I quit smoking and gained 6 pounds in 2 days!

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ambee0803
ambee0803 Posts: 89 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm hoping someone can give me some advice. I am quitting smoking and starting my diet over at the same time. I've always substitiued foof for ciggerattes and vice versa. I eat when I can't smoke and smoke when I can't eat. Now I'm quitting smoking and drastically cutting back on food. I'm afraid I might explode!:explode:

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  • mar109
    mar109 Posts: 101 Member
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    are you just quitting cold turkey?
  • 1Sweets
    1Sweets Posts: 395
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    That is the Million Dollar Question:laugh: I quit cold turkey in 1978 when I got preggers:flowerforyou: I & everyone will (mostly) agree it's an oral fixation that were use too.

    This is why I ended up on this site...after a course of 20 years my weight went from 129 to 179 because I never got those oral fixes "fixed". Now I think I do.....

    It's all in the mind...and the mind is Powerful so try to substitute carrot sticks for cigs or walk every time you have a craving...substitue something healthy instead. I should have but had babies right away & I was running ragged taking care of them...I found many excuses to give into my cravings for food since I quit the cigs.

    I never had cravings for cigs which was weird because I had tried so many times before to quit maybe being preggers killed that craving hormonal wise?

    Keep trying not to eat carb like snacks because this will ruin everything...when you think Cig craving automatically think carrot in mouth:tongue: retrain yourself before you end up like me...

    Good Luck...You can do it
  • mar109
    mar109 Posts: 101 Member
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    try the patch, it really takes the edge off and most times you wont even think about smoking. Blew my mind how helpful they are, so you may not try to substitute it with food! goodluck!:drinker:
  • Dragonfly11
    Dragonfly11 Posts: 672 Member
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    Good Morning,
    maybe we need to start a quitters thread.. I am preparing to quit smoking (quit date Dec 25) and I am already trying to wean down. Weekends, stress and my drive to work (1.5 hrs) are the most difficult for me. I know I am going to need a pal on this. I am not using any pills or lozenges when I quit, at least right now i don't plan on it. I currently smoke about a half a pack per day and I am so afraid that i am going to gain my weight back after I've been working so hard. One of the local hospitals has a pamphlet that has some good suggestions, like walking (exercise) and substituting celery for cigs, not hanging around with the smokers, getting rid of smoking paraphenalia etc. Make a list of all of the non -smoking benfits (health, financial, personal etc). That's all I can think of right now. But I definetly encourage you - you/we can do this. I've smoked since I was 16. I'll be 47 on Tuesday. This is the first time in my life I've every seriously thought about laying them down .. for good.
    Maybe we can support each other? I know I'm not where you are yet, but I will be soon. let me know what you think.

    Blessings,
    Janet:heart:
  • ambee0803
    ambee0803 Posts: 89 Member
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    Yeah im doing it 100% cold turkey. Its an im not working and can't afford it thing
  • ambee0803
    ambee0803 Posts: 89 Member
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    Yeah that would be great! We need all the support we can get esp when my "support person" has never been addicted to anything in his life and thinks its easy to just quit smoking.
  • epoeraven
    epoeraven Posts: 458 Member
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    I know this is going to sound stupid but when I quit smoking I found that simply chewing on a drinking straw when I wanted a cigarette helped. It also helped to drink through a straw when I was having my morning diet dew.

    That said if you truly can't quit reaching for the food instead of the cigarettes then try grabbing things that are low in calories and take longer to eat. I found things like carrot sticks, celary stalks, and pickles helped more than crackers - I don't know if it was a correlation between the shape or what.

    Also, the six pounds might be water weight gain if the food you are grabbing instead of smoking is salty like chips or pretzels.
  • jenners22
    jenners22 Posts: 91
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    Whenever someone quits smoking I jump for joy! Look at it this way, you may have gained some weight initially, but you've said NO to your cancer sticks. Way to Go! You should be feeling great. Weight is temporary...addiction is forever.
  • FireMonkey
    FireMonkey Posts: 500 Member
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    First of all, congratulations on your decision to live a healthier life. :flowerforyou: And I doubt you gained 6 pounds of fat in 2 days, unless you ate over 20,000 calories during that time - it's likely water and/or normal fluctuation.

    I haven't smoked in 20 years but I did have a hard time quitting and making it stick. Every time I fell off the wagon I learned a little bit more. I learned that smoking is an addiction as well as a psychological habit. You're over the nicotine cravings within about a week of cold turkey, but the habits take a lot longer to change.

    What finally worked for me was a lot of little changes adding up. Like if you always had a cigarette and a coffee first thing in the morning, do something else - exercise, brush teeth, walk the dog or whatever works for you. Sit in a different chair. Sugarless gum helps keep your mouth busy and if you choose mint flavours it makes it less likely that you want to smoke after that. When you really want a cigarette, tell yourself "Not now; I'll have one in half an hour". Repeat this every time you feel like lighting up. Most times the craving will be gone by then. Take up a new hobby - all my family and friends got handmade afghans that year :happy:

    If all this sounds easier said than done - the main thing is to figure out what works for you, and to not get discouraged. It took me at least seven attempts, but it is possible and there is life after cigarettes!
  • rob_in_wisc
    rob_in_wisc Posts: 72
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    I used the patch, and it seemed to help. I also ate pistacitos on the drive home from work. It is good for you and keeps your hands busy.

    It will get better and it is well worth the struggle.

    Rob
  • khskr1
    khskr1 Posts: 392
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    It's been many years since I quit but I found those little stir sticks were my favorite! I could chew on one and keep my mouth and hands happy! Esp in the car! I'm sure my dentist would beat me if he knew that, but eventually I quit those too. Good luck! And remember....this is only temporary!! You can do it!
  • swerth
    swerth Posts: 5
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    I quit smoking last december and it has been a great change. Yes I used acupuncture it worked great the key was I was ready and very much wanted to quit smoking. It relived the tension and stress quitting caused me in previous attempts. When I did have cravings I used red hots the equivelent is found in the baking isles at stores. I was told anything that had the cinnamon flavor worked the best. If you are able to do it cold turkey good for you but there is nothing wrong with getting some help also. It costed me $150 for the complete treatment which at that time I had it figured that I had to atleast stop smoking for a month to recoup what I had spen which after a month what is the point of starting up again.
    Stick with it. It will be worth it in the long run.
  • Becky_Boop
    Becky_Boop Posts: 96
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    I quit about 5 months ago, cold turkey.
    I let myself get to the stage that I wasnt craving anymore (about 1/2weeks after quitting) before beginning to try and fix my eating
    I then found that Excersise was a good way of dealing with stress. and I now go to the gym often so I dont want to try another cigarette.
    so basically. Wait, the weight gain will calm down soon.

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