Oh, yes! Quitting smoking is stressful for a short while! BUT after you get through the first 3 Days it already gets better! Then as you work your recovery and learn stress coping skills it gets better and better! Before you know it you are more calm in times of stress than you have been since you started smoking (if you can even remember that far back! I couldn’t!)
And the only way out is through!
So meanwhile we need every stress management tool we can get our hands on so we can protect our Quits!
Here’s some articles you can read to begin to build your stress management skills:
http://www.webmd.com/smoking-cessation/features/10-ways-reduce-stress-while-you-quit
https://smokefree.gov/stress-and-smoking
https://www.verywell.com/quitting-smoking-10-stress-coping-hints-2825276
I could give you all kinds of serotonin and dopamine reasons of why stress is better when you have quit but I’d rather talk about how it feels to me!
When I was smoking, stress kept my nerves tight as a live wire - always in fight/flight mode! Now I am feeling stress in a very different way! Each episode is important but I don't anticipate it with a constant vigilance and I don't fiddle with it afterwards trying to decide if I could have done things better!
I remember getting up and checking my cig supply, getting off work and figuring if I have enough for tomorrow, etc, - always in a state of anticipation. When I was smoking that "dealing with stress" cig, I was toying with how I could deal with things differently. It's sort of jumping into the future or living in the past and somehow missing the present. Dealing with stress in the present makes it a lot less burdensome and MORE EFFECTIVE!
In fact 95% of Exsmokers report being happier since they quit smoking!
Don’t let the temporary stress of quitting block you from having true Freedom from stress!
You deserve Freedom!
