Nicotine Withdrawals

[nyguy]

It's really hard and I'm getting down. After I got sick last week I lost some of my motivation to keep working out and it really bothers me because I know it's the best thing for myself and my family. It's so damn hard!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Buk]

What is so hard about working out?

Move your chair back, get down and do 10 push-ups, stand up and do 10 tuck jumps, back down for 9 push-ups, then another 9 jumps. Continue down to 1 of each and then you have done a total of 55 of each. Repeat a time or 2 if you feel up to it, but working out is easy! That is a variation of Dos's "Power Burnout" workout.

[castufari]

I think his nicotine withdrawal is affecting his health and his workouts. Kicking the habit isn't easy, just keep to it! Once you hit a certain point it won't bother you anymore.

[Buk]

The "Power Burnout" workout actually does sound a little hard. But I have a harder time believing that nicotine withdrawl is giving him the shakes so bad that he can't knock out a few push-ups. That is what you need, even a short 5-10 minute workout will make tomorrow that much easier. Don't reply to this, start burning out on those push-ups.

[nyguy]

Buk, I don't know if you ever smoked but here is a little list of nicotine withdrawal symptoms:

Physical Withdrawal: Anxiety, Anger, Irritability, Impatience and Restlessness, Time Perception Distortion, Inability to Concentrate or a Foggy Mind, Feeling Tired or Fatigued, Insomnia, Chest Tightness, Sore Throat, Coughing, Mucus or Nasal Drip, Bad Breath, Nasty Tastes and Bleeding Gums, Headaches, Stomach Pain, Nausea, Constipation or Gas.

Symptoms of Psychological Withdrawal: Cravings, Urges, Yearnings, Desires and Thoughts, Depression & Sadness, Loneliness or Feeling Cooped Up, Increased Appetite or Hunger.

web page

I can't talk about others yrying to quit but these symptoms are very real and I wish I only had 1/2 of them. Add that to the fact that the medicine I'm taking to help me quit has even worse symptoms sometimes. I don't know, I'm 33 and I've smokes since I was 14, heavy smoker since my early twenties.

Edited to add that I've done some pushups and pullups, abs, etc. It's just not the same.

[Buk]

And which one of those symptoms prevented you from doing a push-up rather than wasting your time typing that message?

We have all made bad decisions in the past, but don't let a previous mistake prevent you from donig what is right, right now.

[Buk]

I just studied that list, and within the last 24 hours, I have experienced everyone of those symptoms except the constipation and stomach pain.

[K-Court]

Good luck, guys, and keep with it despite all the symptoms. It is vital to both you and your family that you do this NOW.

[Kevin T.]

I agree with Buk to a certain degree-the fact that I think you should still work out. Just doing the pushups, pullups, etc that you've been doing is good. Keep your body in that schedule of working out while you work through this time. I've gone through periods like this (well not exactly like this-but times when i felt it was impossible for me to work out) and continuing to work out just kept me dedicated and determined to overcome. Best of luck bro. You'll be back at it in no time.

[castufari]

Carry a weight around and do some curls when you want to smoke. Or try a patch, my boss (smoked for 45 years) used one and it helped her a LOT.

[ichbinba]

punch yourself in the balls everytime you want to light up... seriously though, I know it sucks, but you can do it. My pareants smoked heavily for 25 years and were still able to quite. you'll get through it.

[nyguy]

punch yourself in the balls everytime you want to light up... seriously though, I know it sucks, but you can do it.

Are you crazy? I rather swallow the patches than punching myself there.

[I. Kay]

I think Buk is coming from the Bootcamp School of quitting.

Thing is, he's right.

[Terry Monk]

I feel for you bro. I really, really do. Stick with it. Please, stick with it. I've quit and come back and quit and come back, etc. etc. You really can do it.

[rem1956]

As Mark Twain once said, "Quitting is easy. I've done it hundreds of times."

Stick with it. As a former 2 pack a day man, you can do it. I had some of the same issues that you are having, combined with a very stressful job. Nonsmokers do not understand the power of nicotine. Nicotine is a more powerful drug that heroin with a relapse rate much higher. It is actually easier to kick heroin than it is to kick nicotine. But stay with it and do not give up. You can do it.

I feel for you. PM me if you need some support.

