My friend went to the doctor recently, and they found traces of cancer in his blood. However, he doesn’t want to stop smoking. Talking to him won’t help because he’s given up on life. He hasn’t told his parents yet, and making him feel guilty doesn’t work. How do I stop him?
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You CANT make someone else stop. You just cant do it. He has to want to. And even with cancer, it his body and his choice.
You can’t MAKE another person do anything. Mind your own business. If you can’t be supportive of his choices for HIS life, then just leave the guy alone. It isn’t for you to say whether he smokes or not. Some people don’t want to live to be 100. They want to enjoy their life while they are here. That is his choice. Back off.
He will only stop smoking if he wants to. You need to enjoy your time together and not spend time pushing him into stopping if he is resistant, eventually he my see sense and make the decision to stop. Enjoy your friendship, maybe suggest jokingly that you could travel to certain places with the money he would save from not smoking but don’t pressure him, when you put pressure on it seems to encourage them to continue even more.
Other than imprisoning them and removing all access to cigarettes, you cannot "make" someone stop smoking.
A person has to want to stop, then you can assist them.
Or you can try to convince them so they want to stop, then assist them.
Nicotine is one of the most addictive substances.
If your friend is about to undergo cancer treatment, then the extra stress of giving up smoking could actually be bad for him at this time.
He may also find that the treatment makes him want to give up smoking as it often changes how things taste.
While smoking is a cause of cancer, giving up at time of diagnosis is a bit like shutting the stable dore after the horse has bolted!
If your friend enjoys smoking more than living, then I would forget about getting him to stop and encourage him to smoke even more and make sure his last few days on this planet are doing what he enjoys most. You never know, the reverse psychology may even work