COLD TURKEY

[Kay]

Does anybody know how this term came about when quitting something.

[Hippy]

When withdrawing from heroine addiction, a person becomes feverish and clammy, and their skin takes on the look and feel of a dead turkey, just like it is ready to go in the oven. There is no symbolism here, it is just what it feels like. I think this was coined in the USA in the early quarter of the 20th century.

It also refers to blunt statements, intended to improve a person. The idea here is that the person receiving the unpleasant yet true facts will be shocked back to a more realistic approach, rather than their present self deluding or destructive frame of mind. This is an analogy to the person withdrawing from the delusional and harmful drug.

[Kay]

Thanks Hippy,you've put my old mans mind at rest now.

[Quizmonster]

Click http://www.randomhouse.com/wotd/index.pperl?date=19991130 for a variety of explanations of the origin of the term as provided by an American idiom-website.