To debmoreno. I am a 50 year old female who quit on Dec 1, 2007. I know exactly what you are talking about. Aside from all the other issues, I have the same thing about the deep breath. it is happening less and less often though. I can push through it most of the time when I focus on it ,it's worse which makes me think it's physcological. I also wonder how often I needed to take a breath like that before. I was not concious of it but I am now very aware of how I breath.
How are you doing today (May 2008)
I had the decision to quit smoking made for me quite abruptly. On July 1st 2007 at age 38 I had a massive heart attack. There was a 95% blockage in the main left arterie. They told me they call that particular blockage the 'Widowmaker'. In fact my grandfather died of the exact blockage when I was 2yrs old. I had an emergency angiplasty done and am now the proud owner of a stent and 4 medications per day. The emergency doctor at the initial hospital I was in said to me to remember when I had my last cigarette...I was actually smoking when the heart attack started. Within a day my throat had a feeling of needing to be cleared and it has still not gone away. I wouldn't say it is sore, more of an annoyance and irritated. At night it will start with a tickle which leads to a violent coughing fit. It still goes on to this day. Now I must admit even after what I went through getting off those death sticks has been hell and I still crash and burn. I was told in the hospital that cigarettes are harder than cocaine and heroin to quit. I was off them for about 6 months straight using the nicotine patch and I did feel much better in some ways especially breathing stopped coughing in the morning but I remember constantly having to blow my nose and this stupid throat thing. When I crash and burn and start smoking the throat feels better. But physically in other ways feel like absolute c**p. Another issue I have is a hiatus hernia which gives me lots of acid reflux. Some of the heart medications are not good for acid reflux so I am also on a medication for acid reflux. Last december I got a very bad throat infection which led to laryngitus, I literally could not talk the entire month of december. It cleared up but still have that annoying feeling that something is caught in throat and it needs to be cleared. Smoking will kill you. I don't know why they are even legal aside from the taxes it generates for the governments, makes them hypocritical I think. The more people that quit the more they jack up the taxes to compensate from lost revenue while at the same time banning smoking everywhere saying how bad for you it is. After using patches for so long I think they prolong the addiction to nicotine. They are good to help break the social aspect of the addiction, but everytime I go off the things I crash and burn very quickly. I think these patches should be better regulated as well. I find the no-name brands to be useless and a waste of money and just plain don't work. The only one that works for me is Nicoderm the most expensive one. Pretty sad when it is cheaper to smoke...except for life saving trips to the hospital. I hope and keep trying to get off these things for good and get off patches as well. But it is a very tough road to travel. Wish this darn throat would clear up too.
I recently gave up smoking with Bio resonance treatment. I haven't wanted a cigarette since. I smoked 20 a day for the past 20 years. I have the lump and dry throat situation. I was quite concerned and have made an appointment with my doctor. I used to work with a male collegaue who was one of my bosses three years ago. He gave up smoking and suffered from the same a lump in the throat. After three weeks we all told him to go to the doctor and get it checked out. We never saw him again. He had cancer of the lymph nodes. He died at the age of 41.
I quite 7/16/2007 and I have never had so many sinus problems and colds in my life. I just came down with another cold yesterday and my sinuses get so stuffed up that I can't breathe and it is driving me insane. I think I get sick at least every other month and when I do it lasts forever. I also get the chills, aches etc along with all of this. I take many vitamins, drink herbal tea, walk 2 miles pr day and try to exercise at lunchtime. I am proud that I quit, but when you feel so bad all the time it makes you wonder if it's worth it. I too, lost all of my ambition and I have always been on the hyper side and always busy with something and I am not like that anymore which also bothers me. I quit with Chantix and it is the first time in my life that I quit and never once cheated. I am proud that I quit,I took Chantix for 6 weeks and that was it. I followed the program precisely and never picked up a cigarette after my quit date. I just wish I could be the person I use to be and not be sick all the time and have ambition like I use to have.
Quitting smoking is something that is all about personal determination. If you properly educate yourself, it will make the whole process much easier. Why do we want to quit? Well, most likely it is because we have just begun to acknowledge how much damage cigarettes really do.
