for me, skipping the automatic ones was the hardest... the first one of the day, getting in the car, after meals, on the phone, having a beer, after that it was much easier good luck
Posted on 12/04/2011 7:22:02 AM PST by Marie
A couple of months ago I posted a thread that I was trying to quit smoking and asked for advice.
I tried going cold turkey, but only managed a few days. I finally went to the doctor and got a prescription for Chantix.
I'm right at three weeks smoke-free now. I quit taking the Chantix about a week and a half ago (horrible nightmares and seriously screwed up sleep) and I'm past the 'cravings' stage. I really only think about smoking a couple of times a day, but I'm not fighting the urge to smoke any more.
This is the point where I usually fail. Week three.
Since I quit, I've been dealing with a constant, low-level anxiety. It's like a panic attack that won't stop. I'm very sensitive to noise and even mild stress pushes me into a horrible place.
This is not 'craving'. This feels like the worst, never-ending, PMS attack ever.
I've been through this before and, as I said, this is when I fall. I start to think that this is how I'm going to feel forever. That I'm never going to feel normal again.
In the past, I've given up and started smoking, not because I wanted a cigarette, but because I knew that this horrible anxiety would go away as soon as I had a cigarette. I actually have made the choice to smoke rather than be crazy.
I need to know that this does eventually end. That I'll one day feel normal again. That I'll be able to concentrate and think and not feel like I'm having a panic attack. That this is part of the process and that it does get better.
Yes, it does get better. I went through smoking cessation classes through the Navy hospital here. It was pretty rough at first. First week, I felt like a drug addict needing a fix. I made it. I’ve been smoke free for 9 years now. I quit at Thanksgiving 9 years ago. Somehow I managed to quit while my husband was still smoking. He quit a year later.
When the urge hit I would instead of just reaching, slap myself in the pocket where I carried. Hard, then say a prayer of thanks to God for taking this urge away and healing my body in Jesus's name. That was Nov. 6, 1996. Money saved? We are driving a new car right now...
Hang in there, it will get better!
When the urge hit I would instead of just reaching, slap myself in the pocket where I carried. Hard, then say a prayer of thanks to God for taking this urge away and healing my body in Jesus's name. That was Nov. 6, 1996. Money saved? We are driving a new car right now...
Hang in there, it will get better!
That feeling won’t last forever.
Talk to your doc about an antidepressant, it will blunt the agitation and emotional effects of quitting. You don’t need to take it forever but a it will help while your brain readjusts its chemistry.
Nicotine releases your happy neurotransmitters, it takes a while for your brain to readjust and release them when appropriate.
20 MINUTES Blood pressure drops to normal. Pulse rate drops to normal. Body temperature of hands and feet increases to normal.
8 HOURS Carbon monoxide level in blood drops to normal. Oxygen level in blood increases to normal.
24 HOURS Chance of heart attack decreases.
48 HOURS Nerve endings start regrowing. Ability to smell and taste is enhanced.
2 WEEKS TO 3 MONTHS Circulation improves. Walking becomes easier. Lung function increases up to 30%.
1 TO 9 MONTHS Coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue, and shortness of breath decrease. Cilia regrow in lungs, increasing ability to handle mucus, clean the lungs, and reduce infection. Body's overall energy increases.
1 YEAR Excess risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a smoker.
5 YEARS Lung cancer death rate for average smoker (one pack a day) decreases by almost half. Stroke risk is reduced to that of a nonsmoker 5-15 years after quitting. Risk of cancer of the mouth, throat and esophagus is half that of a smoker's.
10 YEARS Lung cancer death rate similar to that of nonsmokers. Precancerous cells are replaced. Risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney and pancreas decreases.
15 YEARS Risk of coronary heart disease is that of a nonsmoker."
A word of caution:
When I quit, the severe cravings subsided during the first few months.
However, at about 6 months, they hit hard. I continued to resist and they subsided in a couple of weeks.
Since that 2nd round of severe cravings, I have not had any more. I do, however, sometimes think how nice it would be to sit back, relax and have a smoke — but I resist.
I am entering the 9th year of being smoke free in January 2012. I just bought a big 24” monitor as a present with my ‘former’ smoking money. :) The monetary savings do add up, and I splurge with a new gadget or two occasionally.
Reward yourself occasionally with your new-found wealth.
Definitely echo those who recommended e-cigs.
They help you quit smoking, but you don’t have to change your behavior at all. You only change what you buy.
In the bargain, you get rid of all the nasty stuff associated with smoking - ashtrays, smelly clothes, wheezy lungs, etc.
Plus, if you get the right one, you’ll save $$$.
Oh and get some B-3. Chemically it’s close to Nicotine and sometimes the body can be tricked by it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niacin
I tried to quit unsuccessfully many times before finally succeeding over ten years ago.
The first of two keys for me was knowing that time changes everything. You will for certain feel differently about smoking and in general one month from now, six months from now, one year from now, etc.
The second key is to know that the only way to get there is to not smoke a single cigarette. Not even one.
There are lots of things you can do in the meantime to help get your mind in order. I think vigorous physical activity is the biggest one. But that is treating symptoms.
