Reduce Stress by Stopping Smoking

[Dr_Hays]

Many people struggle with setting a quit date as they feel it is not the right time for them to stop.  With the many demands our world places on us with jobs, family, children, and just taking care of the day-to-day chores of home, it is no wonder that folks feel stressed and when even contemplating a quit date.  However, I do hear from people that when they quit smoking they surprisingly notice their life has become less stressful.  Why is that?

Well, physiologically, when one puffs on a cigarette, a large dose of nicotine is delivered to the brain in just 7-10 seconds.  This dose of nicotine causes the release of hormones such as adrenaline which causes a transient increase in heart rate and blood pressure which is compounded by the fact that a smoker takes so many puffs per cigarette, and smokes multiple cigarettes per day.  Over time of course, dependence can develop.  Over time, that pleasurable treat of a cigarette here and there turns into a stressful cycle of keeping withdrawal symptoms at bay.

Now that many public areas are smoke-free, smoking can be stressful just because a person who smokes has to plan their day to make sure that they are able to find a place and time to smoke.

Thus, instead of alleviating stress, smoking can create more stress!  It is not surprising that when a smoker stops, stress levels go down.  Once nicotine withdrawal is over (usually after 2-4 weeks), staying quit feels a bit more manageable.   

Ask an ex-smokers who no longer need to plan their life around their smoking, “are you as stressed now as you were when smoking?”  They can shop, go to a feature length movie, and play with grandchildren for as long as they want without needing to satisfy their cravings for a cigarette.  Also, many find that after they have quit smoking, when stressful events happen (as they inevitably do), they are able to deal with them better, and more calmly than when they were reaching for the cigarette. 

If you are new to this site, stick around for the discussion in the comments.  That is where most of the magic happens – one person supporting another, one day at a time.  

[TerrieQuit]

Thanks Dr Hays! Great information and all very true!

I Won't Quit on my Quit!

[JonesCarpeDiem]

i never smoked in my sleep and never felt I needed to light up first thing in the morning so that was 6-7 hours without nicotine. I don't believe the experts have ever addressed this phenomenon.

Is it an individual thing?

Some people smoke right before bed and as soon as they wake. But might that be a pattern they've set for themselves and simply don't deviate from the familiarity?

I agree the continuation of smoking is driven by nicotine until you stop smoking.

[JonesCarpeDiem]

I agree the continuation of smoking (and the strees created by smoking) is driven by nicotine until you stop smoking.

What about NRT's?

Aren't people driven to use NRT's to get nicotine? Aren't those who use gum or another NRT every time they would have smoked still tied to the same physical need?

[Giulia]

For me,  I never recall feeling more or less stressed when I smoked or when  I quit.  But then I don't think stress was one of my smoking triggers.  When I was in a non-smoking area, or during work - I knew I couldn't smoke and didn't think about it.  When I could take a smoke break I did.  But I was never one to go nuts for a smoke during a movie and it certainly didn't make me feel stressed.   The only time I felt stressed for a cigarette was when I only had a few left in the pack before bed and hadn't gotten to the store to secure another pack and that meant I had to cut back so I'd have enough to last and get me through the a.m. wakeup.  The fear/stress of not having enough to "keep the withdrawal symptoms at bay," was certainly a reality at those times.  Though of course the reason WHY I had that fear never occurred.  I just knew I'd "want' a cigarette real bad.  Not having a clue as to the reason why. 

Interesting now that I look back on it all.  Knowing I wasn't allowed to smoke under certain circumstances I could accept.  And I didn't have many cravings during those times.  It's all in the psychology.  But knowing I was about to run out of cigarettes would be enough to cause an immediate craving that would cause continuous nervous stress until I bought another pack. 

Unlike jonescarp I DEFINITELY smoked right before bed and right upon awakening.  Never one to wake up in the middle of the night with a need to smoke, though, as I've heard some do. 

But as far as feeling that life has been generally less stressful because I've quit - not one bit. 

I'll tell you one thing though, I felt  a lot less quit stressed when I accepted my  commitment to quit, instead of fighting it.  As with the example above - when I knew I couldn't smoke at certain times, I accepted it and didn't have many cravings.  Same is true with quitting  When I accepted the choice I had made, when I eliminated the option to smoke in my head, the cravings were much less.     

[YoungAtHeart]

And - think how much less stressful going on an airplane trip is as an ex-smoker.  I used to DREAD all that time in the airport, especially after you couldn't just run outside for "just one more."  With the stress of two hours BEFORE the flight, the security mess, then the flight itself, then baggage claim and FINALLY outside - the stress seemed to build and build.  I do remember not feeling that much of a craving while I was in the airplane, because I KNEW it wasn't an option  Like Dale - I wonder how I could go those hours without smoking and not have a fit?!!

