Congratulations!! So excited for you! Thank you for the suggestion, I will try turmeric next. I think my roommate has some in the cabinet so I will start cooking with it. It's incredible how terrible my digestion has been (quit 2 weeks ago).
Listen, there is a reason it's called "medical practice". Doctors practice .. a lot. On your body, and mine. Take it from someone with a biomedical degree ... IBD is only vaguely defined in the books. So is colitis. And of course they are tied in with smoking and alcohol, since smoking and alcohol affect the nervous system, which in turn effects the digestive system. Work on the nervous system (chill out, deal with your emotional issues, forgive mom and dad, etc), and the digestive system will balance out. Alternative medicine has produced so many healing techniques that are meant to deal just with digestive issues. SO MUCH more useful information there than in the medical books. Check out acupuncture and meditation, and don't get hung up on the labels that doctors throw at you. Bodies can heal from more or less anything. And STOP reading about Crohn's disease for god's sake, that sh*t is really bad and really really RARE. Don't scare yourself and the rest of this forum for no reason! - an ex smoker.
This blog has been most helpful and somewhat reassuring. I will have quit 2 weeks ago tomorrow morning. I generally feel great in myself, pretty positive and would encourage others to stick with it. The only thing making me possibly consider a relapse are similar symptoms to the ones many have suffered here.
Many have mentioned constipation, however only a few have mentioned having really bad smelling wind. I develop gas throughout the day which is quite frankly, heinous. I quit before when I was younger and the gas was so bad that I effectively dropped out of college due to embarrassment. Now I am directly linking the bad gas to the constipation I also suffer.
I find a coffee in the morning is a good way off triggering a 'movement' however I feel this is a step back as it is still not allowing my digestive system to do the work. by itself. I've considered senikot and other dialectics, but again feel this will hinder my body's overall recovery.
Are there more people who have had their digestion successfully return to normal as there seems to be an alarming number who cannot overcome this problem?
I don't accept that the cause is from changes to my diet, as I've been exercising heavily for sometime, which in itself has caused me to eat about 3 times as much, (generally healthy foods) and even this was not a problem during smoking.
I would be grateful for any advice, and will update others of my progress. I work in a kitchen so it is very possible I'm overly dehydrated, so the next plan is to drastically increase my water intake, as it has worked for some here.
When I quit smoking after 27 years I seemed to have stomach issues (acid, constipa,etc.). I was not digesting milk products (cheesecake & all) very well and seemed to have problems occasionally swallowing. I did find that fruits & vegetables were the best and I never had any problems eating or swallowing when I eat them and they made me feel just great! Lean meat (like steak) helped alot. I had to stay away from frozen foods, pastas, & breads (had to eat sparingly as something about the yeast in them). I still drink coffee. Also use baking soda in my toothpaste & a drop of peppermint oil. I started volunteering in my community as I noticed when I stopped smoking I paid more attention to my surroundings and found that there are alot of negative people who will say & do things that can "set you back" if you let them. This is a critical time to remember "the way people treat you says nothing about you, but alot about them".
after 71 hours of quitting smoking, my stomach was bloated, cramping and very uncomfortable. May I suggest a few things that have helped me. Probiotics (friendly bacteria for your gut) Aloe Vera juice (fantastic soother, digestive aid), Colpermin (peppermint oil), Psyllium Husk Fibre (increasing transit of food, helps remove toxins). Magnesium is an amazing constipation reliever but not to be used too regularly and can cause bowels to empty quite quickly. I too think that the 4000 chemicals in cigs are responsible for some of the worst withdrawal effects, like the disgusting smelly wind that I have too!! As nicotine excites the body and helps food pass more quickly through the digestive tract, when we give up we have to help things along with more fruit and veg (fibre) and some digestive aids (comfort Zone) from Solgar is a digestive complex which will also help you digest your food and encourage a faster transit, helping with wind too. Hope this all helps.
The first time I quit smoking was about 25 years ago and I experienced no stomach/digestive problems whatsoever, just withdrawal symptoms --- desire to continue smoking. I felt really healthy months after quitting and noticed a huge difference in my ability to smell and taste. After almost 9 years of being a nonsmoker, went back to smoking during personal crisis'. Then July 1, 2013, quit smoking and have experienced the bloating/digestive issues everyone on this board has been mentioning. I feel more unhealthy and tired now than I ever did as a smoker. It's to the point I'm almost tempted to start back up, and not because I crave a cigarette.
