Mumsnet Talk

I quit smoking 4 days ago, after smoking for 10 years, and the first 3 days were a breeze in comparison to today. I could happily kill someone right now, and feel very tense and agitated.

Is this normal? Or is it all in my head and i'm just going mad?
And if it is normal, does it get easier? Any tips would be so helpful right now as I want to give up and not give in

Normal.

I found that the longer I hadn't smoked, the more stupid I would be to have a fag- it's been 5 months now, and the urge to kill a man for his dog-end is decreasing.

Good luck

Well done for 5 months, it seems like a lifetime away atm. I have found myself practically drooling at seeing people smoking. But I am glad it gets easier. Thank you and good luck to you too, and well done

No advice for you Purple, am only on Day 3 myself, am determined this time to kick the filthy habit!!

As am I determined. I have a lot of motivation and reasons, but today things seems to be going against me and making me want to give in lol

Yes it does get easier! You are in the worst bit now IME.

I am years down the line, but still sometimes when I smell someone's cigarette in the street, I feel nostalgic. But it has been a long time since I felt like killing anyone

Its normal, it does get so so so so so much easier, keep going!

The tension and irritation is a great sign that the nicotine is leaving your system - its part of the withdrawal process. A healthy thing. Keep reminding yourself

Walking helped me, chewing gum helped me, eating nuts helped me, taking it one day, one hour, one minute at a time helped me. It will pass, that is guaranteed.

Also, Alan Carr's cartoon of a Nicotine Monster (all growly hairball) helped me - I imagined the cravings and irritation as the Monster's way of trying to get me to feed it and help it stay in power: not part of me at all. Which meant I could choose to say no to it and watch it shrink.....see, the sadist in me must have enjoyed that

Good luck, you are most definitely not going mad.

Good to hear the tension and irritation are a sign the nicotine is leaving the system and not a sign of going insane

It gets loads better and you'll be surprised how quickly. Don't give in, cos you'll kick yourself. It's 2 years for me next month. :D

hey well done and keep going. Im 3 weeks and 1 day today since giving up and gave up the nrt few days ago so it does does does get better promise. Sleep improving too. Lots of nasties leaving your body so early days.
Ive managed touch wood with nhs quit 2gether....worth a thought?
good luck.

yes that is normal normal normal. After 3 days the last of the nicotine will be leaving your body if you're cold turkey, or the amount you have in your bloodstream will be at its lowest. Day 4 is a bitch!

Its been 5 years for me in April (19 years on a pack a day). And yes it does get easier but not at a steady pace. I found that day 1, day 2 was easy peasy and then it got harder, so naturally enough it took me about 15 goes to get quit! For me it sometimes felt like I was in a war of attrition, wanting to smoke versus will to not and that it was a matter of time before I was worn down. Eventually I realised that it was the other way around, each day I hadn't given in was a source of strength- once I had a week in the bag I didn't want to have reset my mental clock to zero, a month more so and so on.

After a month I promised myself I would never quit again - so I can never convince myself its ok for me to have 'just one' unless I want smoking to rule my life forever, and lets face it, post smoking ban where can you smoke with anything like dignity let alone pleasure?

The hardest part, though, was retuning my thinking - like I'd think that someone at work was being a git and I wanted to 'treat myself' and then I'd have to stop and think 'what treat myself to an early death? because of that idiot?'. But as Elibean says the nicotine monster knows you well and pulls every trick in the book. Kick his ass, you deserve better! Good luck RubberDuck!

Hang in there

You are just starting the worst month of yourr life, but you will get over it.

You will stop wanting to kill people soon.

In about another week you will start to cough up black yucky stuff - you will feel physically crap - but keep going.

On the way into your lungs are structures that waft bad stuff out to stop it getting into your lungs, tobaco paralyses them.

They wake up after you stop smoking and then go into overdrive getting the crap out of your lungs. This lasts about 2 weeks.

About 3 weeks after stopping you will start to feel better - once you get to four weeks you will be fine.

Thanks for all the support! And all of the tips and things to expect. I have a squidgy pig that i've been squeezing to death lately, and I can deffo feel the sadist in me rising up and out, and feel safer locked in my house! lo But thank you all