Cravings or Withdrawls????

[babyimaboo]

This morning I had my normal want for a morning smoke,  in combat  I stuck a peice of gum in and keep it going.

I was then curious and want to know is there is anyone out there that can identify the differences between their withdrawl symotoms verse the cravings, or is there a diffrence?

Your imput will help me and others in the honeymoon phase to life without smoking.

[maynell]

Hi, I've found that withdrawal feels vaguely like something is missing. It doesn't hurt or anything, it just feels uncomfortable. Cravings, to me, is a thought in my head that stays there until it leaves or I make it leave through exercise, ice cream, singing, whatever. Either way, after 3 days or so, it gets ALOT better.

[kola2178]

Craving is that urge to smoke,  they can be mild to almost panicky.   The withdrawal symptoms can be more like an illness, flue like symptoms even. 

Like me, you are using the nicotine gum, which should help with the cravings, but its not fool proof, if it was, everyone would succeed using it, and unfortunately they don't.

I've tried the gum and the patch in the past and fell flat on my face, this time however, I am having an almost obscenely easy time of quitting.  I'm about to hit 7 weeks with out a single puff.

I get some strong urges now, usually in the middle of the day,  I just take a deep breath and say NO, I don't want a cigarette, and it usually immediately goes away.  Another will come along a little while later, I react the same way,  just say NO.

I found if I don't stop to argue with myself about the urge and contemplate smoking, it goes away faster, because I'm not thinking about it.

I just tell myself every day,  Today I will not smoke.   So far so good.

I started yesterday working on weaning myself off of the nicorette,  I started with the 4 mg pieces and just bought a new box of the 2 mg.  Next week I will start working on how many a day I chew.

When I first started I didn't do any stressing on how much gum I chewed,  I just chewed what I needed to make it through that day.  I'll be honest, by about day 5 I was so sick of the gum and my jaws hurt that I wanted to quit quitting,  but that all goes away so don't let that be a pitfall for you.

Good luck!!!  stay strong, and there are tons of people on here with great incite and lots of support,   I think this site is also one of the reasons I'm having such an easy time of quitting.

[dawn4]

Definition:

Withdrawal is a term referring to the feelings of discomfort, distress, and intense craving for a substance that occur when use of the substance is stopped. These physical symptoms occur because the body had become metabolically adapted to the substance. The withdrawal symptoms can range from mild discomfort resembling the flu to severe withdrawal that can actually be life threatening.

There are five basic stages of withdrawal:

  
1. Withdrawal Stage – lasts up to 15 days and may be accompanied by fatigue, pain, anxiety, and depression.
    
  
2. Honeymoon Stage – the opposite of withdrawal that is often accompanied by feelings of energy, optimism, and confidence.
    
  
3. The Wall Stage – time when most relapses occur due to the reemergence of feelings of anxiety and depression.
    
  
4. Adjustment Stage – a period of realization and acceptance that change is a lifelong struggle.
    
  
5. Resolution Stage – occurs after six months of sobriety or abstinance.

[dawn4]

previous post is generalized addiction information which can vary based upon the specific substance; for example in nicotine withdrawal, physical withdrawal is somewhere around 72 hours,

[babyimaboo]

Wow!!! I didn't even know that "Honeymoon stage" was actually a real stage in quiting. I was just using that term in expresson. Thanks all to all of your comments and your input. Knowing more about this give me more ammo to harnest my roughest moments.

Thanks Guys!!!!!!!