I am so glad I found this board. I smoked for over 30 years and quit about 2 months ago. I have been sick ever since. I've had sinus infections, flu like symptoms, a very scary bout of vertigo and I'm a seriously ready to just start smoking again. If I had know this was going to happen, I wouldn't have quit. I have no energy and feel achy all the time. Its just good to know that others have experienced the same thing because theres days where I feel like absolute hell and I don't know whats wrong with me.
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Posted: 01/04/09 - 02:41 Post subject: quit smoking still feel bad
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"It has been 16 weeks since I quit smoking. I smoked 1/2-1pack a day for 15 years. When I first quit I thought wow this is smooth sailing. About a week after quitting I develoved chest pain,shortness of breath,chest palpitations. Thought I was having a heart attack.. tests came out fine.. Problem I think was hadn't had anything to eat and had 3 cups of coffee. I never knew there was nicotine withdrawal symptoms. I was in bed for about 3 days just trying to get through it. Since then I have had 2 bad colds. Bronchitis. Lung pain. coughing up tons of mucus. I have been on two rounds of antibiotics.I was on inhaler for 2 weeks. Had a chest xray it was fine. I have been going out walking even though I feel bad. The lung pain is still there..feels like burning or itching in the lungs. The funny thing is it usually feels better after I've been walking awhile. I will feel good one day and think ok it is over...however for no reason my lungs will start to hurt and I will feel dizziness and almost like and adrenaline surge. it's getting better...but I want to feel 100% anyone else go thru this???? I feel like I am losing my mind!!!"
This was my post back in January. I really had a hard time. I thought I would never make it through quitting smoking. Well I did. It has now been almost nine months and I am finally feeling like I am human. I had
a lot of lung problems. shortness of breath for no reason. Before I quit smoking I would walk for miles and have no problem. After I quit for almost 7 months I would have a hard time walking up a flight of stairs.
I am now able to hike and go jogging. I still occasionaly get this weird feeling in my lungs. I am still coughing up a lot of mucus in the morning but it is lessening. I no longer get palpitations or chest pains. As a matter of fact when I was quitting my heart rate went crazy fast and I actually had to go to the hospital. Not anymore!!I can not believe by smoking that is what i had done to my lungs and my body. It is a SERIOUSLY hard road to quit. However, I feel so much better now!! it took me 9 months and many times wanted to give in and smoke...I am very glad that I didn't because now I definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel.... I wish everyone well and know that it does get better!!!!
Posted: 01/04/09 - 02:41 Post subject: quit smoking still feel bad
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"It has been 16 weeks since I quit smoking. I smoked 1/2-1pack a day for 15 years. When I first quit I thought wow this is smooth sailing. About a week after quitting I develoved chest pain,shortness of breath,chest palpitations. Thought I was having a heart attack.. tests came out fine.. Problem I think was hadn't had anything to eat and had 3 cups of coffee. I never knew there was nicotine withdrawal symptoms. I was in bed for about 3 days just trying to get through it. Since then I have had 2 bad colds. Bronchitis. Lung pain. coughing up tons of mucus. I have been on two rounds of antibiotics.I was on inhaler for 2 weeks. Had a chest xray it was fine. I have been going out walking even though I feel bad. The lung pain is still there..feels like burning or itching in the lungs. The funny thing is it usually feels better after I've been walking awhile. I will feel good one day and think ok it is over...however for no reason my lungs will start to hurt and I will feel dizziness and almost like and adrenaline surge. it's getting better...but I want to feel 100% anyone else go thru this???? I feel like I am losing my mind!!!"
This was my post back in January. I really had a hard time. I thought I would never make it through quitting smoking. Well I did. It has now been almost nine months and I am finally feeling like I am human. I had
a lot of lung problems. shortness of breath for no reason. Before I quit smoking I would walk for miles and have no problem. After I quit for almost 7 months I would have a hard time walking up a flight of stairs.
I am now able to hike and go jogging. I still occasionaly get this weird feeling in my lungs. I am still coughing up a lot of mucus in the morning but it is lessening. I no longer get palpitations or chest pains. As a matter of fact when I was quitting my heart rate went crazy fast and I actually had to go to the hospital. Not anymore!!I can not believe by smoking that is what i had done to my lungs and my body. It is a SERIOUSLY hard road to quit. However, I feel so much better now!! it took me 9 months and many times wanted to give in and smoke...I am very glad that I didn't because now I definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel.... I wish everyone well and know that it does get better!!!!
