4 months smoke free and teary 😭😭

[Hayashi269]

Hi guys. I’m 17 male. I’m on my track for 4 months. I’ve been doing fine but lately my anxiety gets back again and driving me crazy. That annoying tight feeling in throat comes back again and google makes my anxiety and dreads doubled. I’m really scarred but I’m still smoke free. That "something bad gonna happen to me" feeling is really really bad and unbearable. I need help. I decided to quit because I want to be healthy but now here I’m suffering things that I didn’t have while i was a smoker😭😭😭😭

[TheTabbyCat Administrator LONG TERM WINNER]

Hi Hayashi,Well done for your 3 smoke free months. You're doing really well but

please try to calm down a little.You are very young so hopefully you haven't done as much damage as me,for example. I smoked for 40+ years. That's more than twice your age. I do understand your anxiety but please try to keep things in perspective. When we smoke smoking actually covers some problems,here's a link which should help.

healthunlocked.com/quitsupp...

[Hayashi269 10 MONTH WINNER in reply to TheTabbyCat]

Thank you tubbs ❤️😭

[jillygirl Administrator Queen Bee]

Hi there Hayashi269,

Tubby has given you excellent advice already. you have unfortunately reached the 3 month or Icky 3s which can also be effecting you. Here is another link for you. healthunlocked.com/quitsupp....

Please hang on in there it does get better. xx

[Hayashi269 10 MONTH WINNER in reply to jillygirl]

Thank you so much jilly ❤️

[Corrina125 LONG TERM WINNER]

Just wanted to say you're doing fabulously Hayashi and it will get even better over time. Keep strong you can do this!😊😊😊

[Hayashi269 10 MONTH WINNER in reply to Corrina125]

Thanks corrina

I’m really drained

I’ll never relapse xx

[louloubelll LONG TERM WINNER]

Dear Hayashi, congratulations on your 3 months of being a non smoker!😊👍 all these things you are experiencing are fairly normal. You are doing a great job! before you know it, all this stuff will pass and the easier it becomes. Please keep close to this community for support😊💪🌸

[Hayashi269 10 MONTH WINNER in reply to louloubelll]

Thank you louloubell

thanks for your encouraging message

[Alex_Vega LONG TERM WINNER]

Hey mate. Many of us have dealt with anxiety, some of us with extreme anxiety (it prevented me from working for almost 2 years). First off: Quitting smoking is a major achievement and I hope you allow yourself to be proud and ecstatic about it! Apart from the anxiety isssue, the decision you made was fantastic! You've achieved what milions and millions of people never managed. Regarding anxiety: this is of course a very individual topic, depending on your life experiences, your basic biological construction, your social environment etc etc. However there are a few general rules, which i think you're probably already familiar with, which have helped me to conquer my troubles (I'm now 99% anxiety free and have a great life and good job). So please don't be mad at me if I'm repeating a few things which you're probably already familiar with:

1. Googling about symptoms is a guaranteed mind-wrecker (but this you definitely know already it seems). Our mind doesn't understand "I don't have this illness", it only understands "illness", so the more you read about this stuff the more your subconscience will develop it's own dynamic, creating fear reactions and worries and you don't really have direct access to that machine. Actually, what you'e experiencing moreless shows that everything in your melon is working as it's supposed to

2. This is very important: Abstain from caffeine products and other stimulants. For some people (including me), nicotine products too were a trigger for anxiety, very often for panic attacks. I didn't have a single panic attack since I stopped smoking (2 years ago). With caffeine, there is a certain % of people (forgot the number) who's amygdala is extremely over-stimulated by caffeine. This is in your DNA maybe, it is in my family for sure. Rule no 2 of coure also includes THC or other drugs like cocaine or amphetamins, but for different reasons.

3. Physical exercise, experiencing the strength and robustness of your body was the actual key to conquer my anxiety. Jogging, working out, going for long walks, hiking in the hills, camping. Especially if you have a cardiophobia (fear of heart attack), but your doctor told you it's all ok, then these activities will help you to build the confidence that your body CAN do that. I was a true bookworm all my life, I always thought that I was just not cut out to be the athletic type, until I started to exercise exremely hard and this was probably the most important pillar of my recovery.

