Quitter's Flu

Stockxpert Definition: Quitter's flu is a slang term used to describe the flu-like symptoms that nicotine withdrawal can sometimes produce.

Symptoms of nicotine withdrawal can include: Cravings to smoke Irritability, crankiness Insomnia Fatigue Inability to concentrate Headache Cough Sore throat Constipation, gas, stomach pain Dry mouth Sore tongue and/or gums Postnasal drip Tightness in the chestAlso known as smoker's flu, quitter's flu is not a real sickness; it refers only to physical sensations we experience while detoxing from nicotine and the chemicals in tobacco that can mimic illness.

See also: All About Nicotine Withdrawal

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Mind Games Go Both Ways

As smokers, we often think of lighting up as an enjoyable pastime. Cigarettes offer us comfort, entertainment and companionship -- or so we think. At the same time, we relate smoking cessation to feelings of pain, misery and sacrifice, and for most of us, these opposing feelings exist and are reinforced on a subconscious level. They're below the surface of our thoughts, and the result is that we adopt unhealthy and inaccurate beliefs as facts of life when in reality they are only our distorted perceptions of the truth.

I'd like to introduce you to About.com Smoking Cessation forum member, Beth (Nyniane). In the article that follows, Beth helps us learn how to recognize thoughts that don't serve us as we move through recovery from nicotine addiction and reprogram our minds with thoughts that do.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience with others, Beth. Your advice helps us work our way through the smokescreen of faulty thoughts that nicotine puts in our path as we work to quit smoking.

If you want to change your life, change your mind.

We either make ourselves happy or miserable, the amount of work is the same.

This is the hardest thing I've ever done.

The first quote is from our fearless leader, Terry Martin. It's a catchy little phrase, and very appropriate to quitting smoking. Or, it's another meaningless expression that forum do-gooders like to chant.

The choice is up to you.

Your quit can be a horrible, difficult, torturous period of penance that may end with you becoming a smoker again because you really want to be smoking but feel you can't. Or, your quit can be a somewhat uncomfortable but exciting path leading to new opportunities and higher self-esteem. You know you won't smoke because you're already feeling the freedom of living without chemical dependence.

That too, is up to you.

We were all smokers. Thus, we are all experts at mind games. We had to be, to continue to do something as self-destructive as smoking and still sleep at night! If you allow those old mind games to continue, you are going to be facing a "horrible, difficult, torturous period of penance", so take the easy way. Make a mental change, and try some new, fresh mind games! Don't quit smoking because you have to. Rather, embark on a challenging and rewarding adventure of teaching yourself how to be a non-smoker. Go ahead and laugh, but I guarantee the second option is more pleasant and thus easier. That is not to say it won't be without some effort on your part, but embracing the process instead of head-butting it is the best way to go.

Here are some tricks to get you started:

Never allow yourself to think "I need to smoke." That's way too emotional. Change it to something wordy enough to take the passion out of the sentiment, like, "I'm feeling some tension that I would have interpreted in the past as a desire for a cigarette." Same goes for "I want to smoke." In addition to being unemotional, analyzing the feeling makes you realize that you are not actually in pain over a craving to smoke.

Never allow yourself to think "I could have just one." Change it to "I could become a smoker again." They amount to the same thing, after all.

Never allow yourself to visualize yourself enjoying a cigarette. Instead, change the mental image to a picture of the nastiest, most uncomfortable, unwanted cigarettes you ever smoked.

Often point out the good stuff to yourself. Everyone sees the healing changes at different rates, but even on your first smoke-free day you can find something, even if it's just your money jar. As you notice them, write them down. You'll be amazed at how fast you come to take the benefits for granted!

Often tell yourself how good you feel. It's just as easy to say "I feel great" as it is to say "Oh, am I ever suffering". Easier, actually -- there are fewer syllables. And your subconscious really does come to believe what you tell yourself. Try writing, "I am SO GLAD to be FREE" on a post-it and sticking it to your bathroom mirror so that you are sure to remind yourself of this every morning.

Never deny yourself something good because you quit smoking. Say you associate sitting on your porch with smoking. In the first days of quitting we associate everything with smoking. Deal with the triggers early on and don't leave yourself feeling deprived. One exception is alcohol. Take it slow and easy on a trigger that also lowers your inhibitions and capacity for rational thought.

Often laugh. Laughter is a much better, more effective, and healthier relaxant than inhaling poisons. Try some Youtube therapy. Or go down to the quit buddies folder and make some new friends.

Never doubt that one cigarette will make you a smoker again. There have been too many stories of people who'd been quit for years and wound up right back at their old level, kicking themselves every puff of the way, for anyone to seriously question the law of addiction. (Which, by the way, is a Law like "gravity," not a law like the "speed limit". You might be able to drive too fast without getting caught, but I wouldn't recommend stepping out of a plane just because nobody's around to see you.)

