So when does it get easier

[ozzymom]

So in 1/2 hour I’ll be vape free for 7 days.  I quit cigs around 2 years ago but now I’m trying to quit vaping & as i said, almost at day 7.  If nicotine is out of my system, why does it feel like it’s getting harder?  Yesterday I was soooo bitchy & nothing I did seemed to help.  I walked, I drank water, I played with my dog & was still extremely bitchy by the time I finally went to bed.  This morning I woke & have a full list of things to do but I can’t motivate myself to get up out of this chair & actually do any of them.  All I want to do is fire up my vape pen & have at it.  I mentally picture myself vaping & even knowing that those first few hits will hurt my throat, I still want to do it.  What the hell is wrong with me!!!  I’ve even thought about putting on a patch or chewing a piece of nicotine gum but really don’t want to go back to square one now that I’ve got 7 days under my belt.   I know a lot of you will reply that it DOES get easier but when the hell will that be!!

On a separate note, if anyone out there does vape as a way of doing NRT please think twice about it.  I think this is harder to stop than cigs cause you can vape anywhere...which i did.  I’m sure I was getting much more nicotine than when i was smoking cigs cause I vaped all day.  What the hell, there’s no smell so i could do it in my car, my house, wherever.  I know NRT is the way to go for some people but vaping seriously reinforces that hand to mouth thing as well as the hit to the throat & of course the nicotine.  

Ok I guess I’m done with my rant.  My list of chores isn’t going to wait & they need to get done with or without my vaping while doing them.  I’ll do my best to stay on track but damn, I wish it would at least START to get easier.

thanks everyone for listing to my pity party

[TW517]

I say this all the time here, but your question is by far the most asked one here.  It's how I found this site.  I was so angry that at 3 weeks, it wasn't getting much easier, I started searching the web for answers and found this fantastic group!

So, here's my short answer:  It will get easier pretty soon.  Then it will get harder all over again.  Then a little easier.  Then a little harder....  I know that's not what any quitter wants to hear.  But I promise you, that if you stick with it for 3-4 months, you will look back and think, "Why didn't I quit years ago?!?!"  I wish I could take away your discomfort, but glad you came here to rant about it rather than smoke .  It really will get better.

[ozzymom]

OMG even after 3 weeks you found it hard!  I know I’m just whining & I shouldn’t project out that far & I should just take it moment by moment if I have to but crap....I want to be happy again!  I made it through my first chore, reviewing my taxes without vaping & now the sun is out, it’s 67 degrees and I need to go out & do some gardening.  I should be happy, I love gardening but I’m in a shitty mood & don’t understand why I’m putting myself through this.  No, that’s not true, I do know why, I guess I just don’t really “feel” it yet.  You know, the NEED to quit, the commitment.  It’s all there in my head but maybe not yet in my heart. OMG I’m so rambling aren’t I?.  OK I’m gonna go brush my teeth again (that seems to help), quit whining & get on with life.  Maybe if I just keep at, the heartfelt wanting to will eventually come to me.

Once again y’all thanks for listening.

[TW517]

You really are doing great!  Don't beat yourself up for having those feelings.  We all did.  Just keep doing whatever you have to do to get through the next moment.  I actually started feeling fine after 5 days, then gradually worse until about day 28, then off and on with some really good days, and some not as good.  It's good that you are moving around doing things.  I also like the tooth brushing!  

[YoungAtHeart]

Might you try the old adage, "Fake it until you make it?"  BELIEVE you are happier being free of the addictive behavior and you WILL be!

Don't be looking so far ahead.  Sometimes you need to quit a minute at a time - looking at each five minute increment as a hurdle jumped.  Be PROUD of making that hurdle - then the next, then the next!  Don't be looking three weeks down the road from someone else's quit journey; yours may not be the same.

[Coffee-Bean]

I am three years smoke-free but it was tough. I bought Altoids breath months and would pop 2 or 3 in my mouth when I had a craving. And stop hanging around with smokers, if you do! I had to stop going to the corner bar because everyone in there smoked. Now -- it's smoke-free so I tried going back. But just once or twice. Fortunately, I have a lot of friends who are non-smokers. Change things up. Change your furniture around. Make a new friend. I know it's hard. I'm still popping Altoids. Wishing you luck and LOVE.   

[karenjones]

I laughed when I read your reply and it helped me too!  The easier, harder, easier, harder thingg happened to me, just as you described it and in fact, I still get the harder aspect infrequently and I will be quit for a year in a week or so... it made me depressed to feel that way, but after reading your response, it may be quite normal. or you made it seem that way!

[shazzan99]

I do agree that time will heal. Time will allow you a period of adjustment and acceptance.  Some mourn the cigarette as a friend, and actually go through the mourning process of a loved one. I am not intending to minimize their pain, for that is truly how they feel. I just say that the journey can be easier if you accept  the journey before you take it on. Why would it get more difficult with time though? If counting days none smoking is the same as counting days deprived then of course you do yourself a disservice and will feel anxiety. I love the bonfire they have here where you count the cigarette nonconsumed.   That is the prize. The abuse we have saved our bodies from. The freedom we have found. The voice we have in saying NO, No More! 

Celebrate the control we have taken back, and be ever so thankful that you had the courage and support to do so. Don't ever look back and think for an instant that you gave up anything except a hideous addiction. Look at and accept the truth, .... the truth WILL set you FREE!

[Barbscloud]

It normally does take sometime, but you're right it will get easier.  Even with the nicotine out of your system, there are still nicotine receptors in your brain and psychological associations to understand.  Here's one post to read to know what to expect and there are others -- just do a search on the topic.  Understanding what to expect in the different stages of this journey is keep to success.   Read, read, read.  Big congrats on you 7 days.  You've successfully completed hell week.

/blogs/jonescarp.aka.dale.Jan_2007-blog/2011/06/26/what-to-expect-in-the-first-four-months?sr=search... 

Barb

[YoungAtHeart]

As I can tell, you understand that there are TWO parts to this addiction, the physical and the psychological  Your body and mind are still going through an adjustment to life without the drug.  You have given it what sounds like an almost constant dose of  nicotine, so even though it's gone, you are still going through the changes brought about by doing without it.  This takes a couple of weeks to a month.  Here is a list of early withdrawal symptoms so you are informed:  https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/groups/best-of-ex/blog/2018/01/04/early-withdrawal-symptoms?sr=se....  It takes time, but your body will slowly adjust. 

THEN you have the psychological part of the addiction.  The hand-to-mouth,  hits while doing chores, hits while relaxing, hits to deal with emotions,..................THAT, I think is the most difficult part of this addiction.  You have a ways to go to get past all of those.  You have built up a lot of associations that you have to relearn.  Keep a cold bottle of water from which to sip, maybe some straws cut to lengths or flavored toothpicks to chew on, maybe some sugar free gum or mints all handy. 

Sounds like you understand that you need to stay busy, but you ALSO need to control your thinking.  Don't let that smoking thought stay alone in your head.  Give it a shake, say (either to yourself or aloud, "I don't do that anymore" or :"NOPE" (Not One Puff Ever) and move your thoughts away from it.  Here are some ideas for things to keep you occupied: 

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/Youngatheart.7.4.12-blog/2013/02/25/100-things-to-do-instea...

This takes effort in the first weeks of your quit, but it will become second nature after a bit.

There WILL come a day when you realize you didn't think about vaping all morning, then most of the day, then days on end.  It WILL come -  I promise - but, yes, you do need to be patient.  You have trained your body to operate with a powerful drug and it isn't easy to get away from it.  It's possible, though, and freedom from addiction is wonderful!

Congrats on your first week!  That is HUGE!

Nancy