After 20 years of smoking - pack and a half towards the end - I have been smoke free for over 2 years today.
I posted on this board early on, and like for some many others found the experiences of others assuring that everything I was experiencing at that time would eventually pass. I am happy to report that it did but it took a long time for various things to subside; a really long time.... which I do not regret of course.
A quick note to all those that are writing, stating that they had quit hoping to feel better only to realize they feel much worse and consider going back to smoking.
Listen Up!
This is all by design. Think about it! If someone wanted to get you hooked and capitalize on your addiction wouldn't they try some clever way to make sure you have the hardest time possible trying to break the habit thus depriving them of profits????
Here is in short what happens. As I wrote before, the cigs have thousands of chemical compounds all designed to do one think - fool your brain into thinking that they are the only reason why you would feel good and get you addicted. They stimulate the brain to release all kinds of feel-good neurotransmitters that indeed make you feel better than perhaps you would normally do otherwise. This all have very short term effect which you perpetuate by smoking more and more frequently to maintain the feeling....eventually you forget what "normal" feels like.
When you quit, you will be on withdrawal and you will feel like c**p - this is not new. You must accept it!
If you still say after some time you don't feel any better than when you smoked but you actually feel worse ask yourself this question:
What is feeling "better", what does it mean? How do you know what "better" feels like having poisoned and fooled your body and brain for years?
What you are feeling is "normal", a feeling you would experience without cigs but since you have not had a chance to experience this pure feeling you think it is the utter c**p. It's not - believe me. Find something that will give you a sense of pleasure in this normal world again and be happy that you have accomplished what millions of other people can't despite their efforts.
YOUR RID YOURSELF OF SELF-INFLICTED POISONING AND CERTAIN DEATH DESPITE THE DECADES OF CHEMICAL RESEARCH AND BILLIONS OF $$$ THE BIG TOBACCO HAD INVESTED IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN.
Be happy and don't go back even if you feel like sh*t in the interim. If you break down and go back, you will find the cigs will not have improved the mood but then you will have to start from the beginning and the vicious cycle will begin again - precisely as big tobacco like it.
BE STRONG AND HAVE FAITH - ALL OF THIS WILL PASS.
I posted on this board early on, and like for some many others found the experiences of others assuring that everything I was experiencing at that time would eventually pass. I am happy to report that it did but it took a long time for various things to subside; a really long time.... which I do not regret of course.
A quick note to all those that are writing, stating that they had quit hoping to feel better only to realize they feel much worse and consider going back to smoking.
Listen Up!
This is all by design. Think about it! If someone wanted to get you hooked and capitalize on your addiction wouldn't they try some clever way to make sure you have the hardest time possible trying to break the habit thus depriving them of profits????
Here is in short what happens. As I wrote before, the cigs have thousands of chemical compounds all designed to do one think - fool your brain into thinking that they are the only reason why you would feel good and get you addicted. They stimulate the brain to release all kinds of feel-good neurotransmitters that indeed make you feel better than perhaps you would normally do otherwise. This all have very short term effect which you perpetuate by smoking more and more frequently to maintain the feeling....eventually you forget what "normal" feels like.
When you quit, you will be on withdrawal and you will feel like c**p - this is not new. You must accept it!
If you still say after some time you don't feel any better than when you smoked but you actually feel worse ask yourself this question:
What is feeling "better", what does it mean? How do you know what "better" feels like having poisoned and fooled your body and brain for years?
What you are feeling is "normal", a feeling you would experience without cigs but since you have not had a chance to experience this pure feeling you think it is the utter c**p. It's not - believe me. Find something that will give you a sense of pleasure in this normal world again and be happy that you have accomplished what millions of other people can't despite their efforts.
YOUR RID YOURSELF OF SELF-INFLICTED POISONING AND CERTAIN DEATH DESPITE THE DECADES OF CHEMICAL RESEARCH AND BILLIONS OF $$$ THE BIG TOBACCO HAD INVESTED IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN.
Be happy and don't go back even if you feel like sh*t in the interim. If you break down and go back, you will find the cigs will not have improved the mood but then you will have to start from the beginning and the vicious cycle will begin again - precisely as big tobacco like it.