So what can we do to make this process easier? We can start by properly educating ourselves. The more we smoke, the more c**p that gets stuck in our bodies. Think of it like somebody pouring liquid tar down your mouth. After awhile it settles and gets hard. Our body does not do much about it, it kind of gives up for the moment because it knows that you are just going to keep pouring more and more tar down. Your body is VERY SMART and it is just waiting for your mind to get smart enough and say hey, maybe I should stop intaking all this c**p into my body. When this happens, your body says ok, it is time to get some serious work done. Many of the bodies resources are used during this healing process. Think of it like war time, people had to cut down on many things that they used to pool more resources together to fight the war. Your body is similar. A very good time to quit would be when you take a week or two vacation off work and have time to relax. Oh, that would be a problem you say? You want to have an enjoyable vacation right? That simple pleasure seeking mentality right there is your biggest enemy in this battle. If there is one thing I hope you remember from this entire paragraph, it is, TAKE SOME TIME FOR YOURSELF and remember to give your body lots of rest when you decide to quit smoking, both physically and mentally.
Some other tips to remember during the quitting process:
1. Always get proper rest during the quitting process. Going out on Fridays and coming home at 3am drunk does not help AT ALL.
2. Drink lots of liquids in the form of water and fresh juices. Do not drink anything else. A soda or a beer here and there would be fine, but again, lots of soda or beer will only make things worse during this period.
3. If you are a coffee drinker, try to substitute tea every once in awhile instead of coffee. It will help clean your system out and heal faster.
4. Eat lots of fiber, especially in the first two weeks of quitting smoking. The fiber will absorb a lot of the toxins in your bloodstream and help get them out of your system. It will also help prevent constipation in which some people tend to suffer from after quitting.
5. Go to a steam room, water sauna, etc. It is very helpful to go in one of those hot rooms with steam machines that saturate the air with lots of water. If you sit in there for about an hour I almost guarantee that you will be hacking up all kinds of nasty tar after you leave.
6. Remind yourself when you wake up why you are doing this. If you feel angry without your cigarettes, take that anger out on the cigarette. They are the cause of your discomfort, not your sore throat or headaches, or whatever you may have.
Death Stick Withdrawal Symptoms:
1. Headaches. (1 day after quitting to about 2 weeks)
2. Sore throat, sore neck, sore lungs, sore respiratory system. These are sore because your respiratory system is working overtime to clean itself out. If you work your biceps hard, they feel sore the next day. Another thing you may be feeling is new lung tissue growing back. All of this is healthy, so just hang in there. No pain no gain. Expect lots of coughing and hacking up junk during this period too, its all part of the process. This will last as long as it takes your body to clean itself. It will take longer if you eat poorly, sleep poorly, and drink lots of alcohol. If you treat your body very well during this time and exercise properly, you can cut down the time it takes you to heal by half. (1 week - 5 years).
3. Various illnesses, infections, colds, etc. Remember what I said about war time? Your body is fighting a serious battle and its defenses are weak. This is why you should take a vacation for two weeks if you can and quit smoking completely during that period. Yes you will feel like c**p during the vacation, but what is the point of a vacation anyway? It is to relieve some type of stress so that you can come back later and work more efficiently and happily. Smoking is definitely stressing you out. To combat getting sick, drink more water, eat more fruits and vegetables, wash your hands more frequently, and take more time for yourself. That is about all you can do. There is no magical solution, or drug, or anything else for that matter that is going to help you through this process. Good luck. If you don't make it, it is because you don't want to. Don't blame it on anything else or you are only deceiving yourself.
So what can we do to make this process easier? We can start by properly educating ourselves. The more we smoke, the more c**p that gets stuck in our bodies. Think of it like somebody pouring liquid tar down your mouth. After awhile it settles and gets hard. Our body does not do much about it, it kind of gives up for the moment because it knows that you are just going to keep pouring more and more tar down. Your body is VERY SMART and it is just waiting for your mind to get smart enough and say hey, maybe I should stop intaking all this c**p into my body. When this happens, your body says ok, it is time to get some serious work done. Many of the bodies resources are used during this healing process. Think of it like war time, people had to cut down on many things that they used to pool more resources together to fight the war. Your body is similar. A very good time to quit would be when you take a week or two vacation off work and have time to relax. Oh, that would be a problem you say? You want to have an enjoyable vacation right? That simple pleasure seeking mentality right there is your biggest enemy in this battle. If there is one thing I hope you remember from this entire paragraph, it is, TAKE SOME TIME FOR YOURSELF and remember to give your body lots of rest when you decide to quit smoking, both physically and mentally.
