it's nothing like I thought it would be

[christine 12]

I feel fine, just can't sleep. cravings are easy to deal with, and only last a few seconds to a few minutes. A bit of brain fog. Mild restlessness. No irritability or anything like that. 

 

I thought I would be fighting cravings every second, and be tense nonstop. But no, it's much easier than I thought it would be so far. 

[Reciprocity]

That's a good think Christine Many of us struggle with a number of quit symptoms early on in our quit. It seems every quit is different in terms of what one experiences. The good news for all of us is that those symptoms do not last all that long and the benefits of quitting are many and last forever.

 

When did you quit and are you using any NRT products or prescription aids in quitting or going cold turkey? I'm just curious.

[christine 12]

I quit 38 hours ago, not a long time, but LONG for me

 

im using nicotrol inhaler

[Doreensfree]

Hi and welcome Christine..

Congrats on your great decision to quit..

Please read all the pinned posts ,on the main board...there are posts of useful tips,videos..that will help you answer all the questions you might want to ask.

We have a daily NOPE thread..it's a great way to start the day..

Looking forward to getting to know you better ...

[Tink]

happy to hear this, welcome to the train, congratulations on your quit 36 hours is amazing!

[bakon]

Well done.  Don’t forget to reward yourself. Nobody else will

[christine 12]

3 hours ago, bakon said:

Well done.  Don’t forget to reward yourself. Nobody else will

I plan to by a book when I'm quit for a month

[Tyme2B]

I love to read too! Helps me forget about cravings, relaxes me, helps with sleep...? 

[JB 883]

That is sometimes the experience that quitting is not as bad as we thought and here is why -

 

We have seen TV shows or PSA's where someone is trying to quit a serious drug like meth, crack, heroin or maybe alcohol etc.

Of course the person going thru withdrawal is screaming, thrashing, rolling around, puking up demons from hell, being shot with tranquilizer darts, several cops trying to hold them down, and just this big theatrical hysterical scene.

 

But THEN we hear that quitting nicotine is harder than any of the aforementioned drugs. So when we think of quitting, we may be expecting to go through something that makes the biblical version of hell look like a fairy tale (and no I am not talking about Ryan Seacrest's backside). We think taking a dump while doing a hand stand would be easier than quitting smoking.

 

But then we embark on our "quit". Our sleep pattern gets messed up, we may get irritable, appetite changes, and just having those weird impulses like a nudge to the ribs saying "time to smoke" but we never do since we quit. We just feel a little weird for a few days or weeks.

Doing the whole "flopping around screaming and hallucinating that the devil is going to sodomize us if we do not smoke" thing never happens.

 

I THINK that image of withdrawing from nicotine probably comes from companies that make "quit" meds like gum, patches, etc... Yes, they are just as evil as the tobacco companies.

 

Just do not give into the craves that hit on weird times and all will be fine. It really does get easier.

Edited January 4, 2018 by Jetblack

[bakon]

6 hours ago, christine 12 said:

I plan to by a book when I'm quit for a month

But it after one week.  

Shoes for a month

[Boo]

14 hours ago, christine 12 said:

I thought I would be fighting cravings every second, and be tense nonstop. But no, it's much easier than I thought it would be so far. 

 

For many of us, those days leading up to the quit were more of a pain in the ass than the quit itself was.

 

We've been conditioned, partly by our own unfounded fears and partly by marketing/propaganda campaigns, to believe that quitting is some unbearable source of misery that is likely not worth the effort.  Then you quit and quickly realize that feeling a bit foggy for a few days and having some nagging thoughts about getting a fix is a small price to pay for an improved quality of life and freedom from cigarettes.

 

Congratulations Christine.

[Doreensfree]

Fear...

Fear of spending the rest of your life without our little fix...our minds are our worst enemies....

Over thinking....

Actually quitting is much easier than you thought it would be...

This is where one  day at a time comes in handy...no over thinking.....

[christine 12]

Having a rough hour or so, been wandering around looking for cigarettes in pockets, purses etc. I have enough cash for one pack.Haven't gone to the store yet, which is right across the street. My worst moment yet. 

[Reciprocity]

Don't buy smokes! You have a few days invested already in this quit. Don't throw those away. Go for a walk or have a shower or a bath instead. Do anything but smoke. You CAN get through these tough moments Christine. Think about the reasons you wanted to quit. Keep those fresh in your mind!

 

Smoking kills - quitting heals

 

[Boo]

6 minutes ago, christine 12 said:

 My worst moment yet. 

 

It's just that, a moment.  Temporary and fleeting.

 

Don't make long-term decisions based on temporary feelings.

[christine 12]

4 minutes ago, reciprocity said:

Don't buy smokes! You have a few days invested already in this quit. Don't throw those away. Go for a walk or have a shower or a bath instead. Do anything but smoke. You CAN get through these tough moments Christine. Think about the reasons you wanted to quit. Keep those fresh in your mind!

 

Smoking kills - quitting heals

 

You reminded me it's only been a few days. Feels like a lot longer than that. 

 

My bad moment passed, feeling better now. Didn't smoke.

[Reciprocity]

Well, that's good but don't minimize your few days because that's a huge accomplishment!! Time seems to almost stand still in the early part of our quit because of the adjustment our brain is experiencing. That will pass soon enough. Learn something positive from this recent craving. That they only last a few moments and like BOO said, you don;t want to make a long term decision based on temporary feelings. These are the tools we pick up in our early days of quitting

 

Also, think about going to the SOS page and post a message to yourself in the "Pre-respond to your own SOS thread. You can post a message about why you want to stay quit and read it any time you feel you want to smoke. It's another good tool or, just post up an SOS on that page and wait until your get at least 3 responses. People will be alerted when you post in that thread. Stay strong Christine

[christine 12]

In one hour and 47 minutes, it will be three full days exactly for me. 

[Reciprocity]

That's great! And certainly something to celebrate. I always say, and truly feel, it's not us long term quitters that are the heroes around this place. It's you newbies!!

I remember being in that first week on my quit and it takes all you have to deal with all the changes going on in your body and mind. But, if you stick with it, you will soon be one of us old-timers cheering on a whole new group of "just quit" people. We longer term quitters here truly take as much joy in seeing others being successful at quitting as we did with our own quits. It's truly something amazing to be part of

[christine 12]

Thanks everyone:)

[NADA]

Congrats Christine!

 

Edited March 1, 2018 by BKP
.

[christine 12]

not so easy at 72 hours.....

[Reciprocity]

Dig in Christine. You'll be fine if you take smoking off the table completely. 3 days is pretty much the peak of discomfort in your quit. After 3 days, nicotine is completely out of you system if you are quitting cold turkey. That doesn't mean if gets easy after that but at least that part is done. Then, it;s a matter of retraining your brain to function without cigarettes every hour or so. They call your first week quit "Hell Week". I'm sure you can imagine why now. Stay close to this board over the next while and vent or ask questions or just let us know what you are feeling. That's why we're here. To help you along your journey. We have ALL been where you are right now. We KNOW what you are going through and can at the very least lend you support

[JB 883]

Yeah the third day sucks BUT -

The first two days was double proof that you CAN go through the day without smoking.

 

Look, after a time, maybe a few week and definitely after a couple months, you will completely forget just how bad the first few days were.

[Latoya]

On 1/5/2018 at 3:36 PM, christine 12 said:

Having a rough hour or so, been wandering around looking for cigarettes in pockets, purses etc. I have enough cash for one pack.Haven't gone to the store yet, which is right across the street. My worst moment yet. 

I went through this also and sometimes I still do. You can beat this!