Posted by sukarno on November 22, 2012, at 18:53:27
I noticed the substance abuse section was shut down so I'm posting here.
I didn't really want to quit smoking but because it seems to jack up the amount of hydrochloric acid in my stomach and thus cause a 24/7 burning sensation there, I decided to read Allen Carr's e-book (and listen to his mp3 files).
I quit on 20 November and it was the worst last night. I thought I was going to go nuts so I listened to Allen Carr's mp3 version of the "Easy way to Stop Smoking" again. I then felt relaxed and was able to lie down and rest for a while.
It sucks that I can't seem to remember what his recordings were telling me. I have to listen to it again and again to relieve the withdrawal symptoms.
I had stomach issues before I started smoking in June 2011 though but smoking made it worse after a few months despite high dose H2 blockers (Pepcid).I couldn't drink coffee anymore and hot sauce would give me gnawing pain in my stomach that was only relieved by eating which suggests a duodenal ulcer.
I guess I could have H. pylori.
Here's the damn withdrawal symptoms:
Very intense cravings for nicotine (it comes in waves)
Tension
General feeling of stress
Difficulty concentrating
Mild to moderate irritability (but I usually purposefully make myself laugh when this happens to lessen the impact of the mood swings) :D
Pain in lungs, eyes, ears, nose and sinuses
Transient nausea alternating with intense food cravings
Transient anxiety / borderline panic
Dreams of smoking
Increased drowsiness
Lowered stress levels (when I'm not experiencing cravings)
I tell you what though. Those cravings are so bad that I'd do anything to get tobacco if it was illegal. lol. This is a real drug addiction and it's unsettling how much of a hold it can have on someone.
Allen Carr's method reduces a lot of the withdrawal though. At least this time I didn't break out in sweats and there were no hand tremors or panic attacks.
alprazolam 1mg QID, famotidine 40mg QID, cetirizine 10mg BID, GNC Ultra Mega Gold BID, probiotics, quit smoking on 20 Nov 12
Dx: panic disorder with agoraphobia, OCD, MDD, probable PTSD
poster:sukarno
thread:1031701
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20121113/msgs/1031701.html