Some other tips to remember during the quitting process:
1. Always get proper rest during the quitting process. Going out on Fridays and coming home at 3am drunk does not help AT ALL.
2. Drink lots of liquids in the form of water and fresh juices. Do not drink anything else. A soda or a beer here and there would be fine, but again, lots of soda or beer will only make things worse during this period.
3. If you are a coffee drinker, try to substitute tea every once in awhile instead of coffee. It will help clean your system out and heal faster.
4. Eat lots of fiber, especially in the first two weeks of quitting smoking. The fiber will absorb a lot of the toxins in your bloodstream and help get them out of your system. It will also help prevent constipation in which some people tend to suffer from after quitting.
5. Go to a steam room, water sauna, etc. It is very helpful to go in one of those hot rooms with steam machines that saturate the air with lots of water. If you sit in there for about an hour I almost guarantee that you will be hacking up all kinds of nasty tar after you leave.
6. Remind yourself when you wake up why you are doing this. If you feel angry without your cigarettes, take that anger out on the cigarette. They are the cause of your discomfort, not your sore throat or headaches, or whatever you may have.
Death Stick Withdrawal Symptoms:
1. Headaches. (1 day after quitting to about 2 weeks)
2. Sore throat, sore neck, sore lungs, sore respiratory system. These are sore because your respiratory system is working overtime to clean itself out. If you work your biceps hard, they feel sore the next day. Another thing you may be feeling is new lung tissue growing back. All of this is healthy, so just hang in there. No pain no gain. Expect lots of coughing and hacking up junk during this period too, its all part of the process. This will last as long as it takes your body to clean itself. It will take longer if you eat poorly, sleep poorly, and drink lots of alcohol. If you treat your body very well during this time and exercise properly, you can cut down the time it takes you to heal by half. (1 week - 5 years).
3. Various illnesses, infections, colds, etc. Remember what I said about war time? Your body is fighting a serious battle and its defenses are weak. This is why you should take a vacation for two weeks if you can and quit smoking completely during that period. Yes you will feel like c**p during the vacation, but what is the point of a vacation anyway? It is to relieve some type of stress so that you can come back later and work more efficiently and happily. Smoking is definitely stressing you out. To combat getting sick, drink more water, eat more fruits and vegetables, wash your hands more frequently, and take more time for yourself. That is about all you can do. There is no magical solution, or drug, or anything else for that matter that is going to help you through this process. Good luck. If you don't make it, it is because you don't want to. Don't blame it on anything else or you are only deceiving yourself.
*Update*
My throat problems and feeling of lump in throat are a result of side effects to one of my heart medications. This just brings up another entirely different issue with me because I have a firm belief that drug companies are the evil brother of oil companies by getting us hooked on expensive drugs that do more harm than the disease itself.
As for smoking! Like the 'green police' or government it is all a scam far as I am concerned. Is all about who is making money. Governemnet says it wants people to quit but they don't want the loss of tax revenue...the more people that quit or quit buying legal smokes the more the taxes go up to make up the lost revenue. I know I felt far healthier off prescription meds and smoking than I do now.
Patches...far as I am concerned these things are another money making scam for big business. They just feed the nicotine addiction and make someone else rich. Sure they got me off 'smoking' but not off the nicotine addiction. Only way to quit is to just quit! And buying 'illegal' smokes is much cheaper than just getting sucked into another way of supplying the nicotine addiction.
Really makes me think street drugs should just be legalized because it is already done for *certain* drugs...nicotine alcohol prescription drugs...might as well make it wide open.
My throat problems and feeling of lump in throat are a result of side effects to one of my heart medications. This just brings up another entirely different issue with me because I have a firm belief that drug companies are the evil brother of oil companies by getting us hooked on expensive drugs that do more harm than the disease itself.
As for smoking! Like the 'green police' or government it is all a scam far as I am concerned. Is all about who is making money. Governemnet says it wants people to quit but they don't want the loss of tax revenue...the more people that quit or quit buying legal smokes the more the taxes go up to make up the lost revenue. I know I felt far healthier off prescription meds and smoking than I do now.
Patches...far as I am concerned these things are another money making scam for big business. They just feed the nicotine addiction and make someone else rich. Sure they got me off 'smoking' but not off the nicotine addiction. Only way to quit is to just quit! And buying 'illegal' smokes is much cheaper than just getting sucked into another way of supplying the nicotine addiction.
