Abstinence from quitting smoking

If you can quit smoking, you are doing yourself a favor by saving you from the harmful health effects of smoking. It’s a healthy lifestyle choice to kick the habit, but you also need to be aware of the withdrawal effects that will occur after a while. You will feel these symptoms for the first few weeks after you quit smoking. This time frame is crucial because it will determine if you can refrain from doing so.

Physical withdrawal symptoms:

Weight gain
Perspiration
Headache
Nausea
Difficulty breathing

Mental withdrawal symptoms:

Irritability
Anxiety
Stress
Depression

These symptoms happen to almost anyone who has just quit smoking, because their body will recover from the damage caused by smoking. If you are lucky, you will only experience them for a few weeks; however, there are some cases where these last for months.

How to manage symptoms

1. Stay busy

When you are busy doing something that does not cause stress, you can avoid mental symptoms. Just keep doing your hobbies, read books or magazines, listen to soothing music, squeeze a stress ball, or play with whatever you can get.

2. Drink lots of water

Because you have just quit smoking, you will need to cleanse your body of the harmful toxins that remain. Drinking water will help you eliminate them and reduce the effects of your symptoms.

3. Start exercising

When you exercise regularly, you will feel much better because this will also help cleanse your system of toxins. Cardiovascular exercises will be of great help because they will keep your body active.

4. Eat healthy foods

Fruits and vegetables will help you a lot, because they will fill your body with valuable nutrients and vitamins. Also, choose the types of foods that are healthy and do not contain too much fat; this will help you avoid gaining weight if that is what you are concerned about.

5. Use nicotine patches

The cause of your withdrawal symptoms is because you will suddenly lose your nicotine dose. This can be avoided by using nicotine patches as a substitute for cigarettes; however, do not use too much or else you will develop nicotine addiction again. Stop using nicotine patches gradually after they have served their purpose.

In the simplest sense, you should prepare for these symptoms after you quit, because you may find yourself needing to smoke again if you suffer more from the aftermath.