Quote image editor
“I know cigarettes are killing me from the inside, but so are my illnesses. And after years of juggling meds—five, six, maybe more—my psychiatrist and I have finally, I think, landed on a combination that holds me together. I’m not claiming the pills are weak, or that they should perform miracles and pull every last demon out of my head in an instant. Healing isn’t a switch. It’s slow. It drags. But even with the medication steadying me, there are still nights when anxiety claws at my ribs, when depression sinks its teeth into my spine, when I feel misplaced in my own life. So I smoke. Because for a moment—just a thin, burning moment—it quiets the storm. Maybe smoking is the small tax I pay to keep myself from collapsing, from snapping, from tipping into madness. The price is bearable. Losing my mind wouldn’t be.” — Mohit Yenugwar