Really makes me think street drugs should just be legalized because it is already done for *certain* drugs...nicotine alcohol prescription drugs...might as well make it wide open.
Hey all, I can't believe how many illnesses are involved here. I have quit for about 3 weeks now. I get lightheaded and dizzy randomly throughout the day with some nausa but no actual throwing up. Does or did anyone else experience these fellings as a result of quitting??Sorry if there has been input on these symptoms, I didn't read every single one.I've seen doctors, no help there..I'm hoping it will pas..=(, its scary
Hi,
Just a quick question if I may as I am really quite worried!
I started taking Champix (Chantix) on the 7th April, gave up smoking within 7 days and have now not been taking the tablets for 3 weeks and still not smoking which is great.
However..................
I have now developed some kind of weird illness (which my doctor thinks is in my head) my lungs feel as though they are on fire, I keep getting times during the day where I feel as though I am breathless and cannot get enough oxygen!
It is not a panic attack and is really uncomfortable! the thing I have a fitness test in 10 days and this is the last thing I need.
What on earth is going on??
Just a quick question if I may as I am really quite worried!
I started taking Champix (Chantix) on the 7th April, gave up smoking within 7 days and have now not been taking the tablets for 3 weeks and still not smoking which is great.
However..................
I have now developed some kind of weird illness (which my doctor thinks is in my head) my lungs feel as though they are on fire, I keep getting times during the day where I feel as though I am breathless and cannot get enough oxygen!
It is not a panic attack and is really uncomfortable! the thing I have a fitness test in 10 days and this is the last thing I need.
What on earth is going on??
I am having something similar, in that I have been experiencing a tightness in the chest or chest congestion, but after the initial hack-attack in the morning, there's very little that comes up. Like many others, it feels much like I sometimes can't get enough air in, but then there's other times lately when my lungs completely open up, and I almost get too much oxygen. This has been going on for about the past 5 weeks, and from what I've read, I have a ways to go. I've seen 4-5 doctors and had 2 x-rays, 1 sinus x-ray, and a blood test just for kicks. Of course, being a cyber-chondriac, I keep going back to my family doctor for advice, even though he just comes back with the standard "It's a long lasting virus", but he's at least trying to be sympathetic.
I think the itching/burning/achy chest is a common side-effect of quitting smoking, as your lungs and body are still craving the nicotine, but your mind won't let it happen. If it continues or becomes worse, you may want to consult a doctor, rather than a bunch of cyber-chondriac posters :-D .
Great job on quitting!
I think the itching/burning/achy chest is a common side-effect of quitting smoking, as your lungs and body are still craving the nicotine, but your mind won't let it happen. If it continues or becomes worse, you may want to consult a doctor, rather than a bunch of cyber-chondriac posters :-D .
Great job on quitting!
I am glad I found this thread its very helpful to read what others are going through. I've been experiencing difficulty breathing tightness in the chest after quitting smoking, going to sleep is almost unbearable since it feels at times like I am drowning but I am sticking with it trying to eat right and exercise slowly getting at it. I've been a smoker for 16 years sad but quitting now at least for me and although very painful has been the best decision Ive made so far.
I am glad I found this thread its very helpful to read what others are going through. I've been experiencing difficulty breathing tightness in the chest after quitting smoking, going to sleep is almost unbearable since it feels at times like I am drowning but I am sticking with it trying to eat right and exercise slowly getting at it. I've been a smoker for 16 years sad but quitting now at least for me and although very painful has been the best decision Ive made so far.
C.
C.
Yes, I also have same tightness in chest after quit smoking 10 weeks ago.
Yeah guys I don't know, everytime i try to quit i have my dad that smokes like crazy and inside the house...i asked him to stop to help me but he tells me "oh yeah go blame all ur problems on ur father when u go to the shrink" it's like what the...anyways i get some really bad withdrawl symptoms from shaking to flipping out, to not sleeping this is ridiculous...I've been smoking for 9 years, smoke free for 8 hours now...and i smoke about 5-6 a day i've cut down since 20 a day. And like i said last time i quit was 8 hours ago...
i have a terrible sore throat after about 4 days of quitting, its gotten worse the past 2 days and i thought i must be sick but i tested negative for strep when going to the doctors. they gave me antibiotics but they're not really helping. the glands in my neck have swollen significantly and my throat kills without being on constant aspirin, especially in the morning. if anyone else has gone through this, please let me know when this sh*t goes away cause i'm not about to deal with this for much longer.