Hi,
I'm three days quit (one day without a patch) and a 30 year smoker. I planned to quit two weeks ago with the use of the 21mg nicotine patches for 4 weeks, then going down to 14mg patches for two weeks, then 7mg for two weeks, but it didn't quite work out that way. I started using the patches on the 9th, but after a day & a 1/2, I chickened out and took the patch off and smoked for the rest of the evening. I went back and forth like that for two weeks, using the patch for a day, then taking it off before the next day in the middle of the day & smoking. This weekend, I knew if I ever had any hope of quitting, I had to stop gaming my own system and just step up and stop altogether, so I've been smoke free since Saturday night.
Two days into my initial quit, I started feeling like I was getting the flu (sore joints, sore eyes, sore ears, racing heart, fuzzy head, sinus pain and slight runny nose, sensitive, tingly skin, hoarse voice, trouble swallowing, etc). I knew it was way too early to get the quitter's flu, but I thought maybe going without smoking for 1-1/2 days, then smoking again, and continuing to go back & forth like that was probably irritating to my system. Each day that passed, I would feel worse. Since I kept doing that for two weeks, I figured my immune system was in disarray, but it got bad enough I didn't feel good enough to smoke, so in a way, it helped me with the final push I needed to put them down for good this weekend. I thought I would start to feel better after a few days, but I kept getting worse. Finally, at 3:30pm yesterday, I took my patch off so I would know for sure what was causing it. Felt horrible up until I went to bed, but woke up this morning feeling good and as the day as worn on, it's just gotten better. I still have a slight runny nose, a little soreness around my eyes, and in my ears, but nothing like what I had and it's not bad enough that it zaps my motivation. I'm thinking I have a sinus infection, likely brought on by my stupidity with stopping smoking for a day & a 1/2, smoking for 1/2 a day, etc., but for some reason the patches greatly exacerbated the symptoms. Is that normal? I have a Dr. appt later this afternoon because I have a business trip coming up next week that I can't miss, so I can't take any chances.
Is this a common issue? It's like my body had an immune response that was greatly exaggerated and it settled down once I removed the patch for an extended time.
So far, the cravings are controllable since they only last for a short duration each time. It's been about 24 hours without the patch and I haven't lost my resolve so it looks like I'll be able to do this without the patches and just quit cold turkey. I purchased some 2mg gum as a safety net, just in case, but my plan is that I only use it as a last resort. So far so good!
https://www.webmd.com/drugs/2/drug-6404/nicotine-transdermal/details/list-sideeffects
Here is a link to side effects of nicotine patches that I found on the WebMD web site. I do not see your symptoms listed, and I have never heard of the patch causing cold and/or sinus problems. If you feel that the patch is doing more harm than good, then by all means do not use it. It sounds like you are doing well without it. Best wishes to you.