Never let your mind fall into the old rut of junkie thinking. Don't think of quitting as an end. It's the beginning of a healthy new lifestyle where unforeseen opportunities will open to you. Don't let your "junkie" tell you that the damage is already done. Yeah, you may have done some damage, but you don't have to do one bit more. Don't keep telling yourself that it's hard. It takes a lot of effort, sure... but so does everything worth doing. You are learning new things and developing new skills every day. You are doing this! You rock!

Never let your mind start to romanticize how great everything was when you "got to" smoke. And don't envy the smokers who are standing outside furtively getting their fix. Instead, remember what it was really like to need to smoke. If smoking was all that great, you wouldn't have ever considered quitting, right?! Take a minute now and remember all the lousy stuff about needing to smoke.

Mindgames Go Both Ways -- Page Two

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Secondhand Smoke Defined

Photo © Stockxpert Definition:
Secondhand smoke is the term used to describe tobacco smoke that comes from two sources: smoke that is exhaled by the smoker after puffing on a lit cigarette (mainstream smoke)Secondhand smoke contains upwards of 4000 chemicals, including 200 known poisonous chemicals, and 60 carcinogenic chemical compounds.

See Also:

Also Known As: ETS, second-hand smoke, second hand smokeCigarette Smoking and Your Healthif(zSbL

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Removing the Shackles

I'd like you to meet Diane, a recently freed ex-smoker. At six months into smoking cessation, Diane has plenty of insight and hope to offer.

Congratulations Diane, and thanks for sharing your story. The work you're putting into quitting now will pay you back with benefits for many years to come.

From Diane:

I've been smoking all my life, until now.

I was born in 1960, a time when there was no real link between smoking and health issues. Smoking was not only acceptable, smoking was fashionable. Everyone smoked. Not just the movies stars of the silver screen, or the television stars, doctors also smoked. You could smoke on a plane, in a public building, even in a hospital. Smoking was a way of life. It wasn’t until 1966 that the Surgeon General put the warning on cigarette packages...

Caution: Cigarette Smoking May be Hazardous to Your Health

Caution? May be? That was a joke because nobody was paying attention.

My mother was a good and wonderful woman. I had a great childhood. There was nothing dysfunctional about us and by no means do I blame my smoking addiction on my mother. My mother was a nurse who smoked, but again, in the 60's, medicine was not as advanced as it is now. If she knew the dangers, I know my mother would have never smoked while pregnant, and not around me and my brother.

I started smoking at conception. I smoked in the womb with my mother during pregnancy and in the course of my childhood through secondhand smoke. So for me, I was predisposed to pick up the habit of smoking. Nicotine has always been in my system.

I didn't feed my craving for it though until I was in college. I really wasn’t a legitimate smoker (yet) and could always quit with ease. In 1985 I became a bona fide smoker and could not – would not – did not want to quit smoking.

There was a brief moment in time when I did quit for three years with the pregnancies of my two children (who are 15 months apart and are now 17 and 18 years old), but I hit a bump in my life and picked up that crutch - cigarettes. I used to think cigarettes eased the stress; I used to think cigarettes were good after a meal or made alcohol taste better. I thought smoking made me look cool. It didn’t.

A Slave to Smoking No More...

Fast-forward to September 2010. I turned 50 years old and decided it was time. Time to take the shackles off so I could be free. I made a plan, talked to my doctor, and on December 31, 2010 at 11:45 p.m., I smoked my LAST cigarette and my journey to freedom began.

I ain’t gonna lie – it wasn’t easy in the beginning. But I promise you, I have not looked back. I prayed often and still do.

One day I stumbled upon a book (that can be downloaded for free) on the internet when I was having a moment of doubt and had no sponsor to talk to. It’s called Never Take Another Puff by Joel Spitzer. This book was a gift out of nowhere. Something I needed at the time to keep me going and whisper in my ear that I was going to make it. It help me understand the addiction to smoking. It gave me knowledge about nicotine that armed me to never want to take another puff.

I had no intention on rattling on about this, but perhaps I needed to tell this part of my story so I can keep traveling. I am a recovering smoker, it's been six months and I am smoke free!

I am Diane.

6/8/2011

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The First Six Months

Between nicotine withdrawal and recovering from the many associations we have with smoking, the first six smoke-free months are challenging for most people. The ups and downs of smoking cessation are poignantly reflected in the following personal accounts that detail the challenges at various points during the first six months smoke-free.

Settle in and do some reading -- there is no shortage of inspiration and motivation to succeed to be found on these pages!

