Quitting Smoking

[shimmerz]

Sometimes a smoke after a panic attack is the only thing that will get my breathing going again.

Yes, these really seems to be it for me. I have noticed in the past 3 days that I am simply not breathing. And I too, when I had my 'drop attacks' people would be stuffing cigarettes at me (people who didn't smoke) because they KNEW that they got me breathing again.

And this morning when I had one..... all the sudden I could feel I was deeply breathing again..... like a fair while after I had had the cigarette.

I am sure the addiction is big too, but I really feel like this breathing thing is the immediate problem. Thanks everyone. I have to admit, this scared the crap out of me.

 

[alis]

And I too, when I had my 'drop attacks' people would be stuffing cigarettes at me (people who didn't smoke) because they KNEW that they got me breathing again.

people do the same to me ! I wonder why that is.. why smokes help breathing so much ? it seems so counter-productive but they really do help. I wonder if it's the rush of nicotine or just the act of inhaling something and then having to exhale it.. not sure.

would it be possible if you started by cutting down on smoking rather than going cold-turkey ? Then just go less and less cigarettes per day ( I know way easier said than done )

 

[Recovery4Me]

Additives are a bear and when kicking them during several attempts to stop ... I too flipped emotionally. Needless to say...I did not successfully quit of late. But this is what I have done with success:

I switched brands with less additives
I cut down the amount of cigarettes for smoking to that of 1/3 a pack (or the USA is roughly 7) there is 20 cigarettes to our packs.
I manage the time in between my smokes for the most part
I have increased my exercise and maintained a healthy nutritional intake
no weight gain
no flip outs
no guilt

~ since last September, I have maintained this with just awareness.

Good luck with your future choices as well as decisions in all respect!:hug:

 

[Deleted member 541]

@shimmerz When you feel that you can't breath...... that is withdrawal and anxiety hitting you. Hacpving the cigarette calms the anxiety and it supplies the nicotine for the withdrawal.

I tried patches, hypnotism, Wellbutrin, patchs and Wellbutrin together, and nothing worked till I quit cold turkey. My Dr did give me 30 xanax and said, "when they are gone, you're on your own." I used them sparingly, but they helped tremendously....

It's one tough battle, but it can be done. Please try. I now have COPD and I never realized how breathing was such a gift, till I struggled to do it.....

 

[asadafagahajakal]

Does it contain nicotine?

And, the cigarettes you smoke(d) - were they non-additive or did they hav...

Cigalikes dont have nic in them. You need a tank or dripper system you buy at a specialty store.

@shimmerz as a vaper i can say what you likely need is nicotine, even if its a small amount you get from a vape or nicorette gum. If youre wanting to quit, i suggest just changing your nicotine intake method to something healthier, as you clearly need it in your system. Its not a bad thing, but smoking cigarettes is vlearly going to take its toll on your body. I see youre in canada, so it shouldnt be difficult to find a vape shop to get you started on real vaping. Good luck quitting.

 

[Dana1010]

I did not read the other posts here, so it's possible someone else mentioned this.

Have you considered tapering off instead of going cold turkey? This is how I quit smoking (and also drinking -- twice). If you smoke a a pack a day, try smoking 15 a day for a week. Week two, cut it to ten a day. Keep cutting by several cigarettes a week until you are down to one or two a day -- then zero. Whole process should take about four weeks.

I don't know why more doctors don't recommend tapering for this. They would never take you off Prozac or Xanax or any prescribed drug abruptly, so why should nicotine or alcohol be any different?

 

[Fadeaway]

I know I am smoking again but this was my successful quit method that I will use again when I am ready.
I switched to the American spirit organic brand. I started off supplementing with an e-pen but they kept breaking on my so I got a good quality vape with an adjustable battery that lets you control how much "smoke" it produces. I started off at 18mg but the great thing about the liquids is you can mix them and slowly wean down to 0mg instead of making jumps.

It worked for me, I was completely nicotine free, I just couldn't break the emotional addiction.

 

[shimmerz]

Was at the doctor today. I haven't been able to stop crying since I went on this whole quit smoking journey thing. I did some research as well. I think the crying is triggering me into something that is a super bad thing traumatically for me. Long story.... won't bother telling it.

Anyway, we thought perhaps that Wellbutrin may not be a bad idea. So I was put on that today. I understand it is not an SSRI, which I really don't do well on. SO will be watching me carefully to see what happens with my reactions to this. I understand the first couple of weeks can be tricky. We will see how it goes.

Thank you so much for all of your input. Each of you brought important and helpful issues to light. I am going to plug in my vapo thing and see if it still works. At the present I am still smoking. I must stop though.

 

[ladee]

Hope the meds help. I know how much this means to You. When you stop and think of all the dragons you have slayed on this journey, you will conquer this one too.
Love ya my friend.

 

[Deleted member 12723]

@shimmerz I wish you the best, I am going to try tapering off of them.

 

[shimmerz]

Best of luck to you Gizmo. These things are evil, I swear. I can't access the natural smokes here in Canada, but wish I could. Have you thought of those for yourself? I hear they work very well.

 

[Deleted member 541]

@shimmerz I do hope that the Wellbutrin works for you. Yes, cigs are evil. Honestly, I gave up drinking a hell of a lot easier than giving up cigs. I have had therapist that I work for tell me that kicking heroin is easier because it's a 3-5 day detox. A lot longer for cigs. There are over 1000 additives/chemicals in cigs too, one of them being arsenic. So yes, they are evil and toxic.

Hang in there, it will be a battle, but you can do this.

@gizmo You too..... wish you well on your journey with dumping cigs.....