Many people are just now finding out about a "NEW" product being promoted to and taken up by young people, a nicotine pouch called Zyn. Well it turns out that Zyn is not really that new of a product and is resulting in a big-age-old problem--nicotine addiction. This video follows up on Joel's previous video, "Have you heard of Zyn." It shares a mother's unique nicotine dependency prevention strategy and a means of seeing what trying to stop using Zyn is like should prevention fail.

As discussed in the video, Joel received the below email sharing one parent’s practical and successful method of reducing her child’s risk of ever becoming addicted to any nicotine product. As background, having participated in an online support group featuring Joel's lessons, she recently celebrated having quit smoking for 10 years.

“Great job Joel!

Thinking back to my early years, the many folks who told me how difficult it was to quit after starting … I never believed them. Thought they were so weak while I felt so strong. I knew that I could quit anytime I wanted and it was silly they couldn’t quit too.

In fact, even once I had my forever quit, I did not realize that I was indeed an addict. Always thought of myself as a rebel bucking the system. Not the fish on a hook that I was. It was an awakening for me while working on sustaining my quit to discover that I was an addict. That I was as hooked as any heavy addict and with hooks inside of me that would take a lot of work to get out of myself. And keep out.

My eldest son was smoking before I even knew, and my sister was giving him cigarettes against my will. She would say that I am a hypocrite for not allowing him to smoke. He continues to smoke 30 years on.

But I didn’t make the same mistake with my second son. I started teaching him and rewarding him with certificates for every year he did not smoke from the age of 12. Promised him a hundred dollars per year to be paid on his 18th and 21st birthdays. He broke the cycle. And I happily paid him $1,800 and $2,100 respectively. Ten years later and he still thinks that smoking is disgusting. And also, is aware of the addictive properties of nicotine after the years of warnings to stay away.

This son accepted my warnings and looked forward to his certificates for his wall and the money coming down the road while I happily puffed away on cigarettes.

Two years after his 21st birthday was when I took my own advice … stop & reward myself in a million different ways. Rewards like seeing the benefits of not smoking – fresh breath, sweet smelling skin and hair, fatter wallet, staying with the party instead of outside for a cigarette, etc. Then the monetary rewards, the clean clothing, house and car rewards, no longer jonesing for a hit reward, and on and on.

We people. We need a vision to reach for. A vision beyond our sorry state of now. In whatever hole we have dug for ourselves, knowing that we can get out and how it will be when we do sure have a lot of power.”

Have a great day and keep putting out those videos!”

Related resources:

• Have you heard of Zyn?
• QuittingZyn: Reddit support group discussed in the video (see Joel's QuittingZyn video
• Nuggets: YouTube video illustrating what usually results when recreationally introducing nicotine into your life via any tobacco or other nicotine product.
• Our Kids Are Living in a Different Digital World: NY Times 01/12/24 Zyn article (Joel's NY Times article video)
• Resources related to kids and smoking & vaping prevention

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