Smoking and feeling terrible

[MummyBurnsx]

Hi,

My fiancé and I have just found out we are 5 weeks (roughly) pregnant with our first child. We have a scan in a couple of weeks so will know due date for sure then. I am a smoker and although I stopped immediately for the first couple of days, I gave in and have had 3 or 4 since then.

I am feeling terrible about it, guilty to my unborn baby and my fiancé (although he is very supportive). Its a constant battle in my head and although I have done really well to cut down as many as I have... the fact remains I am still smoking and I feel like an awful mum already.

Any advice from anyone who previously smoked?

Will obviously mention to my midwife that I am struggling.

Try vaping or nrt, the nicotine is still not very good for the baby (iirc it can affect brain development) but it won't be struggling for oxygen supply in the blood. They will probably put you in touch with your smoking cessation team. www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/keeping-well/stop-smoking/

Thank you x

Just keep trying and don't beat yourself up if you slip because it's hard.

www.amazon.co.uk/Allen-Carrs-Easy-Stop-Smoking/dp/1405923318?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

This changed my life. I was a horrible smoker, absolutely felt like it was part of my identity and would never quit. Now I can’t believe I ever smoked. It’s been 6 years and I will never ever have a cigarette again.

You can do this. It’s totally possible to be free of smoking and happy about it.

So you've had one a week? Or more?

I used to smoke. It's easy to give up when you're ready. Maybe you're not ready. But you can't be pregnant and smoke. So you'll need to pick one.

I spoke to my midwife and she appointed me a stop smoking counsellor. To quit smoking completely is not always the best thing for your body. My counselor told me to pick my favourite time to smoke and have 1 a day at that time. Then i phased it to every other day. I got to 11 weeks pregnant and i smoked no more. Having the odd one or 2 certainly won't hurt.

I can't recommend the Allen Carr book enough. I had been smoking for forty-five years with fifty a day for the last twenty years and the Allen Carr book made it really easy to give up. Any other time I'd tried to give up I became a nervous wreck within a couple of hours.

Thank you so much for your advice, I found the comments very comforting. I guess I am being really harsh on myself x

Hi, thank you so much for this, I have just bought a copy on Amazon x

You're not being harsh on yourself at all!!! You absolutely cannot smoke whilst pregnant. You just don't do it. Watch lots of videos and do lots of reading. Should solve the problem.

Allen Carr definitely! When we were all pregnant in the 70s many carried on smoking the odd cigarette with no harm to their babies (and had the odd drink) so don't be too hard on yourself. Ask yourself whether you're going to want to smoke around your beautiful new baby or even smell of nicotine (if you go outside to smoke you will still smell of it) and are you going to want to cuddle them with cigarette breath? Visualise what that might feel like, read the book and giving up will be a doddle - you can do it 💐

@MummyBurnsx

Hi,

My fiancé and I have just found out we are 5 weeks (roughly) pregnant with our first child. We have a scan in a couple of weeks so will know due date for sure then. I am a smoker and although I stopped immediately for the first couple of days, I gave in and have had 3 or 4 since then.

I am feeling terrible about it, guilty to my unborn baby and my fiancé (although he is very supportive). Its a constant battle in my head and although I have done really well to cut down as many as I have... the fact remains I am still smoking and I feel like an awful mum already.

Any advice from anyone who previously smoked?

Will obviously mention to my midwife that I am struggling.

I cut it out instantly the second I got a positive.

Still lost the baby though. I did start again after that but have stopped cold turkey to facilitate ttc.