Nicotine Withdrawl: What are the Symptoms?

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Ask anyone who smokes and they will tell you it is a hard habit to break. It is very interesting to note that nicotine is more addictive than harsher drugs such as cocaine or heroin. However, although the symptoms of withdrawal vary quite differently, quitting smoking can still be a very harrowing and nerve racking endeavor.

Nicotine is found in all tobacco products, as well as thousands of other chemicals and toxins contained in cigarettes. The good news is that the withdrawal symptoms are temporary and peak after two days. Your body begins a healing process within thirty minutes of quitting smoking. If you can just stick with it, your risks of heart attack and other conditions associated with smoking are significantly reduced and can add years to your life.

Withdrawal symptoms include:

Nicotine cravings Tension Irritability Headaches Inability to concentrate Drowsiness Sleeping difficulties Increased appetite Weight gain Depression

The above mentioned symptoms can be less intense if you first try implementing cigarettes with less tar or nicotine or you try decreasing the number of cigarettes smoked in one day. However, there is no such thing as a safe cigarette. Just because they contain less tar or nicotine does not mean your body is not still receiving the same dangerous toxins. This is especially true if you find yourself smoking more of these cigarettes in order to compensate for the lack of nicotine in the new ones.

How to cope:

There are many ways to help you through the symptoms of withdrawal. Nicotine gum or the patch can be very useful in the progression of your success. In addition, there are several medications your doctor can prescribe including clonidine, antidepressants such as fluoxetine (Prozac), and buspirone (Buspar). These medications will not cause any added addictions and greatly increase the likelihood of success.

So many people become discouraged when their first attempt at quitting is met with failure. However, research suggests that every attempt at quitting smoking leads you closer and closer to success. Remember, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again!

Nicotine withdrawal is only temporary and eventually ceases. This is the hardest part of quitting smoking, and coping strategies play a big part.

Complications:

Weight gain is by far the most complained about complication of quitting smoking. You must remember that you should anticipate both food and nicotine cravings. To combat these effects, try increasing your physical activity as well as supplementing a healthy diet along with fresh fruit and vegetable sticks for snacks.

Get in contact with your health care provider who can help you with ways to give up the cigarette habit. You will find that your senses of taste and smell will return to normal, your lung capacity will increase, which will enable you to increase your physical endurance. Increasing your exercise will burn more calories, keeping off the weight gain that can occur while quitting smoking and dealing with the withdrawal symptoms.

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