Quit smoking a year ago - sick ever since!

thank you for sharing
What were your specific symptoms and when did you start felling better ? I am in my first month and I feel horible

HI mamabuna, Here's my story: I stopped on June 18th 2012...so close to 7 months now. I've been smoking for 27-28 years about a pack a day...never stopped in between. I stopped because I got scarred. A few days before I stopped, I went to the doctor because I was coughing. I had to wait for 3 hours before getting the X-Rays. During that time, I was thinking about the whole smoking thing and I got scarred. So, I decided to stop for good. So starting June 18th for 3 weeks. I felt very good physically and mentally. I was happy to have stopped. I was drinking alot of water...I mean alot! Something I was never doing wile smoking. I don't know about you but for me the taste of water and smoke do not fit together. But I was drinking so much water that after 3 weeks, I got a kidney stone. It passed but I thought I had something else so my anxiety level went up after 3 weeks. Between 4-8 weeks, I started to wake up around 3-4 am almost every morning with digestive issues (Bloading, gaz, etc)...I was eating but not so hungry. I also had nausea here and there, sometimes during the night and sometimes during the day...before or after eating...it was not continuous. Between 8-12 weeks. The nausea was completely gone. But the digestive issues were still there. I was waking up 3 out 4 mornings with bloading and gaz...and generally not feeling well. Couldn’t stay in bed, I had to wake up and walk. It would pass after sometime in the morning and then comeback in the afternoon. Between 12-16 weeks. Digestive issues still there. But now after that many weeks anxiety started. I was wandering why I was having all these problems with abdominal/digestive issues. Went to see the doctor and she told me that it’s normal after quitting and so on. But I was having problems controlling my anxiety..something that I never had before. So she gived me some mild medication to calm my self when I needed it...but mild meds. 16 weeks to today. Digestive issues still there but getting better...very slowly. I would say 10% better. I see a psychologist almost every week and it helps for anxiety. Basically, I started smoking around 15 years old so I never got to learn to control my anxiety without my cigarette. I need to learn this now at 44 years old. People should not hesitate to get help. Specially with anxiety… This forum helps me alot..I found it around 16 week into the stopping. It really helps because you can relate to others...I too thought I was alone having these problems. Even this morning I was not feeling well and I came to read this forum again...even writing to you helps me. So keep on coming on the forum and read. Post what you're feeling...symptoms, mentally and physically. Share with us. We're all together in the same boat!

Hello people!

Let me make one thing clear before I start this long post: I have no desire at all to start smoking again! I have quit for life. I do not miss these things anymore. They stink! I have beaten the addiction. I don't get any cravings at all anymore.  My cravings stopped at around week 5 or week 6. I started smoking at age 23 / 24.  I am now 41. 

I quit at age 41, smoking average20 - 25 a day, but weekends, with a few beers, I would easily finish 2 packs / 50 cigs. I did not enjoy smoking anymore at all and it's expensive.

I was looking for tips to quit and found out about Allan Carr's book. Got my self a copy of the ebook and started reading one morning while at work. I finished the book that same night before going to bed.

I set a date for my last cigarette. It was a Sunday night. I figured that it would more easy to start on a Monday.  

I got myself an app from apple iStore that keeps track of number of days since I quit.  Its called: "iQuitHD"

Here are my stats from that:

I quit smoking on 27 May 2012 at 21h45I was smoking ave 24 a day costing me R36-90 (my local currency - ZAR)

It's been 0 years, 7 months, and 16 days since your last cigarette.

You have saved R8 510-56 (that's about $1000 at current rates).

--- And here comes the best part for me! ---

You have not smoked 5535 cigarettes!

FFS! I can hardly believe that! I "missed" out on five and a half thousand cigarettes since I quit!!! in less than 8 months.

That is something I'm very proud of!

Here's about how it went...

Week 1

Was difficult, but I basically slept through it. Got up in the morning, took a shower and went to work. Got take-aways during lunch, enough for 2 people, went home, got in bed and sleep till next morning. I woke up a few time during the night but did not get out of bed.  I remember getting extremely thirsty during the 1st week. Day 4 and day 7 was the worst. Could not think about anything else except that I had to smoke.

Week 2

Was getting more difficult to sleep. I started getting light headed. I passed out while walking down the stairs at home and got some bad bruises. I hart started racing fast as if I was doing heave exercise, even when I was sitting at my desk at work.

Week 3

My sense of taste and smell increased a lot! I could smell (and still do) when a smoker entered the office! I used to eat salt on EVERYTHING, even on vanilla ice-cream! No jokes! Bacon without salt was not worth eating!

