Quiting smoking and anxiety

[j2]

I have smoked for 20 years and I am trying to quit right now. I have been pretty good for the last 3 weeks but agitation from quitting combined with my anxiety and a flare up of my GERD and IBS is starting to really make me crazy. I know my brain chemistry is already messed up with the anxiety and the changes going on with the quitting smoking but the GERD and IBS is putting me over the edge. Does anyone have any advice? I can feel the anxiety building and I am starting to really freak out. Any kind of help would be great.

J2

[Veronica H]

Hi J2
Have a friend who is a long term 20 a day smoker and going through withdrawal at the moment. He has been advised to cut down very gradually by counting his cigarettes for the week and removing a few from the packs then leaving a bit extra time between cigs until he halves his intake over a few months. Nicotine is a powerful drug and if you go cold turkey it will certainly let you know. :bighug1:Vx

[kibbutz83]

Hey j2, I have huge sympathy for you... I smoked for 28 years, and gave up 6 years ago, because my panic and extreme anxiety were making it increasingly difficult for me to keep smoking. But then I think the vicious circle begins. The nicotine receptors all over the body (including the gut) go berserk when they need their fix, and without it your anxiety will go haywire causing all the gut problems. I went through a living hell for a couple of months after I quit cold turkey, and nothing prepared me for how bad it was gonna be... the only thing that made things slightly easier was long walks... there are certain vitamins you can take that help cravings, magnesium I think is one.. high dose B vitamins help a lot too :) I also read a lot of books on quitting, and the psychological effects nicotine has on the brain.. it helps stop you from starting smoking again :) Good luck to you, it'll be the best thing you ever did x

[Hazel B]

I stopped in May last year as anxiety started, I'd also just lost a beloved relative to lung cancer and I was having health issues myself. The hard part for me was making up my mind to stop, that took a few months of churning it over. Once I'd decided I went cold turkey and have not looked back.

I smoked for 20 years and only wish I had quit sooner. There is absolutely no reason to smoke, nothing good comes of it, I used to think it helped stress but it makes it worse as it acts as a stimulator. It took about 2 weeks for my cravings to stop and it's fine now. I looked at patches, gum etc but all they do is take the same amount of money (if not more) and prolong the addiction, so for me they were not an option. They seem to work for others so try things and see what works. At the end of the day, it's your willpower that will do it for you. It will be one of the best things you ever do for yourself.

Best wishes and hope you quit for good.

[bigG]

hey i quit smoking 3 months ago because it made my anxiety a hell of a lot worse i recommend asking your doctor for a nicotine inhaler it definetly takes the edge off and is perfectly safe after that a little will power will see you thru quitting smoking will be one of thebest decision you will ever make.

good luck