Here are some posts of tips that may help you as you begin your quit.Not all might, but some should, so take what you want, leave the rest, and my very best wishes to you. Holler if you need some extra help too.
Colleen
Hi, and welcome:
We always advise seeing specialists whenever it's possible. Every quit, while similar in principle to all others, has its own unique set of variables, as do quitters themselves. There's no 'one-size-fits-all' in this regard. We're not dieticians or nutritionists here (yet) but we've learned some fundamentals about food and diet during addiction recovery. We'll share these you here:
Multi-vitamins, taken 1/2 hour AFTER eating (so digestive enzymes are present to dissolve the vitamin pill and release it's components), are critical. These should be heavy on the vitamin C, to help the immune system a bit, and be loaded with extra, extra Bcomplex vits (B6, B12, Niacin/Niacinimide, etc), quite necessary for mood leveling. Extra iron, magnesium, and zinc are required (be careful to not OVERDO, as some minerals and vitamins like A can build up in your system and cause toxicity). Again, see an expert to tailor this to your specific body and eating lifestyle.
Refined sugars and grains (like white flour) impact dopamine and serotonin levels. While this can help alleviate cravings early in your quit, they can also create cravings later, so they're to be minimized as best as possible. Consumption of sugar is almost guaranteed to produce energy slumps, as will red meat and pastas/carbohydrates of all kinds.
Avoid eating any foods high in refined sugars. This will help you to maintain constant blood sugar levels and steadier energy supplies, and will diminish sugar cravings, which are easily confused with cigarette cravings.
To avoid excess sugars, start reading food labels. Listings are prioritized by weight/and or volume, so a good rule of thumb is to avoid any foods which list "sugar," "sucrose," "cane sugar," or "corn syrup," among the first three or four ingredients. Be aware, however, that quitting sugar intake abruptly can trigger sugar-withdrawal depression. Don't smoke over this!
Statistically speaking, ex-smokers who diet in the early days of their quits are more likely to relapse. BETTER TO MAKE SURE YOUR QUIT IS SECURE before you start tackling other issues. You'd have to gain 75lbs (for every pack-per-day you smoked) to equal the health hazards your smoking caused. FIRST THINGS FIRST is a good slogan to remember.
Alcohol, caffeine and nicotine (and sugar, which alcohol converts to) act in similar ways inside the 'pleasure center' of the brain. Not only that, but studies indicate that each enhances/intensifies the effect of the other on the brain. It's no wonder that, especially since alcohol also lowers inhibitions, relapsing while drinking is so common. It's wise to avoid these other substances early in the quit.
The more vegetables you eat at each meal (up to a pound- not as much as it seems... cuke and a large tomato, can of green beans, etc), the more you'll be able to amp up your metabolism again. Most people's metabolism will slow a bit (maybe by around 10%) after quitting smoking- mostly because nicotine keeps metabolism unnaturally high by constricting blood vessels, etc, which affects heartrate/BP. It's NOT necessarily true, however, that such change will lead to weight gain. Many folks actually LOSE weight after they quit, and more folks than not will lose whatever weight they do gain after quitting, eventually.
You may need to make some substantial changes in lifestyle, but that can be done slowly, in small steps. Again, I'd suggest getting the help of a nutrition/fitness specialist, and give yourself a year. Hope these basic principles help you get moving in the right direction.
KTQ,
Alan
Q Counselor--------------------------------------------------
In our own lives, our motivations and reasons for what we do are not always what they seem. At first glance, why we do things may seem simple. But upon closer examination, our motivations often have hidden purposes and agendas, driven by events and feelings in our lives. Often we are totally unaware of these forces that
shape our daily decisions.
The decision to quit smoking is propelled or impeded by two basic questions: "why smoke?" and "why quit?" Answer these questions honestly and you'll make great progress toward quitting. Let's examine each in turn.
WHY SMOKE?
Do you smoke today for the same reason you smoked five years ago, or when you first started smoking? Chances are good that you started smoking for totally different reasons than you smoke now. You started smoking to be cool, or to rebel or to fit in or just because you were curious. Now you would probably say that
you smoke to relax or to think clearly or because you are addicted and can't stop.
Take a long hard look at why you smoke NOW. You probably haven't even thought about this. Dig very deep. Think. Examine your emotions as you imagine yourself craving a cigarette and
lighting up. What "made you do it?"
Smoking is easier than quitting. Staying where we are is much easier and more comfortable than working on ourselves and moving to a different place. It's hard. It hurts. It takes work. It
requires admitting painful things to ourselves.
Quitting smoking means admitting that you have been wrong all the years that you smoked. Quitting means admitting that you harmed yourself. Quitting means that you aren't cool just because you smoke. Quitting means that your parents were right. Quitting means that your husband/wife/kids/co-workers/society
was right. Quitting means you wasted THOUSANDS of dollars on cigarettes and insurance. Quitting means that you'll have to learn how to relax naturally. Quitting means losing a "friend."
Quitting means giving up your security blanket.
These are some of the hidden meanings behind quitting. Many are painful. They force you to admit you are wrong or are not superman. Most people hate to admit they have weakness. But
admitting weakness might be called the first step in most any 12-step addiction recovery program.
Examine why you smoke and you may find that you smoke not to get something, but instead to avoid or flee from something. This type of fear-motivated action (or inaction) is almost always
detrimental to health and happiness. Begin to focus on desire-motivated action
This leads us to:
WHY QUIT?
The reasons for quitting are voluminous: save money, improve your health, cut your risk of heart disease, lung cancer, and numerous other diseases, smell better, look younger, clean
teeth, nice breath, live longer, etc., etc.
Make sure you know exactly what you want to get out of quitting. If cutting your risk of lung cancer is hard to visualize, then focus on something more concrete such as the money you can save. See the hundreds of dollars you'll save stacking up in a big bank vault. See bright clean teeth when you smile. These reasons for quitting should be YOUR reasons for quitting. They should pull you to them like a magnet. Find the magnets that motivate you the most.
One word of warning: Avoid the flipside of the question "why quit?" The flipside is not the question "why smoke?" Instead, it is "why NOT quit?" This is a dangerous question because it leads you down the easy path. Ask yourself "why not quit" and you'll likely answer, "because I can't do it," or "because withdrawal makes me crazy," or "because I can't relax without it," or "because I'm still young," or "because smoking isn't that bad for me," or "because I can quit anytime I want," or "because I
only smoke a few," or "because I failed to quit before." These are dead-end answers that will never lead you out of the habit. They are lazy, defeatist, powerless answers. They are answers
that allow you to put off quitting until the tomorrow that never comes.
To quit, you must take back control of your life from cigarettes. Take responsibility for your own health and happiness. It is you who puts the cigarettes in your mouth, and it is you who can take them out.
Ask yourself "why quit" and "why smoke" so that you can truly understand why you do what you do. Then begin to pursue the positive reasons that will help you to quit smoking, ON PURPOSE.
