There was a really great thread on this, I wanted to post under it but couldn't find it after logging in. I smoked for 20 years, about a pack a day, and have tried to quit twice this past year. This winter I had several bouts with a pretty nasty bronchitis, the last of which raked me over the coals in a bad way, I'm still suffering. I was smoking and doing breathing treatments when I realized I was a total id**t. So, I stopped smoking and life has been awful since. I have had junk coming up for more than a month (3 weeks with the sickness alone), the last three or four weeks is just throat clearing, rumbling feeling in my lungs when I try to expand in the morning, coughing up clear stuff with flecks of tanish phelgm. The worst part is that I keep getting short of breath for no reason, hell I'm not even moving when it happens, my ribcage feels very tight, I can't push past it for a good breath. It just suddenly feels like my ribs are in a vice, the diaphram is sore or having spasms and this feeling goes on for hours and hours, upping my anxiety something awful.
I went to the lung doctor twice, they brush me off. I had a lung xray and it shows possible COPD and I'm slated for a lung function test in June. I just turned 40 so I guess they think I'm a nutter. I know I don't feel well and I cant keep running all over town to doctors. The lung doc told me this is my lungs clearing themselves out and it could on for months and months. That just seems so long. I started taking Ativan to calm me down because I can get in a really, really bad frame of mind when I'm cycling through this. I don't know if the Ativan is part of the problem, if this is in my head, if it's something worse, but I'm so worn out by it, I felt so much better smoking. I chewing the 4 mg gum, it helps I guess, who knows at this point.
I've quit a bunch of times before. I did have problems on the last quit, made it just a month before my nerves drew me back, but nothing on this level. Of course illness didn't precede my last quit either, I just quit. I just so exhausted, all that coughing from the Bronchitis and now this post quit junk.
I told the lung doctor...what gives, I never had these symptoms before. In fact, I felt great after I quit. "You're 40 now," she said, "things are different."
Okay, so I walked through some magical illness door on my birthday?
I don't know what to think. I wanted a CAT scan of my lungs but the doc won't do it, she said the xray was fine, my lungs were perfectly clear sounding, the pluse ox was fine, etc.,
So I guess this means I'm just crazy or something? I sure hate to think I'm working myself into this. I know I get anxiety, and I've been on that Antivan for two months now, about three a day, maybe that stuff is causing this depression, or at least making this all worse. I tried not taking it today but during one of my "I can't breath episodes" and got weepy. I also think this could just be the horrid stress of months and months of wondering why I'm not 100 percent anymore. Maybe I should just demand more tests.
Love to hear from anyone who has been in this rocky boat.
I went to the lung doctor twice, they brush me off. I had a lung xray and it shows possible COPD and I'm slated for a lung function test in June. I just turned 40 so I guess they think I'm a nutter. I know I don't feel well and I cant keep running all over town to doctors. The lung doc told me this is my lungs clearing themselves out and it could on for months and months. That just seems so long. I started taking Ativan to calm me down because I can get in a really, really bad frame of mind when I'm cycling through this. I don't know if the Ativan is part of the problem, if this is in my head, if it's something worse, but I'm so worn out by it, I felt so much better smoking. I chewing the 4 mg gum, it helps I guess, who knows at this point.
I've quit a bunch of times before. I did have problems on the last quit, made it just a month before my nerves drew me back, but nothing on this level. Of course illness didn't precede my last quit either, I just quit. I just so exhausted, all that coughing from the Bronchitis and now this post quit junk.
I told the lung doctor...what gives, I never had these symptoms before. In fact, I felt great after I quit. "You're 40 now," she said, "things are different."
Okay, so I walked through some magical illness door on my birthday?
I don't know what to think. I wanted a CAT scan of my lungs but the doc won't do it, she said the xray was fine, my lungs were perfectly clear sounding, the pluse ox was fine, etc.,
So I guess this means I'm just crazy or something? I sure hate to think I'm working myself into this. I know I get anxiety, and I've been on that Antivan for two months now, about three a day, maybe that stuff is causing this depression, or at least making this all worse. I tried not taking it today but during one of my "I can't breath episodes" and got weepy. I also think this could just be the horrid stress of months and months of wondering why I'm not 100 percent anymore. Maybe I should just demand more tests.
Love to hear from anyone who has been in this rocky boat.