Something to ponder?!!!

Nancy

[Giulia]

I think, Nancy, it's because there WAS NO OPTION to smoke on the plane.  That's my point.  When you eliminate the option, when it is simply not possible to smoke, you relinquish the hope and thus the craving ceases to exist.  If we were on a desert island and knew there was no possibility of smoking, we'd stop thinking about it rather quickly.  And when you stop thinking about it, you stop craving.  But if we knew a cruise ship would come into port once a week and give us a pack of cigarettes each, we'd do nothing but think about the next cruise ship all week and remaiin in a constant state of withdrawal and craving.

[JonesCarpeDiem]

i believe there is too much emphasis upon the physical addiction. The psycological addiction is what brings people back to smoking after years of not smoking.

[NewMe]

Some very good points made here. I was one who apparantly suffered all of the bad examples given above. One before bed, immediately upon awakening, got super irritable at work if I couldn't make it to a smoking area at a regularly scheduled break time. I just got back from my first vacation in several years where I flew, and I was aware of the freedom of not feeling panic because I would try to check in, and then rush around trying to make it outside to smoke in the old days- then back in at a run so I didn't miss my flight. And I do ocassionally notice that I feel that one of the stressors in my life (having to plan out how and where to go smoke, and how often I could do it ) is gone now. Mixed bag, but I like the idea that once you give up the hope of having another (and accept that this is no longer an option), the stress goes away.

[Sootie]

I have to agree that  I feel much more capable of dealing with stress now then I did when I was smoking........because, I always felt the WAY I had to deal with stress WAS by smoking.........how can I sneak off the hospital grounds during my daughter's surgery for a smoke?.......where can we go for a smoke during my Dad's funeral?.......how quickly can I run outside for a smoke before I deal with this complaint at work?

Turns out, I can deal with all this stress and more very nicely thank you. I just "thought" I couldn't! As Dale says......the psychological part of the addiction told me.....you can't handle it. 

Yet, I am fairly intelligent and had I thought it through (which, of course I never did or never allowed mysefl to do) I would certainly have questioned......but how do non smokers do it? They have surgeries, deaths, complaints? how do they manage?  

I ofen wonder why I never, never bothered to think that through. 

[Sootie]

As I once wrote in a blog...................

When my sister and I would whine about not being able to quit smoking because we had too much stress my Dad would respond.......

"Ladies----life is stress. Stress ends when you die. Keep smoking and you'll be stress free before you know it."

[dpop]

Ooohhh great quote!

[Dr_Hays]

Thank you all for the insightful discussion above!  

From the posts I have read, it sounds like the psychological process of stopping smoking was as challenging (or more so) for some than withdrawing from nicotine.  Interestingly, the half-life of nicotine is relatively short - about two hours.  When an individual stops smoking, withdrawal will peak at about 2-3 days and is thought to resolve for many smokers by the 30 day mark (Hughes, 1994).  Research suggests that priority be placed on withdrawal management in the first few weeks as this is often the top reason smokers relapse (Hughes, 2004).

However, a theme I hear from you all is that, after overcoming the physical withdrawal of nicotine, it is very important that an EX smoker continue working to address the psychological impact of smoking in their lives.  How one chooses to replace cigarettes as a coping tool, stress reliever, reward, etc. can have a tremendous impact on their recovery from tobacco in the long run.

Thank you for sharing your experiences, strength, and hope everyone.  Your comments are always food for thought!

Hughes, J. R., & Higgins, S. T. (1994). Nicotine withdrawal versus other drug withdrawal syndromes: Similarities and dissimilarities. Addiction, 89(11), 1461-1470.

Hughes, J. R., Keely, J., & Naud, S. (2004). REVIEW Shape of the relapse curve and long-term abstinence among untreated smokers. Addiction, 99(1), 29-38. doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2004.00540.x 

[odlaw06]

Reading the above has been very helpful. I see a bit myself in all the posts and it is reassuring that I am the feelings I am having are shared by many. Thanks!

[freefromsmoke26]

I very much agree with Giulia. I feel the same way that she described. My quit date is approaching and I feel very stressed and scared. There is only 5 cigs left in my packet and my quit date is on 04th of April. I feel and I know that the 5 cigs will end much before my stop date. I will try to quit as soon as my pack ends but knowing that my quit date is the 04th of April, I know that I will have high cravings when I will decide if I should stop rightaway or buy another packet. And if I do, I will push away my quit date and will never ever decide to quit. I am getting married in 3 months and would like to quit before my big day. Can anyone help? Thanks