The only cure is time, and the only way to make the time count is to NOT SMOKE!
This is what I did. I stubbed out the last one and never touched another. Now I feel like I have never smoked. I’ve forgotten what it is like to want one. I see or smell cigarettes and am revulsed.
I tried to quit unsuccessfully many times before finally succeeding over ten years ago.
The first of two keys for me was knowing that time changes everything. You will for certain feel differently about smoking and in general one month from now, six months from now, one year from now, etc.
The second key is to know that the only way to get there is to not smoke a single cigarette. Not even one.
There are lots of things you can do in the meantime to help get your mind in order. I think vigorous physical activity is the biggest one. But that is treating symptoms.
The only cure is time, and the only way to make the time count is to NOT SMOKE!
This is what I did. I stubbed out the last one and never touched another. Now I feel like I have never smoked. I’ve forgotten what it is like to want one. I see or smell cigarettes and am revulsed.
Chantix worked GREAT for me!
Smoked all I wanted and eventually realized that I wasn't smoking any more, no cravings or anything.
Did your doctor ween you off of the Chantix?
If I recall when I used it, my doctor gradually cut back the dose until I didn't take it any more. I don't think you are supposed to just stop taking it all at once.
I do remember that I was still taking it even after a week or more of any want for a cigarette was there.
I tried to quit unsuccessfully many times before finally succeeding over ten years ago.
The first of two keys for me was knowing that time changes everything. You will for certain feel differently about smoking and in general one month from now, six months from now, one year from now, etc.
The second key is to know that the only way to get there is to not smoke a single cigarette. Not even one.
There are lots of things you can do in the meantime to help get your mind in order. I think vigorous physical activity is the biggest one. But that is treating symptoms.
The only cure is time, and the only way to make the time count is to NOT SMOKE!
This is what I did. I stubbed out the last one and never touched another. Now I feel like I have never smoked. I’ve forgotten what it is like to want one. I see or smell cigarettes and am revulsed.
for me, skipping the automatic ones was the hardest... the first one of the day, getting in the car, after meals, on the phone, having a beer, after that it was much easier good luck
It’s good to know that I’m not the only person who’s gone through the ‘crazies’ with this.
I’m going to go see a shrink to get some anti-depressants to help me through the next few months.
I’m having spinal surgery in January and if I smoke, the surgery is off. That’s what’s helping me hold it together right now.
If I’m still an anxiety-ridden, depressed nut-bar after the operation, I’ll try the gum or the patch rather than go back to smoking.
I promised myself that I’d quit for the next 20 years. After that, I can smoke all I want. (It won’t make a difference at that point.) I think it’s easier to say, ‘not now’ than it is for me to say, ‘never’. Right now ‘never’ means that I’ll never be happy or feel normal again.
First I kept smoking when I knew better -- mainly because so many wanted me to quit.
But I knew that I enjoyed smoking perhaps one in fifty cigarettes. I knew that I did not need a cigarette.
I knew the health risks BUT -- and this is important -- quitting alone will not end the threat. Studies have shown that ex-smokers can get lung cancer at a rate higher than smokers. See articles about Vitamin B6, Methionine Linked to Lower Risk for Lung Cancer.
I'm retired and the cost became a factor. I had that pretty much beat with "stuff (roll) your own" until the Obama administration raised the tax on loose cigarette tobacco 2300 percent, from around a dollar to $23 if I recall correctly. (My guess is the cigarette manufactures paid a huge amount into Obama 2012 campaign.)
But there was a way around the higher cost for loose cigarette tobacco: pipe tobacco.
Shortly after that I reached the point where I decided to quit.
I have long believed that we are images in our Creator's video game. Think about it, at a certain point all matter is electromagnetic waves of some sort.
Computer programs are constantly having bugs fixed. I had a bug (one of many of course).
I had decided to quit. I came to believe that our Creator's tech support made a quick visit - remote or on-site I do not know -- and applied the only patch that works by patching around the faulty code.
It's been a year and the only time I miss it is when I take a break from some burdensome activity (such tasks are rare nowadays for me) but I quickly realize that the price paid (in all respects) is absolutely not worth the rare benefit.
I'm right there with you. Dog hearing. Fortunately I've never smoked. Whatever you can do to alleviate the heightened sensory perception issues that doesn't include smoking, do it. Maybe have your doctor give you a 2-night supply of a sleep aid...probably got samples...2 consecutive nights of deep rest may really help put this behind you.
Have you tried Welbutrin?
She doesn't mean it the way you're taking it and I suppose I could echo her.
It's the incredibly strong addiction that won't even allow us to attempt to quit.......
| Maybe cut out a pic of this ugly libtard mug and carry it with you in your purse where your cigarettes used to reside. He left behind daughters and a wife too soon (for them) at 67. He had given up cigs for a loooong stretch, then started again in 2001 and smoked until what is understood was a fairly horrific death from Stage IV lung cancer in 2005. His excuse was '9/11 got him started again'. The nitwit used to break off the filters. You don't want to be regarded in this kind of company... |
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