Smoking Vs stamina

amusedmonkey

Okay, so I've finally quit cold turkey. It's been 24 hours and it's been surprisingly easy even though I've been a 2 packs a day smoker for the past 13 years. Maybe it's just the fact that I'm still too early into the process to experience severe anxiety, but the cravings aren't as bad as thought they would be, just a subtle "yeah I'm used to lighting up on certain cues and it feels weird not to" which subsides after a while.

Now just like OP I'm quitting because I really REALLY want to have better stamina and breathe better. My problem with the withdrawal process is the physical symptoms. It's only been 24 hours but I already feel extremely tired and completely lacking energy. I slept 2 hours yesterday evening, woke up, slept 10 hours at night and had weird dreams, woke up tired, and 2 hours after waking up I feel sleepy again. I'm gonna go drag my feet on the treadmill for an hour or so to wake myself up. A headache is also starting to emerge, along with a bit of a dizzy blurry feeling in my head, and I feel over all "slow", just going through the motions. The whole thing feels more physical than emotional.

I've also noticed I'm having to clear my throat a lot today, even though I've never had a smoker's cough back when I smoked.

How long until I get my energy back and my throat finally clears? I mean I'm not regretting quitting, but I'm getting impatient because what's happening to me is the exact opposite of what I'm quitting for.

Robertus

Excellent, amusedmonkey! Sorry, I don't have an answer to your question, but, Excellent!

alexiscallan

I used to be a 20 a day smoker (40 on a night out). I quit in December 2012, you can do it! Just think of it as a gift to yourself, good luck!

amusedmonkey

Bump for answers: I would really like to know from people who have gone through this how long will I be exhausted? It's unbearable. Even typing is a chore. I was fine on the treadmill doing slow incline walking because it's just mindlessly dragging feet, but I couldn't go any faster and did not get any energy from the exercise. In the past 35 hours of quitting I think I've slept 18 on and off, but I still wake up tired every time. I'm very tempted to smoke just to make this go away even though he cravings themselves are very mild. I'm not used to having absolutely no energy. Even when I'm sick it's never this bad.

bluworld

amusedmonkey wrote: »

Bump for answers: I would really like to know from people who have gone through this how long will I be exhausted? It's unbearable. Even typing is a chore. I was fine on the treadmill doing slow incline walking because it's just mindlessly dragging feet, but I couldn't go any faster and did not get any energy from the exercise. In the past 35 hours of quitting I think I've slept 18 on and off, but I still wake up tired every time. I'm very tempted to smoke just to make this go away even though he cravings themselves are very mild. I'm not used to having absolutely no energy. Even when I'm sick it's never this bad.

Smoking temporarily increased your blood sugar. When you first quit, your body has to relearn how to maintain blood sugar levels. Drink small amounts of juice through out the day.
There will also be depression for the first two weeks, as your body learns to regulate seratonin levels as well. If depression is intense, lasts more than two weeks, or the cravings are so intense they are ignorable, that is when a prescription such as Wellbutrin is in order. Most likely you were treating a mild depression with smoking, and will need more supports as you quit.

Almost 4 years from me, no cheating. I did use Wellbutrin the first 3 months, within 1- 2 years( I do remember) after quitting my "chronic" depression ( that started in my teens after I started smoking) was gone.