In comparison to the first time I quit smoking, there's some big differences. I think it's not as much related to nicotine as much as the chemicals they're putting in the cigarette or possibly even on the tobacco plants. Possibly it's the chemicals causing all these problems rather than the nicotine. People I knew that quit smoking back around the time I first quit never had the stomach/digestive problems, nor had I ever heard complaints regarding it from others. It always had to do with the initial withdrawal of craving a cigarette. Once past that, no problem. As far as nicotine receptors, I had always been taught in the medical field that those are in your brain, not your stomach. I think the problem lies in the chemicals they're adding to the cigarettes these days and not the nicotine. I'm not saying that nicotine isn't bad, just that it's not the main culprit. The way the government is modifying and genetically messing with the seeds/plants we use for food today wouldn't surprise me if there's a conspiracy to mess with ingredients in cigarettes.
Did you get tested for celiac disease? There is some controversial studies that suggest nicotine might be protective in celiac disease. I am not saying that you should start smoking again as this is obviously far more dangerous. Just saying that perhaps you should be tested for celiac disease and if positive, go gluten free. Which is pretty easy to do these days.
I am genetically negative for celiac and I had severe GI issues when I quit. My thinking is that your GI system adapts to the stimulant nicotine over years of smoking abuse. Without the stimulant it gets confused for a while. So healthy eating, lots of water and exercise helped me.
Hi, for my 45th birthday I decided to give myself a special gift: clean lungs (or however clean I could get them after 30 years a pack -or so- a day...).
I'm on day 21 now. No real withdrawal issues like when I tried to quit 15 years ago. If been sick and tired of smoking for quiet a while so I'm really motivated to stop doing it. But...It's the same as you say: 'I feel more unhealthy and tired now than I ever did as a smoker. It's to the point I'm almost tempted to start back up, and not because I crave a cigarette.'
So far I have insomnia, muscle cramps, can't see straight and horrible heartburn/bloat/gas from my stomach. Which in my case the last is the worst to handle. Heartburn runs in my family, been chewing Rennie's since childhood. Now I have it every night when I go to bed (don't sleep for more then two hours anyway but I try to get some rest at least). As soon as my head hits the pillow the lava burps come.
What I do (and this helps):
- not eat or drink anything 2 hours before bedtime
- take a Rennie (even if you don't need it)
- lay on your left-side. This closes the opening in your stomach so no acid can come up. Problem: neither can burps..
Today was the worst ever, I got in and now also out of bed with severe heartburn. I thought I was going to faint right there on the highway driving to work. So I gave up. I have an E-cigarette for 'emergencies' and I took a few hits from that. Instantly my stomach relaxed and no more pain. I don't know how to do this. I can handle all the other side effects but this is just to much.
Funny enough, when I quit 15 years ago I had NO PROBLEMS WHAT SO EVER with my stomach, all I had was a constant craving. Like when you're thirsty or hungry.
Anyway...If I have to use the E-cig for the rest of my life to prevent my stomach acids to burn away my esophagus so be it. :-(
My indigestion, bloating and gas was so bad from quitting smoking that my whole body was in pain all day long. I began researching this on the internet and found that when you quit smoking it disturbs the "flora" in your digestive system. The article listed several foods to eat to bring back the good flora to my stomach. Without doing it on purpose, I ate sauerkraut at an Octoberfest party and ate it again the next night at a banquet with an Octoberfest theme. It hit me 2 days later that my pain and discomfort was gone. That was 4 weeks ago and I am still pain and indigestion free.
I spoke to a holistic practitioner at my acupuncturer office and she is sure the sauerkraut is what brought my digestive system back into balance. I am not 100% positive but what could it hurt if that is what worked?
I hope the best for all of you!
I quit smoking 8 weeks ago today. I have never experienced such heartburn and GERD as I have since then. Six weeks ago the heartburn was so severe, I went to my family doctor and he did an EKG, said "you have beautiful healthy heart". He prescribed Pantoprazole. Told me to not eat chocolate, soda, greasy, oily, caffeine, spicy foods, which I have avoided. Yet the heartburn has been unbearable, the pain under the ribcage radiating to the back. I am so glad I found this site, it is reassuring and a relief to know I am not alone. I will not go back to smoking. I did buy a bag of fresh sauerkraut today, hope to eat it tomorrow. BUT, I did research on Gaviscon before I went shopping, and I picked up a bottle of the tablet form. I have chewed 4 tablets so far today, and I feel GREAT! The best I have felt in 8 weeks. Thank you for sharing your story, I had also read that sauerkraut will do the trick. Good luck to all. Congratulations on quitting smoking, it has been a rough road, but we all took the high road and have survived!
I know it sounds crazy but I feel like quitting smoing ruined my health and therefore my life. Very sad. 3years smoking free now. I dont miss smoking at all, but I miss feeling healthy and strong.
I like this very much: "The body is getting its revenge". And how bitter this revenge is! Certainly it is tormenting me. Nicotine withdrawal symptoms the likes of which are all mentioned in this healthy discussion do not part with me. I am honestly being tortured, but I like it now that I got the impression that soon it will fade away.
Shayla, how are you doing now, one year later? I just quit 2months ago and am experiencing all of the withdrawal symptoms mentioned. Your solutions make sense.