4. You're not alone with this, get some help. Apart from therapy (which I recommend 100%), there are a ton of self-help groups for anxiety, it's such a common problem nowadays, especially the way you describe it. And I know it's a living hell when you're in this. And hardly anyone really understands how it feels. So don't be afraid to look for adresses of self help groups, best if you find one that meets in person.

5. Try to avoid stress or a harmful social environment. This is very often easier said than done and also depends on your individual circumstances.

I know that whoever manages to stop smoking, can conquer this as well. Well well done so far. You have my absolute respect, what it takes to quit smoking is only something that smokers or ex-smokers can truly understand. To start smoking again will not cure your anxiety, but will create a new problem, but I think you know that better than me even as you've already expressed.

However, when you've stopped smoking, your body had to rewire your reward system entirely. The main neurotransmitter in this context is dopamine. Whenever you smoked you got a dopamine rush, as some of your synaptic receptors held back with releasing dopamine until they got some nicotine. That's why, when you were not smoking, you were craving it and started to feel low after some time. However the neurobiological impact of this programming goes very deep, according to new studies deeper than predicted and even includes other brain areas. So when abstaining from nicotine, this whole engine has to recalibrate itself and this is can be a truly bumpy road. You should definitely talk to a therapist regarding the things you can do to support this process. One thing that 100% will make you feel a lot better is working out, I'm sure of it.

One last thing: You're not insane or crazy. If you would be, you wouldn't know or think that you are.

[Hayashi269 10 MONTH WINNER in reply to Alex_Vega]

Thank you alex <3

Your message means a lot to me

appreciated

[louloubelll LONG TERM WINNER in reply to Alex_Vega]

Dear Alyx😊 that was excellent advice, I think you covered it all😊👍 . I see that you have 22 months under your belt, big congratulations😊💪

[Briarwood Administrator Ducky]

Hi Hayisha, sorry to hear you’re struggling at the moment☹️

Quitting smoking is not easy but you have so much to be proud of. I wish I had been as clever as you, to stop at a young age.

Please remember you won’t always feel like this. There will be better days ahead.

I’m so glad you can talk about how you feel. It’s important to understand that nothing bad is going to happen and you can see from all the response that this will pass.

Have you tried mindfulness or meditation as these can really help to put things into prospective.

Thinking of you and sending healing hugs💕🌻xx

[Hayashi269 10 MONTH WINNER in reply to Briarwood]

thanks B!

i'll surely give it a try.

[Amandapanda09 LONG TERM WINNER]

Hi there, hang on. It will get better. Look at my previous posts and you will see how much I struggled. As everyone has told me, time and patience is the key. Do not give in, keep going.

[Hayashi269 10 MONTH WINNER in reply to Amandapanda09]

Thank you so much 👌🏼

[Hidden]

That’s why if anybody has issues with anxiety or any other mental health symptoms to have a plan to cope with them before one quits smoking. Anxiety is there in smokers still. That’s why people often will smoke to mask those issues. It may not have seemed like your anxiety was present but it was.

For me, social situations where I don’t know at least one person make me feel light headed, like my legs are going to give out, thunder clap migraines, shallow breathing, sound enhancement, and increased heart rate. Those are my anxiety symptoms and I still had them as a smoker if I couldn’t get away to smoke a cigarette. Now I stay in places to expose myself to the uncomfortable feelings and will count shapes or perform deep breathing while reminding myself that people are just minding their own business and not there to bother me. Lol! It takes work when training the mind to deal with stress differently. It’s not easy. It’s also my responsibility to research various methods on how to cope in different situations. Because everything we have to learn takes time to be able to subconsciously implement down the road can make it tedious and frustrating. Nobody just wakes up and knows how to handle issues in their lives internally without doing the work. It sucks. But I used to wait around on my brain to just work after I would quit in the past. Without doing my part in developing coping mechanisms I would get frustrated and fail. Now I have been successful because I have taken an active approach in handling my anxiety issues.

If you are unable to develop a plan to cope by yourself then seeing a professional who specializes in anxiety or anything else may be warranted.

Good job on quitting though! Kudos! 😉