Getting sick after quitting smoking

Cold turkey 15 weeks and counting as of yesterday. Haven't gotten sick yet unless you count dropping an Oak 2x8 on my foot and breaking a toe.
 
Cold Turkey 23 years and counting (even though I cheated 22 3/4 years ago at a bachelor party).

What convinced me not to go back was a hike ten days after I quit. I could actually breathe after five miles.

I've been sick plenty of times since, but none that I can attribute to not smoking.
 
Define "sick"

I was never a smoker, but when my mother quit after smoking since she was 12 or 13, she did have serious withdrawal issues as well as a persistent cough that kept bringing up stuff. That cough eventually went away as her lungs finally had the chance to clear out the accumulated crap from decades of smoking.

The withdrawal took about four weeks. Then she started feeling better, smelling better, and being more fun to be around. She also told me that her senses started coming back and she could taste and smell things again.
 
Depends on how much of a smoker you were before you quit. As a pack+ a day smoker, I got awfully sick when I quit.

But I'm sure glad I did. Look into e-cigs. They help a lot.
 
Sick like a sinus and ear infection. Coughing a whole bunch. Having breathing issues worse than before I quit. Been quit for about 2months and didn't even smoke 1/2 pack a day. I was fine before I quit, now I feel like crap. What gives?
 
Unregistered said:
Sick like a sinus and ear infection. Coughing a whole bunch. Having breathing issues worse than before I quit. Been quit for about 2months and didn't even smoke 1/2 pack a day. I was fine before I quit, now I feel like crap. What gives?
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Probably withdrawal symptoms; your body is adjusting to not having all that poison in your system. Breathing issues are very common among people who quit smoking.

Smoking (or Nicotin, really) ruins your body. It takes a while for it to recover after you stop abusing it.
 
Unregistered said:
Sick like a sinus and ear infection. Coughing a whole bunch. Having breathing issues worse than before I quit. Been quit for about 2months and didn't even smoke 1/2 pack a day. I was fine before I quit, now I feel like crap. What gives?
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sba55 said:
Probably withdrawal symptoms; your body is adjusting to not having all that poison in your system. Breathing issues are very common among people who quit smoking.

Smoking (or Nicotin, really) ruins your body. It takes a while for it to recover after you stop abusing it.
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What Felix said. It is you body finally winning the battle to expel all the crap you have been putting in it.
 
Is it really the nicotine itself that kills you? I've been chewing nicotine gum for the past year, under the impression that it's actually the other stuff in cigarettes that does most of the damage.

-Rich
 
RJM62 said:
Is it really the nicotine itself that kills you? I've been chewing nicotine gum for the past year, under the impression that it's actually the other stuff in cigarettes that does most of the damage.

-Rich
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While nicotine does its share, there are numerous components of cigarette smoke that are spectacularly bad for you. Can't imagine the bloke who decided that inhaling the smoke of burning plants might somehow be beneficial.
 
Unregistered said:
How many of you who quit smoking ended up getting sick afterwards?
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I got the "shakes" when I slept at night. Other than that no big deal. I used a Nicoderm patch the first week to take the edge off. Well, the first 3 days, I forgot to put one on day 4 and didn't bother since. I haven't smoked for a couple of years now, but no real changes for me.
 
RJM62 said:
Is it really the nicotine itself that kills you? I've been chewing nicotine gum for the past year, under the impression that it's actually the other stuff in cigarettes that does most of the damage.

-Rich
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I don't have a medical background, but I do think you're right in that most of the short- and medium-term problems are not caused by Nicotine directly. That said, Nicotine definitely causes other problems which can then lead to health issues.
 
sba55 said:
Probably withdrawal symptoms; your body is adjusting to not having all that poison in your system. Breathing issues are very common among people who quit smoking.

Smoking (or Nicotin, really) ruins your body. It takes a while for it to recover after you stop abusing it.
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I don't think so. The physiological addiction is gone within 72 hours; after that, it's all a mental game. (My saying this doesn't minimize the addiction at ALL, BTW. The mental addiction is a hundred times harder to lick than the physical one.) If he quit two months ago, he's not craving nicotine physically anymore.

I quit cold turkey 24 years ago, after smoking 2 1/2 packs of Marlboro Greens a day for 15 years. It was the hardest thing I've ever done (I've still got the scars on my knuckles from punching walls during the physical withdrawal), but also the best thing I've ever done.

I have no idea why the OP is sick. I doubt it has anything to do with smoking.
 
sba55 said:
I don't have a medical background, but I do think you're right in that most of the short- and medium-term problems are not caused by Nicotine directly. That said, Nicotine definitely causes other problems which can then lead to health issues.
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Nicotine can lead to heart disease and heart issues when taken in very high doses (similar to the doses found in cigarette smoke), for a long time, just like any stimulant will.

TSNAs - Tobacco Specific Nitrosamines, on the other hand, cause cancer, and many other health affects.

Being addicted to nicotine is not healthy in any way shape or form, but without TSNAs, you're more likely to live a long, problem free life.
 
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