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Give and get support around quitting

Betterdays19
Member

Anxiety and Feeling Blah at 100 days

hi. New here. I thought I’d be over the moods by now but I am still dealing with anxiety and feeling blah. Didn’t have any of these issues when I smoked. Anyone still dealing with this? When does it end? No desire to smoke so no cravings. Thanks.

7 Replies
YoungAtHeart
Member

When we smoked, the answer to all of our daily downs was to smoke.  Now - you need to find NEW ways to deal with what life brings.  You are feeling the loss of the dopamine provided with each cigarette and need to find other ways to get it.  Exercise is one of the better ways - even marching in place works.  Going for a walk in a park or other nature setting is a good way to provide that boost.  You can get it from a bit of chocolate, or by singing along with or dancing to your favorite music, or from sex.  You might plan a getaway with the money you have saved by not buying smokes.

Congratulations on 100 days!  That is HUGE!

Nancy

Gwenivere
Member

I hear ya.  201 days and same feelings.  I can’t do walks so it’s a challenge with the exercise option gone.  I play lots of games on my iPad to get lost in.  I use lozenges so that helps a bit.  The anxiety is the worst.  I already have an anx disorder and this is making it worse.  It’s all about distraction for me.  Can’t spend the day that way so I get the challenge.  Feeling blah I have too.  Hoping one day I can write a post with a positive spin.  Still waiting.  Congrats on the 3 digit mark.  That is huge!  

indingrl
Member

CONGRATS 100 DAYS! Yahoooooooooo WAY TO GO! gentle hug ❤

Barbscloud
Member

Welcome to the Ex and congrats on 100 days.   Welcome to the Triple Digit Club!.   Seems like some folks have more emotional issues when they quit.   I didn't really experience much in the way of physical withdrawal.   My was more emotional.   You definitely want to try and increase your dopamine.  This should pass.

Barb

maryfreecig
Member

Welcome to Ex. Congratulations on 100!!! Big accomplishment. Putting some links to blogs below that may speak to the stuff you are feeling. One thing is true, don't smoke and work your quit will get you past the blahs.

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/groups/poetry-lovers/blog/2019/03/15/your-good-place

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/groups/newbie-quitters/blog/2019/01/27/one-of-the-greatest-tools-...

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/thread/6753-dopamine-the-double-edged-blade

https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/oldbones-larry/2019/07/01/the-smithy

Even though you are not having cravings, the brain fully remembers the cycle of smoking so getting better--recovering--takes time and effort. I quit in 2013--and the start of my quit was rocky (not unusual) but today, my unhappiness over quitting is long gone.    

Time frame for you? Can't say, because everyone is different--I guess it's said a lot around here that the effort it takes to recover from smoking is well worth it. You've come to the right place for ongoing support.

Of course your anxiety is still there. That's because there are two elements involved in a quit. The mental and the physical. It may be surprising, but the mental part of the quit is the hardest to get over. There's thousands of reasons for this, each unique to our individual situations. For me it was a matter of seeing things differently. 

 We can see our quit as a loss or we can see the positive parts of what we're working to accomplish. We used cigarettes for so many different aspects of our daily lives and over time, we came to rely on them because smoking just seemed like the normal thing we always did. Over time we came to accept that under certain conditions, we smoked.

Somehow a plant became "the old friend" and when we quit we feel loss. For me, this was what I had to get over to find peace. Thankfully I did and I can tell you that given a little time, most end up finding that ultimate goal of freedom. It isn't easy but very worth it. Stick with this. You've got a great beginning to the rest of your life!

ONWARD TO FREEDOM!!!

Chuck

elvan
Member

You have gotten great advice already...you are learning to feel WITHOUT suppressing your feelings with nicotine.  You are doing great!

Ellen

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