Thanks for the articles and for the first reasonable explanation why smoking may be helping. Some of the damage is in that area though I do have lesions elsewhere. I read one that suggested brain cell growth with use (as opposed to other drugs that kill them) and also another that purported that it protects the brain cells of stroke victims from further damage.

On the one hand stroke and on the other MS (?) or something akin to it. All I know is that when I run out my speech goes (I can still make sounds but mostly unintelligible), I lose my appetite, I have facial tics and body tremors, the spasticity and pain are worse and my thinking goes totally off because I'm so depressed at what is my real self is like without smoking. I recently tried an anti-depressant thinking it might help cope with some of this however it only aggravated current symptoms and added a few side effects of its own.