It was during week3 that I realized that the food does not taste so nice with all the salt I added.

Another bad thing was coffee. I was having at least 14 cups of coffee per day!

Last cup was before I would go to bed at night, no matter what time it was.It was during week 3 that my fellow workers noticed I stopped drinking so much coffee. They thought I was on a diet. I did not even realize it, till they mentioned it to me. My coffee intake has decreased to about 4 or 5 cups a day. I felt so good at the end of week3. Most of my cravings were gone and the ones I had passed to quickly.

I still remember thinking to myself that it was not so bad quitting. Only 3 weeks of suffering from cravings! 

Oh boy, how wrong I was...

Then came week4...  

Sharp chest pains, shortness of breath, sleepless nights, light-headedness. I nearly fell of my chair in a restaurant. I fell down the stairs at home for the 2nd time, this time, losing my one toe nail. I was sleeping about 2 hours a night. By this time I was not adding salt to anything I ate. I was drinking about 15% - 20%of the coffee I was used to, and also no more nicotine! (no patches, pills or any other help)

Spent rest of the night reading books on my iPad. I started coughing, but nothing came out. Just a dry irritating cough. Drinking lots of water helped with the coughing. My chest was tight. I was getting more depressed every day, but was hiding it from the friends and family.

I had lost hope on my future. I felt so useless.  I lost everything I had about 4 years before, due to thieving business partner I had.

I was getting acne outbreaks on my face.

FFS... 41 year old man struggling with pimples! Week4 changed everything.

I got so worried about my lungs and was 100% certain I had serious health problems.

I do not have medical aid / health plans / health insurance and could not afford any tests, so I decided to suffer in silence.

Did not tell anyone, just put up a happy face when with family / friends.  

I am glad to say that it's going much better now! I still get pain in my chest / lungs, on both sides. I still have trouble sleeping some nights (like last night) I heart still races but those episodes are getting further apart and it is happening a lot less. The chest pains are becoming a lot less fierce. I felt so good this morning when I got up, like I have not felt in years.

Easy breathing, not chest pains, not feeling off balance. I really hope that I'm over all this rubbish now. I am writing this as I promised myself last night (felt very depressed and had chest pains again, so bad that I could not sleep) whilst reading this thread FROM PAGE 1 TO THE END that I will post my experience here.

To everyone else out there, you are not alone. There are others suffering just like you.

Today, I am on 7 months and 16 days and I'm really feeling the best since I stopped smoking.

I have no more cravings at all!  I still drink a few beer's every now and again and the majority of my friends are smokers.

I feel sorry for them when I see them lighting up the next one as I know they cannot go with out it. I have beaten the addiction, now if only all this other stuff would go away.

One thing I know for sure...  I will never smoke again. I do not want to go through all this ever again.

To everyone out there, having problems... Be strong and stick with it.

My suffering is getting better now each as each day go past.

Go get yourself a copy of: "The Easy Way to Stop Smoking" by Allen Carr. 

You will understand why quitting is so difficult with patches / electronic cigarettes and nicotine replacement products.

And please keep writing your experience here. It's keeps me busy at night when I can't sleep!    :)

I thought I was logged on when posting the above.
Will make sure I'm logged on next time.

I just started feeling a bit better this past week at my 6 month mark Jan 8. I have had terrible indigestion, terrible chest pains, tingling, gas, bloating, constepation, and extreme anxiety/panic ( i had anxiety prior but never this severe). The only ones remaing are the indigestion (not as often or severe), anxiety (starting to lessen) and chest pains (come and go somedays better than others). Hang in there....it is different for everyone...some feel better sooner than others but one thing is for sure...we all were healthier the minute we stopped :)

Hello Everyone,

I’m back for a quick update – I feel I should let you all know how I am feeling now.

I am the one who quit on July 12, 2012 – so I’m about 6 months exactly. My first post is on page 21 and I gave some insight on my first 5 weeks.

Istop – I am really grateful you have been posting your experience for all of us. I have been monitoring your experience the most because you are closer to my time frame than any other poster as of late. So – thanks again – it helps give me hope on feeling better.

Blackbirdrider – thanks for your post buddy and I’m glad I have another person I can relate to who is also close like istop and my time frame.

I do not care what anyone says about recovery/withdrawal physical symptoms but I know it is a FACT it can last a long time. It does not last just 3 weeks or 3 months or whatever that stupid pamphlet c**p says.  With my logs of symptoms and my friends logs who also quit I am confident that symptoms can last a long time – don’t listen to those naysayers who said it is easy and short. It’s different for everyone – hang in there.

