off, putting it back on. I never really knew if it was a sin until it began to make me wonder and bother me. Perhaps God has been merciful to me and is continuing to reveal things I need to change.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Question: Greetings, Is nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) or using nicotine alone a sin? When I say nicotine, I’m not talking about cigarettes, vapes, or chewing tobacco. Though I understand why people associate those things with nicotine. I used to vape for years, most of the day, to the point it was embarrassing that I couldn’t…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[372],"class_list":["post-95599","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-drugs"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":68405,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-vaping-wrong\/","url_meta":{"origin":95599,"position":0},"title":"Is vaping wrong?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 17, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello minister, My question concerns non-nicotine herbal diffuser smoking pens and an e vitamin bar smoking pens. If these pens (typically used to wane people off of smoking) are without harsh toxic chemicals or don't contain marijuana, are they safe to smoke? Answer: E-cigarettes or vaping pens are typically\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":66820,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/marijuana-use-linked-to-higher-risk-of-heart-attack-and-stroke\/","url_meta":{"origin":95599,"position":1},"title":"Marijuana Use Linked to Higher Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 29, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Source: \"Marijuana use linked to higher risk of heart attack and stroke,\" American Heart Association News, 28 February 2024. \"The number of people using marijuana has increased significantly in recent decades in the U.S., where its recreational use has been legalized in 24 states and the District of Columbia. In\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Issues"","block_context":{"text":"Issues","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9690,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-wrong-with-pipe-smoking\/","url_meta":{"origin":95599,"position":2},"title":"What is wrong with pipe smoking?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 8, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I am interested in hearing your comments about pipe smoking. I don't know anything about it, but one engaging in it says he does not inhale. I have encouraged him to quit, but to no avail and could use some help as to how to do this. Answer: The\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1659,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-wrong-with-smoking\/","url_meta":{"origin":95599,"position":3},"title":"What is wrong with smoking?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 3, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: What is wrong with smoking? Answer: Perhaps I should turn the question around and ask \"What is right about smoking?\" After all, it is an expensive habit that is known to cause damage to the body of the smoker. So what benefit does smoking give that should cause a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7963,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-smoking-menthol-cigarettes-cause-erectile-dysfunction\/","url_meta":{"origin":95599,"position":4},"title":"Does smoking menthol cigarettes cause erectile dysfunction?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 7, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Lots of people tell me if I smoke menthol cigarettes that I can have a loss of an erection? Is it true or not? Answer: It appears that for many years, there has been a rumor that menthol cigarettes are more harmful than non-menthol brands. I suspect that this\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":49739,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/your-website-led-me-back-to-christ-after-twenty-years\/","url_meta":{"origin":95599,"position":5},"title":"Your website led me back to Christ after twenty years","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 12, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I wanted to send a personal email and thank you for your teachings on your website.\u00a0 I was a member of the church of Christ my entire life.\u00a0 In my middle 20s, I was briefly married and divorced with the cause not being adultery.\u00a0 My ex-spouse went to prison\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95599","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=95599"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95599\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=95599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=95599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}