Did your parents smoke and do you?

[RedSquirrel111]

Off the back of the news report today...

I started smoking at 13/14 (year 9). One parent smoked, and one set of grandparents who I idolised. Perhaps a bit obvious, but never thought about the connection before.

I know of lots of people who don't smoke who's parents did. But thinking about smokers, every single one I can think of one or both parents smoked.

My parents smoked when they were first married, in 1969, and they both quit before I was born in 1973. My husband's parents still smoke to this day, but fortunately they have never smoked inside their home, they always went outside, so my husband and his sisters didn't grow up with smoke in the house. My husband has never smoked and absolutely hates it. He doesn't even allow his parents to smoke anywhere on our property.

I had an ex boyfriend who smoked even though no one in his family did. I put it down to the pack of 20 that his Dad forced him to chain smoke in his teens after his Dad thought he came home smelling of smoke from his friend’s mum

Both parents smoked.
My brother started smoking age 12.
I never have. I’m on the spectrum and quite sensory, I hated the smell so much, the smoke would make my eyes sting, I just couldn’t understand why they would smoke. Maybe if I didn’t have sensory issues I would have just joined in?

I don't. I can feel my lungs closing up if I'm even talking to someone who just had one. It's embarrassing, I start choking just on their breathe or the fumes from their clothes! Neither of my parents ever have, thank god. My maternal grandparents only had the odd occasional one 'To be social' with friends, while my paternal grandparents smoked like chimneys. They always did, even in the house around their children when they were young, despite 2 of them struggling with asthma. Ironically it was the one without the asthma who dropped dead from a heart attack at 50. He never smoked himself so not sure if the passive smoking of his childhood was a significant factor but it can't have helped. I remembered my dad's parents sitting smoking in the garden when they came to see us as children, and dropping their cigarette buts in the sandpit, which nicely sums up just what shitty selfish pricks they were to be honest.

My mother did; my father didn’t but my stepmum did so two smoking households.
My mum was challenging her Ab Fab idols, Patsy and Edina, and my father was v permissive.
All for of us children as young/mid teens and were allowed to smoke at home.
Mum stopped in her 50s but we’d all left home by then.
Three of us stopped in their thirties but I have had some relapses. I vaped for a while before moving into nicotine gum. I need to read Allen Carr’s stop smoking book and crack it properly.
My older sister still smoke, I wonder about her, she has a permanent hacking cough, plus high cholesterol and poor lifestyle. I am scared I will lose her young. She has been smoking since she was 9 and she’s in her early 50s now.

My parents smoked. I always hated it even as a child. It is disgusting and selfish to pollute the air others are breathing. I have never even tried it. None of my friends at school or college smoked. There was no peer pressure for me to smoke. In fact now I think about it even now only one of my friends smoke and she only does when she is drinking which is rare. It is such a major turn off for me I would not date a smoker. But now I am thinking about it I wonder if I have avoided friendships with smokers too and just not realised I was doing it.

Yes and yes. Although they never smoked around or within eyesight of me until I was a teen. I remember being quite shocked when I found out!

Parents did, I don't.

Both did. I don't. I'm too vain and it is too expensive. I think smoking nowadays is overwhelmingly something lower class people do.

Great grand parents, grandmother, her siblings, my parents and me. I really hope I’m the last idiot. Interestingly of the dead ones only 1 died of smoke related illness and the rest lived above expectations for class of their time.

One parent does. Both sets of grandparents did but gave up before I was born. I have never.

@Comedycook That made me laugh I could see Mrs bouquet (bucket) when she was round her sisters!

Parents did. I don't. I grew up hating that I smelt bad. All that smoke attached to clothing and washing dried on radiators in rooms with heavy smokers. I felt so dirty.
Also seeing the ceiling in my living room get painted and seeing how dark it was above my mothers chair. Put me off forever.

Yes, both were/are smokers. As was my most beloved grandmother.

I am not and have never been a smoker. It repulsed and terrified me as my grandmother suffered terrible smoking-related poor health and died from smoking related illness. Sadly my mother is also going the same way but still continues to smoke, she really struggles with the addiction and now feels that ‘the damage is done so what’s the point in quitting’. It breaks my heart, tbh.

My parents used too, mum stopped when my brother was born and my dad recently, I think anyway.
I’ve never smoked except the one I secretly tried when I was 8 (dad had left it in the ashtray) and almost coughed my guts up.
Don’t drink, never done drugs...
I’m a rare breed 🤓

No one in my immediate family was a smoker after I was born - as in I never saw them smoke, but I was a smoker for many years.
I have 2 cousins who are smokers too who had the same expected.
My DD had me and her dad (he still does) as smokers and she doesn't smoke.