I have been to the E.R and visited doctors several times in the last 6 months.  I maybe went to the doctor one time the previous 15 years.  I have had ultrasounds, x-rays, and complete blood work done. So my anxiety and stress was at an all-time high and as you all know, it makes things worst.

I have had all symptoms associated with withdrawals – trust me.

As of late I am feeling better – but my main problem that is still left is my digestion. I don’t know what is up but I have been eating the rights food and been takings the right supplements to combat my digestion problem. I have weird feelings- it’s like something with my nerves. It’s not painful it’s just an annoyance in my digestive areas - mainly my pelvic area now but it started higher in specific areas. I heard it can be your nerves healing. The bloating and gas is the worst.  Doctors think I’m crazy and need to wait it out. My heart burn is rarely there now but I’m not sure if it’s actually acid reflux or just my esophagus healing from the years of abuse from smoke. I know its healing because after my first week I have been monitoring inside my nose and I can see the raw flesh healing. It was bright red and I was constantly getting blood when I blow or cleaned it out. I have a good feeling my sinuses and esophagus is doing the same thing. Inside my nose now is healed and it looks like regular skin and not this reddish raw skin that keeps scabbing up during my previous months.

Just to let future quitters know – fix your stomach – do not strain during bowel movements. Trust me – everyone who quits smoking cold turkey will go through a battle with constipation or diarrhea. My only regret is - that I should have known better and did not strain so hard during my bowel movements and now I have a prolapsed hemorrhoid and now I have a new problem. I am not embarrassed about it – I want to help others.

I can go on and on about my symptoms and what to do about it, so to sum things up – My 6th month now and I am feeling a lot better than before. I feel it is slowly fading away – and my main problem is just my digestion but it is better. I feel the difference in my energy output and my skin does look better – I do not have any cravings. My glucose level is lower, blood pressure better, and I can sleep better now. The issues with nausea are also gone. I was sitting there and suddenly get light headed in my first 3 months – it was weird.  I have been exercising a lot and been eating right and it actually does help. Jacuzzis and long hot showers helped me as well and were the only things that help me feel good during my early months. 

Rob_From_SoCal

Thanks so much for your post....I quit on July 8, 2012 so we both are celebrating our 6 month mark. I recently found this site and it was a life saver for me...posted twice as a guest...but thought it's time to come out :)....your post as well as others helped me during those sleepless nights and to know that Im not dying....just healing....hard to believe our bodies must go through this detox but appartently they do.

Anywho....congrats...keep up the great job and thanks again for your posts...that goes to everyone...you have all been a big help to me!!

Thought I was logged in....lol but guess not for the post above :)

After reading allot of staff over the internet this is what I thing is happeningSmoking has a great impact over insulin . Insulin is a very complex hormone. It is directly connected to the brain and all digestive system plus the bladder kidneys liver and heart.   Now guess what ? When you stop smoking the body doesn’t know how to regulate the insulin and that has a great impact on what is going to happen to you. When insulin is not at the right level that means  low or  high you will have allot of weird sensations like dizziness,  light headed, tingling all over the place, pain, ache blurred vision,  hunger sensations . The digestive system in fu...up. Not to mention that the lungs are starting to take out all the chemicals  and guess where all that stuff goes ...in your stomach hence nausea vomiting . Add to all this dopamine. Your mind doesn’t know what the hell is wrong thus all the depression and anxiety which as we all know amplifies  everything by 1000. If you go to the doctor your scans will look perfect but some of your blood work will be off scale. especially sugar level . Remember:  sugar level  is a big problem and it is a known fact that stress and depression affects this level big time. Stress /depression lower your immune system so much that even a fly could hurt you . When your immune system is down your body has no defense and without defense ...well here we are. All suffering for months . The doctors ? Well in my opinion today they rely obsoletely on test results The symptoms are not that important They just drive what tests will be done. If the test are OK they send you home . In my case, the blood work tests showed high cholesterol, high sugar blood level and D vitamin deficiency. I am pretty sure that almost everyone on this forum will have the same test results or close. When you quit smoking the doctor should tell you that your body will lose allot of minerals and vitamins , they should tell you that pain is coming ....they should have know all this

Hi Rod_From_Socal

We do have a very similar case! I'm very happy we can relate on this important event hapening in our lives.

You are so right...Forget the 3 weeks or 2-3 months! It takes more time for many quitters. I too have been better now. What left is the digestive issue. And like you, It’s not painful it’s just an annoyance in my digestive areas.

