What are the Side Effects of Quitting Smoking?
What side effects do you get when you stop smoking?
This is generally one of the first questions people ask when they first start thinking about giving up smoking.
Below is a bullet list to give you an overview of some of the problems you may encounter when you decide to quit smoking for good.
“You are going to quit; aren’t You?!”
We will go into them in more depth after giving you the list of side effects of quitting smoking.
- Anger
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Difficulty concentrating
- Impatience
- Insomnia
- Restlessness
- Weight gain
Most of the problems you will experience in the early days of quitting smoking are very likely to be associated with low blood sugar levels. This is a common occurrence in people who have just stopped smoking.
This is at its most intense during the first three days or so of quitting; it will get better and less intense as time goes by. Just try to relax and tell yourself: Things can only get better! (Sounds like the title of a song).
It’s worth keeping a good supply of fruit juices on hand, as they can help alleviate low blood sugar.
Another problem many people associate with quitting smoking is the Dreaded Weight Gain!
As you can see from above, your blood sugar levels are going to be lower than you experienced as a smoker, so, as a natural consequence, you start to eat far more than you need.
Make yourself wait at least three days before giving in to the temptation to eat more food; by then, your body will be re-adjusting itself back to a more natural regime.
By this time, blood sugar will be returning to normal levels and working with far greater efficiency; it’s well worth the wait.
It is said that heavy smokers generally burn 200 calories or so a day more than non-smokers who are eating the same diet. As far as I can find from my research, this is because you will naturally absorb more calories from your food than you did as a smoker, but not enough to make you stack on the pounds.
You will only do that if you start gorging yourself, so self-discipline is your watchword in the early days.
We don’t want any excuses for falling by the wayside because of weight gain.
Make sure you have a good dietary routine, regular eating times, and good food, so the low blood sugar problems don’t lead you into bad eating habits.
Start to notice how good your food tastes now that you are a non-smoker.
You are a non-smoker now
– Aren’t you!?
Remember, the side effects of quitting smoking will ease and lessen in intensity day after day – Really, I promise!
Number one tip: keep plenty of fruit juice handy for the first few weeks at least.
If you are troubled by anxiety, relaxation or sleeping problems, too much caffeine could be the cause of the problem.
In some recent studies, it has been found that blood caffeine levels can rise by over 200 per cent when you quit smoking in some cases.
So if you are suffering from anxiety, relaxing or sleeping issues, it would be a good idea to lower your caffeine intake and monitor it to see if it makes any beneficial difference.
Other side effects of quitting smoking can be depression. Just like any addictive drug, there will be withdrawal symptoms to cope with.
From reports I have read, this most often affects women more than men because women are more susceptible to depression than men.
Legitimate withdrawal symptoms tend to peak during the first week, and will most likely last for a further 2 to 4 weeks, reducing in intensity as time passes.
If you do begin to suffer from depression and it starts to get too much to bear, rather than throwing in the towel and going back to nicotine addiction; go and see your physician and ask him or her to help you through these unfortunate side effects of quitting smoking: you can be sure of one thing – they will want to offer you every assistance possible.
When I was quitting smoking, I kept a diary, so when it became really difficult, I would go there and read about the last time it felt this bad or would just start writing about what I was going through; amazingly, by the time I had gone through this exercise, the depression/craving had gone.
I had become objective again, and of course, as soon as the fog had lifted, the last thing I wanted to do was undo all the good work I had done.
It really did work for me, so I would emphatically recommend you keep a ‘Diary of an Achiever’– it might become a bestseller.
So in summary: The side effects of quitting smoking might seem a little drastic, but after the first three days, it will begin to ease off, and the intensity will begin to subside, and after a couple of weeks to one month, things will really start to feel better.
Keep a diary to help keep you on the straight and narrow.
Follow a good diet plan.
Drink lots of fruit juice to keep your blood sugar levels up.
Reduce your caffeine consumption if you begin to suffer from anxiety, irritability or start having sleepless nights.
If you become worried at all about any of the side effects of quitting smoking, go and see your physician and ask him or her to help you.
“You Really Can Beat The Evil Weed!”
