Feelings of fatigue, irritibility and an extremely persistent headache are all side effects of nicotine withdrawal and are all perfectly normal. Why? Simply because it is in the first 72 hours which nicotine purges itself from your system – regardless of the smoking cessation method you have chosen to use.

Preparation is the key. By knowing what you are in for, you can make plans to deal with the feelings and symptoms and not have to hide away where you won’t bother anyone. However it is also a good idea to inform your family and friends (but only if they are supportive) of your goals. This also gives them the opportunity to stay clear if they think you might be a little bit cranky!

Also keep in mind that you will be going through these trying times and have plans to work through them, should they arise. It can really nip withdrawal symptoms in the bud. It is helpful to have made a list of what you feel you may experience for symptoms of withdrawal. Some of the things that you may want to include on your list are:

Angry or agitated: I will find a task to take my mind off the fact that I can’t smoke.

Feeling overly emotional or sensitive: Find yourself some solitude and let the feelings out.

Feeling tired: I will allow myself to be able to rest and heal from my addiction.

Feeling nauseated: I will go outside and get some fresh air.

After eating, I will: Read to keep my mind occupied so I don’t crave the ‘after-dinner’ smoke.

Drinking lots and lots of fluids, especially water, is a great way to clear the nicotine from your system as the fluids will metabolize your body’s chemical stores. Side effects, at worse, are more frequent bathroom breaks and a water-logged stomach. The upside is that the faster the nicotine leaves your system, the sooner the physical symptoms will subside.

Some theorize that drinking beverages with caffeine in them can cause your withdrawal symptoms to worsen. Others find that it makes absolutely no difference whatsoever. Each individual’s situation is unique. If you find that caffeinated drinks are causing you to crave cigarettes, then it would be best to cut back or stop completely.

Sometimes giving up too many things at once can also open up another can of worms, so maybe just try cutting back on the caffeine. Water, fruit juices, and even ice cream shakes, can help clear out your system and get those withdrawal symptoms done with faster.

Sleep, or the lack of it, is another common side effect of stopping smoking. It doesn’t seem to matter how tired you are during the day, a good sound sleep can be elusive as your mind doesn’t seem to want to shut down, nor can you find a comfortable position in which to rest.

Taking a nice hot shower or a soothing bath, just prior to going to bed can be very helpful and can help you become relaxed enough to fall asleep. Normally, this will only last one or two nights at the most, but if it becomes persistent, you may want to consider taking an over-the-counter sleep aid for a night or two. Your sleeplessness won’t last for long.

What would you do when your house is on fire? Would you sit and think, plan and come up with a solution or just jump out of the window? But the truth is that unless you consider your smoking habit as dangerous as a house on fire, you are not going to jump. That is for sure. So, the obvious answer to the question ‘what to do when you are sick of smoking?’ would be – just quit! But this answer you’ve already heard from Many who don’t smoke or those who have never successfully quit themselves.

Here is some advice from a smoker of twenty years and a non-smoker of ten.

Though for you to come to this point of wanting to quit smoking may be a major breakthrough in your life, you need to know that the desire to quit alone is not strong enough for you because it is not enough for most people – 97% to be precise. So, unless you belong to that minuscule minority, don’t do it, even if you are desperate and want to quit right at this very moment.

Before you attempt to quit, you must first remove as much emotion from the process as humanly possible for although you are depressed or emotionally charged at the moment, it is not possible to maintain that level of anger or desperation long enough to see you through the quitting process.

You may want to quit because you have smoker’s cough; a serious health scare; desire a better environment for your children; or just want to quit for yourself because you know it is the right thing to do. Look at your reasons and write down all the emotions and reasons you want to quit. These reasons will help you on your journey to becoming a non-smoker.

Based on your reasons for quitting, search the internet for as much useful information as you can find. Fortify your reasons with relevant information because information is power. The more you know about the task at hand, the less hold the nicotine monster will have over you.

Note your reasons for quitting and then strengthen them with information. Search the internet for as much useful information as you can find. The more you know about the task at hand, the less hold the nicotine monster will have over you. Information will prepare you for all the hurdles on the way so that you are strong enough to face them and overcome them.

No matter which program you ultimately choose, you must do one all important thing – YOU MUST USE IT!

The mind will make hundreds of excuses to tell you that you can start using the program tomorrow. But tomorrow never comes. When it comes, it comes as today, and then you wait for the next day. Always remember, if you don’t start now, you probably won’t start at all. So, get the information you need – order a program – and start using it now.

You’ll be glad you did because it is the first step that is the most difficult. Once, you have taken the first step you will sail through the rest of the process.

To your success,

Darren Warmuth

First of all, just talking about relapses can be dangerous because once the thought of slips enters the mind it is difficult to get rid of it, and you unconsciously will it to happen. Have you heard the story of a boy trying to learn cycling? He was so scared of hitting against the stone on the road that on a wide road he saw only the stone and banged right into it.