BE STRONG AND HAVE FAITH - ALL OF THIS WILL PASS.
ok i quit smoking after 32 years and on the second week came down with sinus infection and on the third week experienced anxiety dizziness and slight depression and the fifth week another sinus infection. It has been three months now still feeling like c**p at times but it is slowly improving finding others with the same type of symptoms is comforting not to know others are suffering but to verify that this is indeed a side effect of quitting and that im not losing it so to speak! I to no longer want to be a prisoner to cigarettes and the ill effects that come with them when you smoke them and when you quit! As most have said it is good to share here but do not hesitate to see your doctor with your problems!
Just keep at it. It took me almost 5 months to stop having frequent sinus infections and constant feelings of being sick. It does get better. :D
Hi. Let me just say how glad i am that i found this site. I smoked for 14 years and just quit about 31 days ago. I have been having many ups and downs. I thought i was going crazy. My sinus' are causing me such problems (such as dizziness, confusion etc) that i thought i had a brain tumor or something. Had a bad panic attack due to everything i was feeling. Bruising on my legs all of a sudden and no energy. I really didnt know it was not smoking anymore. I have had a puff or 2 but since they are getting so expensive i will not even buy a pack. i had been to a doctor and a hospital and they just brushed off the fact that i quit when i told them. so many blood tests to check my thyroid and infections and such. I am only 27 and thought i was dying..the anxiety is killing me. Does anyone suggest that i take meds for that? will it help for now? Due to the sinuses i am now on steriod nose sprays which seems to be helping. but my whole body still aches and i dont wanna work or anything. should i see a dr. for depression?
finally i've finished reading all the posts and i'm thankful for this informative thread. i've been bed-ridden for 2 days now because of sore throat, high fever, chest pain and severe cough. i quit exactly 7 days ago. i am a female, 31 yr old. i was a smoker for 8 years and my daily cigarette consumption was 3-4 sticks. i didn't know it'll be this hard after quitting cigs, i thought i'll feel better.
a day before i decided to stop smoking i completed my first official 5km marathon. prior to that, i was training 3x per week without getting sick. now i'm so scared that i'll never be able to run again. i was feeling lethargic since day 4 :-( inspite of the rough time i'm going through since i quit, i'm never going back to smoking.
i hope we'll all feel good after this detoxification stage, we deserve a healthier life afterall.
a day before i decided to stop smoking i completed my first official 5km marathon. prior to that, i was training 3x per week without getting sick. now i'm so scared that i'll never be able to run again. i was feeling lethargic since day 4 :-( inspite of the rough time i'm going through since i quit, i'm never going back to smoking.
i hope we'll all feel good after this detoxification stage, we deserve a healthier life afterall.
Every ex-smoker would get through his/her own ordeal of quit smoking, it's not easy but well worh it.
I am smoking free after April of '08. Keep it up and don't give up!!
I am smoking free after April of '08. Keep it up and don't give up!!
Guest wrote:
Thanks :)
After 5 days of rest I'm feeling much better now. I'm still coughing the icky stuff but the fever's gone.
On Monday, I tried hitting our elliptical trainer at home to check if my body can take the workout. I was able to do continuous running for 30 mins. On Tuesday, I tried again and was able to stay there for 35 mins without rest or whatsoever. Today, I was able to resume to my normal 50 minute workout without any chest pains or shortness of breath. :) The final test is on weekend when I hit the running track again.
I guess we just have to be patient and help our body to heal from all the years of smoking. Talk about learning the hard way. :(
cahcah wrote:
finally i've finished reading all the posts and i'm thankful for this informative thread. i've been bed-ridden for 2 days now because of sore throat, high fever, chest pain and severe cough. i quit exactly 7 days ago. i am a female, 31 yr old. i was a smoker for 8 years and my daily cigarette consumption was 3-4 sticks. i didn't know it'll be this hard after quitting cigs, i thought i'll feel better.
a day before i decided to stop smoking i completed my first official 5km marathon. prior to that, i was training 3x per week without getting sick. now i'm so scared that i'll never be able to run again. i was feeling lethargic since day 4 :( inspite of the rough time i'm going through since i quit, i'm never going back to smoking.
i hope we'll all feel good after this detoxification stage, we deserve a healthier life afterall.
Every ex-smoker would get through his/her own ordeal of quit smoking, it's not easy but well worh it.
I am smoking free after April of '08. Keep it up and don't give up!!
Thanks :)
After 5 days of rest I'm feeling much better now. I'm still coughing the icky stuff but the fever's gone.