Well look at this interesting thing: I went to see a pulmonary specialist. She was not a doctor but a specialised nurse (35 years of experience with smokers). The tests consisted of blowing in a tube a few time as hard as I could. This would give the level of oxygen input and so on. The test went fine but I took the opportunity to ask her other questions. I asked her about my digestive problems and if it was so normal after so many months (at the time it was 5.5 months). She responded ABSOLUTLY! She said that she saw different case over her 35 years. Some do have them, others don't. She said it has to do with the fact that heavy smokers will have they intestines shrink slowly during the time they smoke. She told me to visualize that they ripple from the inside. So when we stop smoking, they slowly comeback to the normal stage and ripples goes away, leaving wired sensations, gas and so on. I've ask her if this was a fact and she said yes but it's not promoted because not all will feel the sensation. Another thing she said, the breathing will make it better. The better we breathe, the better the oxygen intake is and this is what will also clean our digestive system.

So during the time ripples goes away, either the excrement passes to fast with diarrhea or to slow and you have constipation.

So asked her what is the best I can do and she said : do a minimum of 120 mins exercise a week, take the time to breath ( don't forget smoker have the tendency to not breath well, remember during smoking we almost felt like we were not allowed to breath because of our lungs? So to change this we need to reprogram our mind on breathing. This will provide a better oxygen intake. And last water...water....water.

Hope this helps !

Keep on posting guys!

Istop

@ Istop, BlackbirdRider, Rob_From_SoCal

..It feels so very good to hear about your experiences but mostly about your updates.

Right now my body hurts I have same sort of heart discomfort like a sharp pain , sometimes radiates to my back  lung area then it goes way ,....it comes back . Sometimes I get dizzy . Since yesterday my tonsils are making my life even worse. I have some tingling on my face next to my ears , very hard o describe. Depression anxiety are still there. Hot showers helps a lot though

I will update soon

This is my 4th week

mamabuna

If you were a heavy smoker before and most of your life revolved around smoking like many of us - expect a tough first 3 months. which was the case for me.  It was actually hell for me and i totally understand your pain. I am not sure if you quit cold turkey but im glad i did because i needed to feel all that pain at first so i can realize how much damage i did and to stay off the cigs for good. You become more aware of your body now and will feel pains that are weird, have tingling sensations, and your nerves will be acting funny. Ive had the heart discomfort as you described and my upper back i also had a pain. it felt like there was a balloon under my skin that was constantly there. The dizziness was there for me as well - i also just get severly light headed out of no where. It could be stress, depression, or anxiety that furthers enhance your symptoms. But if you have a sharp pain that stays for a long period of time go get it checked out. I actually found this excuse to go get checked out for everything. Just lie to your doctor so you can get scans also get blood work done - like a complete metabolic plan - so you know how all your organs are doing and you can monitor how much everything improves after you take proactive steps in detoxing. Remember your brain is very strong and can cause or enhance more physical symptoms - so try to fix your mind. if it is difficult for you - you can seek professional help. some people do. also keep your other brain strong (your digestive systems). i can go on and on again about what ive learned but stay strong - you can do it. 

YES- every night i used to take long hot showers and did breathing excercises. this was my favorite time of the day. my water bill went up but it was worth it. After that i used to lay in my bed and watch disney movies to fall asleep. i still get laughed at about that because i am a big tough guy - lol but it actually helped me and i really dont care what people think during my detox. 

Good luck everyone. 

Thx for details Rob
My lung pain is not terrible and it comes and goes It doesn' t heart whean I breath eather. 4 Weeks ago I had a X-chest scan which was Ok So I am not worried about that anymore. I had complete blood work done as well My cholesterol and blood sugar is a little bit high . Last week I had an abdominal ultrasound which showed a normal size liver with a litle fat insertions and no signs of stones . Now about my lung pain is not inside as much as is outside like some sort of tendon or muscle is inflamated My sleeping habbit has somthing to do with this as well. My neck is stiff too After a hot shower none of the pain is there .I have changed my diet allot No more meat or sugar plus vitamins and tea

" Ive had the heart discomfort as you described and my upper back i also had a pain. it felt like there was a balloon under my skin that was constantly
there"
This is exactly what I feel and yes I quit cold turkey after 10 years of 1 pack a day.
3 months you say ? Damm

HI Rob, can you please be elaborative on your blood pressure problems? what happened? did your pressure increased first and now decreasing ? how long it stayed out of balance?