Ray

[Dhocott]

I was a pack a day man when I quit cold turkey. It is one of the hardest things to do, but it CAN be done. You just have to give it time. The physical addiction will go away relatively quickly, but the mental addiction can last a while. I had to quit drinking alcohol also, because it just intensifies the desire to smoke.

Quitting smoking is the most important thing you can do for your health. What helped me was identifying the reasons for quitting. Find those and focus on them. I quit because my wife was pregnant and had to quit, and if I there were cigarettes around she would give in and have one.

I also used an affirmation to help me get through those cravings. Whenever I wanted to smoke and was really feeling the pangs of withdrawal I would ask myself, “Is not having a cigarette going to kill me?” As funny as it might sound, that really helped. I guess because deep down I knew it was the other way around. Having the cigarette was going to kill me.

Good luck and I offer my support as well.

[tossedup]

Hey man I have had the same thing happen to me but from pain killers that I was on for 2.5 years every day. The thing that has helped me the most is when you wake up in the morning and feel like having a smoke ask yourself if you can make it through today without one. All you have to worry about is making it through that day. Tomorrow will come and yesterday will pass but today is the day that you have control over. If you can make it through today you can make it through the rest of your life living one day at a time. Another thing that has also helped is when you want to smoke tell yourself that you will smoke in 5 minutes then in 5 minutes if you still have the urge to smoke tell yourself the same thing before you know it you will be in bed and not have had a smoke all day. It works wonders for me. Stay focused and good luck!!

[Three]

nyguy,

This may sound cold, but you have to suck it up and go cold turkey. Quitting smoking is the hardest thing to do as the effects of nicotine are more addicting than heroin. It takes 72 hours for the nicotine to get out of your system. You have to loose the patches. They just leave you addicted to the nicotine. Every time you have a puff it starts the 72 hour process over again and while your wearing a patch the process NEVER gets started. That 72 hours sucks, so why not get that over with as fast as possible!?

Cold turkey is the only way to quit and stay quit. 2 years ago I quit myself after 33 years of smoking. And if I can do it, I'm damn sure you can too!

Good Luck!

Three

[yovwmon]

nyguy, you said something that bothers me; you said the “T” word, Trying. In my opinion the word trying could be the most highly abused word of all time, and in your case it is clearly misused.

Main Entry: 1try
Pronunciation: 'trI
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): tried; try•ing
transitive senses
1 a : to put to test or trial -- often used with out b : to subject to something (as undue strain or excessive hardship or provocation) that tests the powers of endurance c : DEMONSTRATE, PROVE
2 : to make an attempt at -- often used with an infinitive
intransitive senses : to make an attempt
synonym see AFFLICT, ATTEMPT
- try one's hand : to attempt something for the first time

The word trying should only be used in an instance when making an attempt at something that is highly unlikely, and completely out of your control, for example “I’m trying to reach the light bulb” In this case your trying to reach the light bulb but it is highly unlikely because it is out of reach.

In your case trying really means lying, don’t take this the wrong way, but if you really want to quit, wouldn’t you just say “I quit” rather than “I’m trying to quit”? Going back to the above, quitting smoking is something that partially fits into the definition of trying, as far as being highly unlikely, although it is not out of control. Stop lying to yourself, the light bulb is within your reach.

This is the problem with smokers that want to quit “trying”,,, and trying won’t get you there, you have to quit, and never look back. You can’t depend on things like pills, patches, and prescription drugs; you have to change your lifestyle, and do it without the crutch. Their is many hard times ahead, you may put on weight, and see side effects that you don’t like, but you must be strong.

Smoking is the single most wonderful, enjoyable acts in the entire world, and if it were good I would smoke a carton an hour, but its not so it’s time to stop. Once you have gotten it through your thick skull that you’re stronger than that nasty, smelly, three inch killer in your hand, and you know you can live without it, I want you to think this.

Cigarette = your best friend
Your best friend = backstabber
Every time you hang out with your best friend he pushes that knife further into your back, and guess what, if you don’t stop hanging out with him he’s going to kill you.

What a friend huh…….

I’m not going to sit here and bash out a bunch of BS on my keyboard without knowing what you’re going through, I smoked for 12 years, that’s nearly half my life. I have been a recovering smoker since June 5th 2003. I still have cravings, but I never look back and after I found out he was a backstabber I never hung out again..

Good luck, you can do it!
Adam