Man Locks His Own Head In A Cage To Try To Quit Smoking

A Turkish man was so desperate to quit smoking that he locked his own head inside a cage so that he wouldn’t be able to light up. Ibrahim Yücel from the town of Kütahya was devastated when his father died from lung cancer. A heavy smoker, Yücel realized his fate was heading in the same direction and that he needed to cut cigarettes out of his life for good. However, that’s easier said than done, and he struggled to go cold turkey. So, he came up with an ingenious (?) idea: make it physically impossible to smoke.

How far would you go to stop smoking?

Feeling inspired by motorcycle helmets, he built his own anti-smoking helmet cage out of 130 feet of copper wire. He then put his head inside and handed the keys over to his family members, meaning there was no way he could get out without their say-so.

While Yücel previously smoked two packs of cigarettes a day, he was able to quit smoking by putting the cage on. He wore it all day long, even to work, though you have to assume his wife and kids unlocked him before he went to sleep at night.

He’s been trying to quit smoking for many years.

According to the International Business Times, he’d been trying to quit for years but had always failed. He simply lacked the willpower to stay away from cigarettes, which is why he resorted to such extreme measures.

As it turns out, his family was totally on board and happy to help him. While the cage allowed him to eat very small amounts of food and to drink water, that’s about all he could do.

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Did it work? That’s unclear.

It’s unclear whether or not Ibrahim Yücel eventually retired the cage helmet, or if he quit smoking for good. However, here’s hoping that his desire to improve his health and leave cigarettes in the dust worked long-term. He deserves it after what he went through!

Jennifer Still is a writer and editor with more than 10 years of experience. The managing editor of Bolde, she has bylines in Vanity Fair, Business Insider, The New York Times, Glamour, Bon Appetit, and many more. You can follow her on Twitter @jenniferlstill
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