Pipe Smoking and Mental Health

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mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
People who are aware of their mental health are probably less fraught than people who aren't. Without any particular mental health issues, I think pipe smoking can be one of those rituals of settling down, centering, acknowledging oneself and ones thoughts, and being in the present. We attend to so much clutter and crap and commercialism, it is important to just sit, maybe with a pet, and arrive in ones own awareness. You have to consciously listen to your own thoughts or you won't know what you're thinking.
 

Toast

Part of the Furniture Now
Feb 15, 2021
659
1,312
UK
A comment by a lecturer on a history of psychiatry course I did has been really helpful, so I'm glad it stuck with me.

He was talking about how at different times drug, physical, & talking therapies have been stigmatised.

The comment was, broadly, that if a friend was distressed you'd listen to them, make them a cup of tea, & give them a hug. Same thing.
 

blackpowderpiper

Part of the Furniture Now
Dec 19, 2018
810
3,787
Middle Tennessee
People who are aware of their mental health are probably less fraught than people who aren't. Without any particular mental health issues, I think pipe smoking can be one of those rituals of settling down, centering, acknowledging oneself and ones thoughts, and being in the present. We attend to so much clutter and crap and commercialism, it is important to just sit, maybe with a pet, and arrive in ones own awareness. You have to consciously listen to your own thoughts or you won't know what you're thinking.
Very well said. I think you have quite succinctly described my situation.
 

HitchensDog

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jul 22, 2020
236
824
Omaha, Nebraska, USA
I have issues stemming from a not so pleasant childhood (understatement). I can say that pipe smoking has definitely helped me over the years. It's almost like sitting Zazen for me. The ritual of packing, lighting and focusing on the tastes really grounds me. My morning pipe with coffee before work is honestly my favorite time of the day.
 

SBC

Lifer
Oct 6, 2021
1,519
7,241
NE Wisconsin
Sure, I have an angsty, weltschmerzy sort of soul. Sometimes, these senses are not so much like a medical condition to be cured of, as a red flag to be thankful for. They may point to needs more important than immediate happiness.
That said, yes, a pipe has often supported an effort to think and feel rightly.
 

cfreud

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 1, 2014
256
284
To keep a pipe lit properly, one has to breathe normally, steadily, etc. Without going into details, you'd be surprised -- I constantly am -- just how much slowing down and breathing in any difficult situation just helps everything from anxiety to whatever is troubling you.
 

Singularis

Part of the Furniture Now
Sep 11, 2019
554
2,563
Wausau, Wis
I can relate, though I don't know that I am objectively more even-tempered with regular pipe smoking (but let's go with that).

In any case, a pipe paired with a good brisk walk -- even in the bitter cold -- is my near-daily constitutional.

Got to kick that ennui in the keister. Ain't no good for nobody.
 

SourShank

Lurker
Nov 26, 2021
42
283
Germany
Love how it tastes and delivers the perfect amount of nicotine for me in perfect increments. Let's me sit and concentrate on something besides twiddling the computer. The gratification I get after enjoying a perfect bowl is very special. I just smoked a Gawith blend two days ago, relit only once, tasted wonderful right down to the dottle and the briar was cool to the touch the whole time through.

In short, tastes great feela great keeps my mouth shut.
 

winton

Lifer
Oct 20, 2010
2,318
771
I enjoy the taste of tobacco and the feeling of the pipe. But the greatest part of smoking a pipe, is just sitting still. A time to stop and think, plan, cogitate, etc.

BUT, for the last 2 weeks, I have been sick and can't smoke. I had one bowl and regretted it. Since my wife is asthmatic and allergic to smoke, all my pipe smoking is in my detached garage. It is presently around -4 degrees.
 

beargreasediet

Starting to Get Obsessed
Nov 23, 2021
294
2,455
Too close to Seattle.
I’ve been back on the pipe for a couple of months or so, and in that time I’ve not killed anybody or been to the nervous hospital, not even once. Coincidence? I mean it could be the bear grease too - brain food.

In any case, the world is a total shit show at the moment, distress with perplexity, and evil morons at every turn. While nicotine is certainly a soothing agent, there is something about smoking a pipe that is transcendent. I don’t get fiendish about it the way I might with cigarettes or Copenhagen, but I do look forward to it, a respite from the madness of the world. Happy smoking gents, pray you all find all the peace and clarity you need in the 2022.