So, it’s best to underplay the possibility of relapses. Don’t allow for any ’slips’, ‘just ones’ or any ‘accidents’ for that matter. You should plan for the positive steps rather than the slips, because, if you plan for slips or accidents, you are more likely to have one. It is more encouraging to tell yourself that there will be no allowance for moments of weakness.

However, it is equally foolish to delude yourself that you cannot go wrong. So, when the slip does happen, chastise yourself until you feel completely guilty. Let the guilt go deep down so that it becomes a loud resisting voice when temptation strikes again. It is for this reason that support groups are recommended. They help you regain strength to overcome such hurdles.

If by chance you have had more than one ’slip’ or have repeated ’slips’, it is time to be honest with yourself. I know that a lot of people are going to disagree with me on this, but please don’t send me any letters because I have probably spoken to more smokers and non-smokers about this subject than most people. My advice is this. Stop trying to fool yourself into thinking that these occasional slips are fine and are just part of the normal quitting process – they aren’t!

If you are continually ’slipping’ you are doing yourself more harm than good because the ‘just ones’ are eventually going to turn into what you used to smoke or more. Believe me, it happens every time.

Don’t try to sweep the slips under the carpet. Look them straight in the eye. If you allow them to happen time and again, you will end up smoking more than you used to smoke This is the sad truth, like it or not.

It is much better to realize that you have missed your target this time around and get back on a new and better course than to continue smoking and that too with a guilty conscience. It will shatter your spirit completely.

Darren Warmuth

Chantix has been found to be one medication that has finally helped people to quit smoking when others have failed. Working like a nicotine blocker in the brain, it attaches itself to the nicotine receptors and blocks its absorption. And because there are fewer feel good receptors that the nicotine can freely attach itself to, it lessens the desire you have for a cigarette.

Using this method has helped many people quit without difficulty. Not only that, it has helped a lot of them quit without severe withdrawal symptoms. Even long term, multiple pack a day smokers have found themselves to be successful. One thing you need to do however, is first check to see if your insurance company will cover the cost as many nowadays are reluctant to pay for smoking cessation products.

Over a period of two weeks you are prescribed starter pack that will build up the medication levels in your system. Since Chantix is not nicotine based, it is not necessary for you to quit before taking it.

With this in mind, it is important that you pick a day to quit somewhere towards the end of the two weeks, however there have been some who actually extend this up to three weeks, which allows the medication in their system to build up even further.

There are several side effects that have been experienced, but this can vary greatly from person to person, and are normally temporary. Extremely vivid dreams are most notable especially during the first few weeks of using the medication, as well as excessive gas, nausea and in some cases headaches.

Chantix comes with a very good, free online support system and is designed for you to start receiving support even prior to beginning medication. Daily e-mail updates are sent to your inbox that direct you back to the site for further support with projects designed to help you keep on track.

Although Chantix works very well, it may not be the medication for everyone. It appears to more effective for smokers who are addicted physically to nicotine and not so much psychologically addicted. Therefore if your addiction is more mental than physical, then your doctor may prescribe something different to better suit your needs.

As with any stop smoking aid, success comes only accompanied with a strong desire to stop smoking. If you don’t have the desire to finally quit smoking, there is no miracle pill out there that you can take and suddenly become a nonsmoker. All of the medications that are now in the market are designed to give us a little bit of an edge in our battle to overcome our smoking addiction, but not do it for us.

One of the hardest things to do is to quit smoking. And when you’re just beginning the journey as a non-smoker, you can feel very isolated and alone. One of the keys to success of becoming a non-smoker is to set up a support system. Whether it be family support (be cautious in who you choose), online, or at a local smoking cessation meeting, having a support system is vital.

The online support option is fanatastic for those who have limited time in which to establish a local system. By joining up with community forums that host a smoking cessation board, you get the opportunity to speak with others looking to accomplish the same goal you are.

When searching out these forums, be sure to find one that has the differing stages of quitting smoking broken down so that you can go straight to the area which would help you most. Find the posts that coincide with the challenges you are facing at the time and again, you will find that others will have had challenges with the very same issues.

Enlisting the support of family and friends, in most cases can be very helpful. One of the only drawbacks to this would be, that sometimes family and friends think that they are being supportive when in actuality by them reminding you over and over not to smoke they can actually be pushing you towards a relapse.

So to deal with the excess inquiries of your family and friends, it is wise to inform them with withdrawal symptoms, naturally you may become more easily agitated and that their constant questioning could be a detriment to your success. It’s best to have this conversation with them before you quit to help ease matters later on.

Another option that a lot of people have found very helpful, is finding a local smoking cessation group. Often these group meetings may be held in a local hospital, at a library, or sometimes they meet at a church. Often you can find these meetings offered for free, or at the very least low cost in most cases.

Community support group meetings generally only last for an hour or so, but they are great place to make personal contact with others striving to become non-smokers. And it is this personal contact with a support buddy that could be just the help you need in staying smoke-free forever.

So before your quit day, be sure to decide on which method or methods of support you are going to use AND then use them! Of all the tools in the quitting smoker’s toolbox, support is the most effective of all, so be sure that this is where your quest begins.