Hello again. Over 4 months quit and this weird breath thing still persists. I'm heading out to buy some Mucinex now and praying I haven't done such horrible damage to myself that I will feel this way forever. To be clear: my shortness of breath isn't me gasping for air, but rather a strange feeling with breathing-similar to swimming in a heavily chlorinated pool. It brings my attention to my breathing, which then makes me over-breathe perhaps? Hell I don't know anymore. What I do know is when I smoked I didn't have this crap.
I can exercise fine, better than ever actually. I've passed a spirometry tests and have my heart test tomorrow. This feeling just makes me overly anxious and nervous...I really don't want to feel like this anymore and I feel like an idiot for ever picking up cigs. I'm 32, smoked for roughly 13 years...I guess I thought I quit early enough and should be better by now.
I've read posts here about shortness of breath lasting up to a year..basically the lungs are healing and pushing gunk around which gives the sensation of blocked up lungs because all the gook is blocking airways. Kind words always help...heck I've been on here once this week already...it's just nice to hear someone else share a similar story on their path of recovery.
Cheers.
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Mrworrymaster
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You sound like i feel. Visiting GP again today. I cough every night and lose about 4 hours sleep. Ventolin helps a bit but only for an hour or so. Expectorant cough medicine makes the coughing slightly worthwhile. I darent exercise because it'll just make me cough. Spirometry booked for 7 april.
Thanks for the response. I hope your Spiro tests comes out good. Just so you know I felt even worse at the 2 month point. It's hard for me to tell how much better I've gotten, but i've had a constant slew of anxiety, breathlessness, panic attacks, so who knows how to gauge it really.
Exercise def helps, in fact its the only time i'm not overly worried about breathing..But I'm always crazy nervous when I start because I'm thinking hard about how i'm always short of breath.
Best of luck on the Spiro-If it makes you feel better check out others responses on here about shortness of breath and all the other crazy side effects of quitting smoking. Ciggarettes are the most vile things and I'm sad I succumbed to them for so long. Onward and upward I guess, and praying that I can live a normal life again-I'll pray for you as well.
Of cause you can live a normal life. Smoking has a lot to answere for some people. Not everyone is effected by smoking. Smoking suppresses things so when you stop things start to happen. Some people have been made very debilitated with smoking and live a normal life. I was diagnosed with COPD in 2006. And was told by a consultant that the damage has been done. We can give you medication to help you live a normal life as possible. But your breathing will always be effected. And stopping smoking will slow down the progresson. So the only answere is to try and teach the younger people not to start smoking. Sorry for the rant.
Thanks not. I always feel guilty when complaining about my breath after passing my Spiro tests. I applaud you on your bravery, I just want to feel like myself again. I'm impatient and just nervous..I thought quitting would be so much easier after the first few weeks
Thanks I am not being brave I just don't let my conditions rule my life. Life is for living not worrying. I know it is hard. But try living your life not worrying about it. You will probably feel more relaxed take care x
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Now sitting in bed because when I lie down I start to cough, and the cough comes with a wheeze that sounds like one of those clown's whistles... All this started after quitting but I accept that it would be worse if I hadn't.
Doc said I can't have a long acting inhaler until Ive had the spirometry.
Honestly hang in there mrworrymaster it will get better just takes time.
When I gave up it was nightmare , stabbing pains in my back, breathing, bleeding gums , headaches I don't think there was a symptom I didn't have. Was on medication to help. Phlem constant lump in throat.
The worst one was anxiety and I've never had anything like it, wouldn't leave the house all I done was Google and that always came up with different types of cancers , I was at the doc every week for about 9 months with something. Once I hit the year mark I felt so much better and I feel more like me. I go out without having panic attackes living life again.
It will get better just takes time, your body has a lot to do with repairing itself and I wished I was aware of how bad it can be.😀
Thank you for that Angeline. My wife quit and said she didn't really feel better for about a year too. It's nice to hear that other people have had the same issues...feel less alone...I greatly appreciate it. I've never had anxiety like this either...I'm usually a strong person...nicotine is just a strong apponent
Angeline, just wondering. When you had your slew of issues, was feeling short of breath while just sitting around one of them. It makes it impossible to basically relax and watch TV, or read a book. If I'm not entirely focused on something then this pops up.
It was so hard to relax as you concentrate on one thing , so I found if I went out and walked the dog that helped then I started jogging and that helped with the breathing I also saw on this site breathing excerise so I would do that when I could feel it niggeling at the back .
I agree with the others, be patient, smoking does a lot of damage, but our bodies are pretty amazing at cleansing.
We all quit differently and experience difference things. Gosh I remember when I hit around the 3 to 4 month mark I chest was so tight that I had to brace myself to sneeze as it felt like I ribs were going to snap in half. I got such a sore throat that I had for weeks, it felt like my throat was on fire.. Increased anxiety....inability to concentrate... Disruptive sleep.. And the list goes on.....but it all passes..
Get on with your life knowing you have done the best you can for future health..😀😀enjoy the simple things in life as worrying about things you have no control over is so not healthy for you 👍👍🍀🍀
You are doing really well and quitting can be a mongrel.....keep up the great quit 😀😀👍👍
It does seem that things get worse before they get better but in terms of the length of time we smoke, it's early days yet. I was dissapointed initially as I automatically assumed things would get better but my G.P. told me that it can take up to a year to get the full benefits. We have done the very best thing for our health and I firmly believe this. It's not an easy road but it's the best road and lots of great travelling companions on here to help along the way. Hang in there🚭🚭🚭😊
I'm replying to this even tho' all the posts are from 4 years ago. I just want to bump it up because it's been such a help to me this early morning.
I'm a little over 8 months into quitting and fear and panic attacks have been the hardest thing for me to deal with. And wondering WHEN is this EVER going to be over?!!
Tho' it helps to realize that these feelings are just physical sensations of withdrawal, and not my own actual emotions, they still wake me up in the middle of the night and keep me from getting back to sleep. And still make me irritable (flat out angry!) and touchy many days. And it's just so FRUSTRATING to STILL feel like an invalid after 8 freakin' months!
Having smoked a pack-and-a-half a day for over 50 years, I knew it was going to be tough and probably take some time -- but I sure didn't expect it to take this long!
It's very, very reassuring and comforting to hear people who have quit that long say these things do pass eventually. (Thank God!)
It's also good to hear that 1 year seems to often be the time at which you feel kind of normal again. That's only 4 months away -- I imagine I can tough it out that much longer without freaking out and just screaming for a few days.
On a more positive note in my own story: I can tell I'm getting better and recovering ... S-L-O-W-L-Y. I get less winded on my daily walks up and down the hills, I hardly have shortness of breath any more, my panic attacks don't last all day long any more. I chronicled my last 2 months and found that I've been having about 2 weeks of feeling kind of normal, followed by 1 bad week triggered by some fear-inducing episode. And I think these are moving in the direction of being less and less bad.
But that rational stuff just doesn't hold up in the face of severe fear from detoxing! Sometimes I've GOTTA have reassurance! And I'm SO grateful to have found this site where I can read that other people have suffered the same things I'm going through -- and SURVIVED to feel healthy again. So I give thanks to everyone who has ever contributed here, and especially to those people who run this site.
I suppose, like most other adversities in life, "this too shall pass."
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When will I start to feel better?
My story - How I quit smoking and fighting copd scare and bad bout of bronchitis 
Never want to light again 
Hello to the UK from the U.S. new quitter