On Monday, I tried hitting our elliptical trainer at home to check if my body can take the workout. I was able to do continuous running for 30 mins. On Tuesday, I tried again and was able to stay there for 35 mins without rest or whatsoever. Today, I was able to resume to my normal 50 minute workout without any chest pains or shortness of breath. :) The final test is on weekend when I hit the running track again.
I guess we just have to be patient and help our body to heal from all the years of smoking. Talk about learning the hard way. :(
Never underestimate the influence of cigarettes on your brain and seriousness of anxiety or depression. Seek GOOD psychiatric help in short term and perhaps psychological therapy in a longer term. Dropping cigarettes have shown to exacerbate an existing but concealed depression.
A big thank you to all you quitters!
3 and1/2 months into quitting, I'm; tired, achy, scratchy slightly sore throat, mild continuous hot sensation in my lungs/esophagus, short of breath, decreased energy, generally pissy mood and 12 lb weight gain!!! Didn't expect this, I never thought I'd feel physically worse. Oh well, never thought I'd smoke for 40 years either.
Glad I found this thread... tonight when I was so close to going back because I don't feel better i.e. "healthy" since quitting. I needed to hear the real stories, I needed to know I'm not alone.
Thank You!
On the plus side though, my skins a prettier color and I smell nice....
3 and1/2 months into quitting, I'm; tired, achy, scratchy slightly sore throat, mild continuous hot sensation in my lungs/esophagus, short of breath, decreased energy, generally pissy mood and 12 lb weight gain!!! Didn't expect this, I never thought I'd feel physically worse. Oh well, never thought I'd smoke for 40 years either.
Glad I found this thread... tonight when I was so close to going back because I don't feel better i.e. "healthy" since quitting. I needed to hear the real stories, I needed to know I'm not alone.
Thank You!
On the plus side though, my skins a prettier color and I smell nice....
I was relieved to read your post (sorry). I quit 6 weeks ago, then smoked twice in two weeks and have not touched a cig in 15 days.
I feel like I'm going to DIE.
I have a horrible light headed feeling/BRAIN FOG almost constantly. I am awful to be around because all I can do is focus on how horrible I feel. In the past when I have tried quitting, the only bad things that happened were sore throats or cold symptoms. I never got this horrible brain fog.
I'm 36 years years old and I smoked 10-15 cigs a day on and off for 18 years ( I once quit cold turkey for 2 years).
Does anyone else have this light headed/cobweb (sp) feeling after they quit? I'm ready to go to my primary care physician because I can't take it anymore. I also have nasty insomnia.
Thank you everyone in advance for all your posts or feedback.
I feel like I'm going to DIE.
I have a horrible light headed feeling/BRAIN FOG almost constantly. I am awful to be around because all I can do is focus on how horrible I feel. In the past when I have tried quitting, the only bad things that happened were sore throats or cold symptoms. I never got this horrible brain fog.
I'm 36 years years old and I smoked 10-15 cigs a day on and off for 18 years ( I once quit cold turkey for 2 years).
Does anyone else have this light headed/cobweb (sp) feeling after they quit? I'm ready to go to my primary care physician because I can't take it anymore. I also have nasty insomnia.
Thank you everyone in advance for all your posts or feedback.
I quit one monnth ago after smoking 10-15 a day for 15 years.
Since then i've had swollen glands, sore throat, tingly hands/feet, muggy head, head ache, tight chest, exhaustion the list goes on!
I packed in before and never had this, hopefully it will all go away soon, the tiredness and lack of patiance that comes with it is the hardest to deal with. I'm 30 btw
Since then i've had swollen glands, sore throat, tingly hands/feet, muggy head, head ache, tight chest, exhaustion the list goes on!
I packed in before and never had this, hopefully it will all go away soon, the tiredness and lack of patiance that comes with it is the hardest to deal with. I'm 30 btw
Yeah, I think that it should dfeinitely clear up for you after awhile. I think it's important to remember that with any addictive substance or habit, it takes one month to establish and three months to kick it. You're a third of the way there thus far. I know that soon you'll be feeling a lot better. What made you decide to quit?
I was 30 at the end of July and made a promise to my partner that i'd quit before i was 30. Cigarettes and alcohol have always gone hand in hand with me all through my 20's and i started drinking and smoking more and more. So on the 13th July after getting ill from being very rundown i quit both cold turkey...ouch!!