Concerned about health

[mippiehippie]

I have quit smoking and vaping for about 3 weeks now. I did smoke one cigarette over the weekend and I'm not proud of it. How long is my chest and heart going to hurt for? I have this tightness in my chest and I feel some pain coming from my heart every so often it's not constant but it's concerning to me. Doctor says I'm fine but I'm just waiting for this to pass, it's super uncomfortable and my anxiety about it has been awful. 

[Barbara145]

Congratulations on your decision to stop smoking. (If you quit smoking and you smoke you are doing it wrong.)  Famous quote on this site by Dale. If the doctors say you are o.k. you probably are. Take really good care of yourself, eat a healthy diet, take some vitamins.  Maybe Noni juice.  It is full of nutrients and it is a natural anti-inflammatory.  Drink lots of water to flush out the toxins. Commit to never smoking again.  One day at a time will get you where you want to be.  Enjoy your day.  

[biscuit9]

@mippiehippie  Three weeks with no nic is something to be proud of, so congratulations.  Make sure you celebrate these victories, so you don't "feel" deprived.  Be patient while your body heals from the years of abuse from this addiction.  Please do searches for your questions, as there is alot of information on this site.  You will probably see and feel lots of changes, while you are withdrawing, some of it is normal.  I was coming out of the fog at the 3 weeks mark, not necessarily in a good place, BUT I was amazing myself by not smoking.  DO NOT SMOKE, because a nic addict cannot have just one.  One leads to 2, etc.  

[CommunityAdmin]

Congratulations on your quit! Please listen to your body. If your symptoms continue, please reach out to your doctor. Stay calm take deep breaths because I'm sure your anxiety is not helping the chest pain.   

Quiana, EX Team

[YoungAtHeart]

Welcome!

Congratulations on quitting!  That one cigarette awakened the brain sensors you are trying to kill off.  One  very often will lead to another and another and yet another lost quit.  It's how addiction works!  Think now about your thought process when you gave yourself permission to smoke, and make a plan NOW what else you can do when the same thoughts hit you again (and they probably will).  Can you count backwards from 10,000, count the white things in your room, go for a walk, play a game on your phone?  If you still have cigarettes/vape pens in your possession, get rid of them NOW.  Keeping them is just giving yourself permission to fail!

An important thing you can do right now is to educate yourself on what nicotine does to your body and mind. I was amazed when I learned that the stress reduction you feel when you ingest nicotine is caused by the brain receptors calming that have gradually built in volume jonesing for their next fix!  I highly recommend Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking”  that brings light two other things you might not know.  You can purchase a digital version online or borrow it at your local library.  Here is a video to inform you further about nicotine addiction: Nicotine and Your Brain.

To better deal with the habit part of the addiction, change up your routines so the smoking associations are reduced.  Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand in a place different from when you smoked. Maybe switch to tea for a bit.  If you always had that first smoke with your coffee, try putting your walking shoes on right out of bed, going for a quick walk, then taking your shower and THEN your coffee! .  Take a different route to work. Take a quick walk at break time where the smokers AREN'T.

After you have eliminated as many associations as you can, you need to distract yourself through any craves.  You can take a bite out of a lemon (yup - rind and all), do a few jumping jacks, go for a brisk walk or march in place, play a computer game.  Keep a cold bottle of water with you. Don't let that smoking thought rattle around in your brain unchallenged. You might visit Games: The active ones are at the top of the list going down the left side of the page.

Here is a link to a list of things to do instead of smoke if you need some fresh ideas:

101 Things to Do Instead of Smoke - EX Community

The conversation in your head in response to the "I want a cigarette" thought needs to be, "Well, since I have decided not to do that anymore, what shall I do instead for the three minutes this crave will last?"  Then DO it.  You will need to put some effort into this in the early days, but it gets easier and easier to do.

You might want to join other site members by taking the daily pledge when you quit. It helps to hold yourself accountable and also accountable to others here. Find it at Home (top left), then first box titled Take the Daily Pledge.

Stay close to us here and ask questions when you have them and for support when you need it. We will be with you every step of the way!

Nancy

[AnnetteMM]

Regarding your question about the chest pain, I had that and called it "lung pain." It felt to me like healing and it lasted a couple of months (if I remember right). Take deep breaths outside to help the healing along. Just my non-expert opinion.

[Barbscloud]

@mippiehippie Happy to hear you are still working on your quit.  There is no right way or wrong way.  Three weeks without smoking/vaping is a major a achievement.  If you had one slip over the weekend and are back on track, just keep moving forward.  This is a learning process, so be proud of your successes.  Look forward and not backwards,   You've proven you can do this, so no regrets.   Use the tools and the Ex this time so that this won't happen again.

If you didn't create a quit plan, it's never too late.  This is part of your journey to become and ex.  Identify the tools you'll use, how to cope with cravings and create new associations to replace smoking.  The next time you have a craving you'll be ready and know that you don't have to smoke/vape that one cigarette. https://www.becomeanex.org/guides/?cid=footer_community_linktobex

Remember to always reach out before you smoke/vape.  That's what we're here for.   This site saved my quit many times when I first began my journey.   It took me 50 years and many attempts to finally get it right.  I learned how to do it here and will be celebrating 6 years tomorrow.  I never thought I would ever be an ex smoker.  I am and you can be too.

Join many of us on the Daily Pledge to stay on track one day at a time.

Stay busy and stay close.  We're  here cheering you  on and looking forward to celebrating many milestones in your future.

Barb