I quit smoking 2 weeks ago and I'm also dealing with being short of breath. It's terrible and scary. My dad died of emphysema 7 years ago and now my mom has pulmonary fibrosis and is on oxygen 24/7. I've been googling and have found that this is common. I've quit before and I've never had this problem. I feel anxiety over this. I don't have health insurance, but I work for a dentist so he called in a prescription for Zanax to try to calm my anxiety over this. I do pretty good at night when I sleep, but it's pretty bad during my waking hours. I'm really hoping that it is just my lungs renewing themselves. I don't have the insurance or money to go to a doctor. Your doctor is an id**t not to do a CT on you. You really need to go to a Pulmonary doctor and have him check. Hopefully, it won't be anything, but at least it will give you peace of mind. I'm doing the nicotine lozenges. I try to do just a few a day, because I want to get off the nicotine. I usually use one after meals when I crave a cigarette the most. I'm not coughing. I feel like my lungs are full and I wish I could get all the c**p out. I'd love to be able to cough. I'm using Herbal Breathing, but that isn't doing anything. I'm considering trying Mucinex. Not sure if even that will help. I feel like I'm taxing my heart because I'm struggling so much with the breathing. Good luck to you mentalcompass. Please don't smoke. Hopefully, you are better now, since you posted this in May.
omg!you just told my story' same thing with me and its been almost seven months and i have convinced myself i'm dying.i feel rotten and cant take it
There are some good thread on nicotine withdrawals on here and you all should check it out. Anxiety/Stress makes things worst - i know. To help ease your brain you need to demand to get some test done for your mind to be at ease. But after the Xrays, blood test, and soundtest - i think you're ok and you are going through classic withdrawals. Xrays didnt show any mass so i dont think you should worry. The doctor will only rule a ct scan if something is out of the ordinary. If the blood test show any abnormalites like a large increase in WBC or very Low RBC then im sure he will order a ct scan for you.
I had shortness of breath off and on for the first month. It was limited to a few times in my 2nd month -could of been panic/stress related. Now I am close to my 4th month and my shortness of breath is not present. My friend had shortness of breath for 6 months and I have another that had it for her first week only. It all depends on the individual. And yes that rumbling sound in your lung is normal - its part of the withdrawal. When that happens during a deep breath - thats the best time to force the phlegm out - it comes out in chunks. Some people dont cough up phlegm till months later during there withdrawals. I hope you all get better and the recovery phase is the hardest part of smoking cessation. I am still suffering and im close to my 4th month. But i know it will get better because i can feel myself getting better slowly.
GOOD LUCK
I quit nearly a month and a half ago...... I'm on Nicoderm CQ, and Nicorette gum, and EVERYTHING that you described is happening to me as well!!! I hate not being in control, I hate not being able to breathe when I FEEL LIKE it! I smoked between a pack and a half a pack a day for the past 25 years, and at my lowest I smoked about 4-8 cigarettes a day. I was down to about two a day when I decided t o quit, and believe it or not I had NO BREATHING, EMOTIONAL, SOCIAL, PHYSICAL problems when I WAS SMOKING!!! I promise that I want to go back to smoking sooo bad because no one can tell me why I am having these "bouts" with fighting for a breath, and having these DELUSIONAL thoughts and feelings. ANY suggestions and prayers would be greatly appreciated.
Notsofunnycomic, stop the Nicoderm CQ - stop all nicotine! It's just keep you addicted, and in my case it made me even more addicted! - When i was quitting i was OK, but decided to put the patch to make it easier, but after 1 week on the patch i tried to stop it - and it's was nightmare! Anxiety, mood swings, antisocial. For some reason Nicoderm CQ make withdrawal 1000% worse! It's simply made me more addicted to nicotine!
Wish you good luck
o my goodness im going through the same thing! Im only 23 but I have COPD and have smoked for ten years. I get pnuemonia and bronchitis all the time because of my asthma, COPD and smoking. i was smoking a pack a day and not having any breathing problems, today I decided to quit. I havent had a ciggarette for 12 hrs and aside form being a mean grouchy bear to everyone and feeling like im going to die, I am having the worste time breathing! Its never been this hard to breath! I feel like a 500000 pond rock is on my chest :( dr says my O2 levels are normal! wth??? Im not crazy because I have been breathing for 23 years now and im pretty sure im not just imagining what its like not to be able to breath :( I wish I knew what could help besides praying.
I was a smoker for 38 yrs with asthma for 20 of those years. I decided to quit 4 yrs ago and my breathing is still worse than ever. Dr told me that smoking paralyized thr hairs in my lungs and was covering up how bad my lungs really were. You are not imagining this.
This might be the topic you were looking for...
https://www.steadyhealth.com/Shortness_of_breath_after_stopping_smoking_t160762.html?page=35#1372579
How are you feeling these days?
Things are getting better. I still have an occasional attack of chest pain but are getting farther between and less severe. One of the things I enjoy doing is playing drums,namely Rush which takes a LOT of stamina to play correctly. When I first started feeling good enough to try to play, I would play for about 10 minutes, stop then take my b.p. Now I'm to the point I can play as long as I want but I do realize I sweat a little more under the same circumstances. Just outta shape now I guess.
Cool. I play drums as well for 30 years now. It's great to have that as an outlet. I'm am lucky because my son in High School plays guitar and we jam so it's fun. Hopefully all these withdrawals will be past us soon.
Keith
I was just told on 3/1/16 that my CT found something on my lung after being told my XRay looked great and the only reason they done the CT was because i had a barrium swallow that showed something going on with my lung.
I stopped smoking and my breathing got better, but now it seems worse than ever. It's already been 4 months. What should I do?