cancel
Showing results for 
Show  only  | Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Give and get support around quitting

kawaldrip66
Member

Withdraw symptoms and how long do they last

I have been reading and trying to understand withdraw symptoms, but more importantly how long they will last. I have not had a cigarette in a month and 3 days (after smoking for 38 years) and I really don't have horrible cravings. There are times when I think about smoking, but it goes away pretty quick. My main issue is how I feel. I am exhausted and I am sleeping 8-10 hours a night. I am exercising pretty regularly as well. I just feel anxious, tired, achy, a little depressed, and really just overall blah. Has anyone else experienced this upon quitting and at this length of time?  I would thing that at a month I would be done with the withdrawals!  Thanks in advance for your response!!

19 Replies
YoungAtHeart
Member

Congratulations on your month+ quit!  That is a BIG deal! 

The nicotine is pretty much out of your system after the first week - but then it takes awhile for your body to adjust to  life without it.  You should be coming to the end of the physical withdrawal.  A lot of people self-medicated for depression and anxiety by smoking and when they quit, those symptoms reappear.  You might want to talk to your doctor about how you are feeling.

Just keep in mind that smoking is never the answer!

Nancy

marciem
Member

Hi there kawaldrip66‌... WELCOME!!  And congratulations on a month and 3 days quit!!

Withdrawal is pretty much over for you, at a month.  The physical cravings that constitute withdrawal should have pretty much ebbed.

HOWEVER, healing has just begun.  Healing in mind and body.  It takes time.  You smoked for years, and each one did some form of damage to your psyche and body.  Be patient, quitting smoking is not an event, it is a process.  Enjoy the process, and the improvements that you are now seeing from not smoking anymore.

When you're feeling those "urges" or depressed, change your mind.  Get up and do something, anything.  You won't feel like it, but it will help!!  And this healing process you're going through will definitely not last as long as you smoked, so that's good news   .  How long?  It is different for everybody.  But it gets better and better, not always in a linear fashion (sometimes it will seem like two steps back instead of forward, and there will be lots of sideways times too)

Stay around here, and read all you can, and learn what good you are doing for yourself, and what to expect in the days, weeks and months ahead.

Again, you're doing great!!  And right where you should be in terms or progress.  Just be patient  

Barbscloud
Member

And don't forget, it's not just the nicotine.  They're 600 chemicals in a cigarette that when burned create 7,000 chemicals.  You're body is also eliminating them.

maryfreecig
Member

To live with quitting, think smobriety--really it's about relearning life without smoking. After 38 years of smoking your memory of what nicotine did for you is still strong--30+ days is a great start, so hang in there because you will get better. Stick around Ex, all kinds of quitters here, new, old and middle--making a great community that will not let you down.

Mary

AnnetteMM
Member

Absolutely! And the more you sleep, the better you'll heal. Let your body dictate what you need. Don't fight it. Anxiety, depression, tiredness, that blahness...all normal and will pass. Pamper yourself through it!

in my case the physical symptoms lasted a month and a half and then the mind games lasted for around 6 months.  I know it's easier when you treat this as a science experiment, jotting down when the "thoughts" of smoking become really strong.  it's usually really simple things like the first holiday, season change, kids returning to school, family gatherings.  Just remember it's only memories.  Think of your brain as a filing cabinet.  You are gradually replacing old smoking files with new nonsmoking files.  I've been quit now very close to 3 years.  Sure I think of smoking once in a while, but I realize it for what it is, only a thought.......

elvan
Member

 kawaldrip66   I see that you asked this question a month ago, are you still with us?  Are you feeling better?  Let us know...

Ellen

kawaldrip66
Member

Hi Elvan,

Yes, I am still here! LOL. I haven't had a cigarette in almost 8 weeks now! Thanks for checking!