KerriFrom Kerri
"My name is Kerri. I'm 31 years old, and I have been a nicotine addict for more than half of my life. I was 13 when I smoked my first cigarette. My friends turned green; I got good at it. By 15, I was using my lunch money to buy cigarettes."zSB(3,3)MaryFrom Mary:
"I started on a slippery road
with fear and trembling in my sack,
but once around the corner
I knew there was no turning back."DarleneFrom Darlene:
"Please rejoice with me, because I am one of the lucky ones. I quit smoking and have been given a second chance. I am three months smoke-free as of today, September 9, 2008, and have found a peace and freedom that I've never before felt. I believe it is because I quit smoking and have completely changed my life. I abused my body big time in many ways for most of my life, but no more."StockxpertFrom Kay:
"One thing I have learned here is that all it takes is a single puff to break a quit. By reaching for a smoking buddy's pack after not smoking for a few days or weeks, I actually lost all my previous quits well before the three-month anniversary."StockxpertFrom Marah:
"I hope to encourage new quitters by listing some of the benefits I’ve derived from not smoking these past 3 months. I smoked for 27 years, 20 of those years a pack a day or more. For the last 3 or 4 years, I’d been chewing 5-6 pieces of nicotine gum a day on top of 20 cigarettes, so I had ungodly amounts of nicotine coursing through my bloodstream."LarryFrom Larry:
"Here it is Christmas Eve day 2006, and tomorrow morning around 9 am PST it will be 4 months since I put out that ONE cigarette I had been in search of for the better part of 50 years (the last ONE). How in the world could ONE stinking cigarette be so elusive, so hard to find?"AngelaFrom Angela:
"When I think of a cigarette, I think of the four thousand chemicals that would rush into my mouth and burn their way into my once healthy lungs. I think about that nasty taste, that nasty ring of polluted air I would create in the space around my body."DeeFrom Dee:
"This does not have to be a 24/7 battle. Fact: there is a price to pay(urges, cravings, etc)for freedom. Relax, accept that fact. Keep it simple, take it one day at a time, and move the heck on and enjoy your life being smoke free"zSB(1,2)JaneFrom Jane:
"Long before August 5, 2006, I had been thinking how much I hated smoking, not quitting smoking, just hating it. After all, I had smoked for 37 years. Cigarettes were a part of who I was, how I functioned, and ingrained into my fiber."LeslyFrom Lesly:
'Six months, half a year, and two seasons since I smoked.'(EB) "This is so hard for me to believe! I'd like to take a minute and give my thoughts to people coming up behind me, or people who might be struggling. To get free of this addiction, it is my belief that you have to educate yourself to the "lie" of the cigarette."if(zSbL

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Prepare to Quit Smoking

Preparing yourself for what lies ahead when you quit smoking will add to your ability to make a success of your efforts. Preparation puts you into the driver's seat when you quit smoking, and will help you get your mind geared up for the big day. It's a good idea to plan your quit date no more than a week or two ahead of time. Any more than that, and you're likely to lose momentum. Read, read, read, and read some more. Use the library here at About.com Smoking Cessation to learn as much as you can about nicotine addiction and how it affects your body. From what to expect when you quit smoking, to ways to deal with recovery, education is a vital part of a successful quit program. It forces us to take the blinders off - most smokers avoid reading and thinking too much about the dangers of what they're doing. It's called denial, and the sooner you remove it, the quicker you'll be on the road to recovery. Understanding Nicotine Addiction How Smoking Harms Us - From Head to Toe This little tool is a terrific quit aid. Use it initially for your list of reasons to quit smoking. Follow up with some other lists of things that have meaning for you. Suggestions include: pros and cons of smoking goals you have in your life benefits you can envision as a nonsmokerOnce you quit smoking, use that journal to log your daily progress. Make an effort to write in it at the very least, once a day, and more if you feel the need. Weeks down the road, you may have a bad day when thoughts of smoking are at the front of your mind. Taking a look back at week one and getting perspective on just how far you've come could be the boost you need to get over that hump. The Pros and Cons of Smoking EB's List of Reasons to Quit Smoking Make an appointment with your physician for a physical and let him/her know that you're going to quit smoking. It's a great time to discuss quit smoking aids, and get advice on what may be best suited for you. Ask your doctor whether you might benefit from a vitamin supplement. Smoking depletes nutrients from our bodies, and a multi-vitamin can give you a head start on rebuilding your health.

Quit Smoking Supplies

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Free of Nicotine - 10 Stories

Once we quit smoking, the word freedom takes on a depth of meaning it never had before.  The benefits of better health and more money in our pockets only marks the beginning of the positive changes most of us enjoy after quitting.

The stories below illustrate the value freedom from nicotine addiction has had on 10 unique and precious lives.

If you're still smoking, their stories cannot help but inspire you to tap into your own ability to quit too.

To that end, the links below will help you get started:

Believe in yourself and make smoking history.

You CAN do it!

Bill Ledbetter

From Bill:
"How many times have you heard songs about fools? There must be as many fool references in music as there are trains. Fool for love, fool and his money goes separate ways, foolish games, fool for your stockings, fooled around and fell in love, won’t get fooled again...you get the picture. Fools and foolish behavior are good song material. One of my all time favorites is "Fool for a Cigarette."

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