Quitting smoking is certainly not an easy task, because the body and brain have become accustomed to consuming nicotine for years. When you quit smoking, you go through different phases that are characterized by different symptoms.
We want to summarize these in this article and at the same time introduce you to alternatives to cigarettes.
Quit Smoking Phases
These 7 phases will sound familiar to you if you have ever tried to quit smoking.
1. Making a decision
In the first phase, you make the decision to finally quit smoking and realize that the positive effects of not smoking outweigh the negative ones. At this stage, the most important thing is to stay strong and not set unrealistic goals. After the last cigarette, you should make sure to avoid pubs or places where people smoke a lot as much as possible.
What happens in the body: Already after the first 8 hours of quitting smoking, the transport of oxygen in the body gradually normalizes. The oxygen level in the blood becomes higher and carbon monoxide is gradually broken down.
2. The first symptoms of withdrawal: Irritability
Shortly after the first few hours without a cigarette, physical and psychological symptoms appear. One of the first is increased irritability. For the body, it feels like it is constantly sleep-deprived and even small tasks can become challenging. In addition, there are complaints such as nervousness, restlessness, sleep disorders and headaches.
What happens in the body: After the first day without a cigarette, the risk of a heart attack is already reduced and decreases further with each passing day. So it's worth staying tuned!
3. The craving for a cigarette increases: experiences help!
After a short period of smoking withdrawal, all thoughts will soon revolve around smoking. At this stage, it is especially important to distract yourself with other activities. Exercising or hanging out with friends seems to be the most helpful here.
It's also a good idea to talk to former smokers and ask them about their experiences, because a little positive motivation can help you persevere.
What happens in the body: After a few days of not smoking, you can already feel much better breathing, because the carbon monoxide content continues to drop.
4. Hunger sets in
Without the cigarette in the mouth, the mouth is bored and we try to compensate for it with sweets or snacks. For this reason, many smokers gain weight all at once after quitting smoking. To avoid unnecessary kilos, you should make sure to eat healthy snacks that stimulate fat burning.
What happens in the body: After the first few weeks without a cigarette, the body begins to clean itself. The lungs and circulation stabilize with each passing day.
5. Irrationalities
With the physical symptoms of smoking withdrawal, psychological stress also sets in. Negative thoughts can cause us to lose our motivation and reach for the cigarette again. During this time, a good social environment is of particular importance.
Quitting smoking and coughing : In the first months without a cigarette, the airways are cleared and symptoms such as coughing fits and shortness of breath decrease.
Quitting smoking and the lungs: The lungs return to normal function after 1 to 9 months and narrowed coronary arteries (cause of a heart attack) regress after about a year of not smoking.
6. Recognizing the positive effect
Shortly after quitting smoking, the negative thoughts predominate, but this time passes! The positive influences are becoming more and more evident and the physical performance + ability to concentrate go up.
7. Staying strong
Nicotine addiction doesn't just go away after a few months and even a single cigarette can cause a relapse. It is therefore important to stick to the idea of never putting a cigarette in your mouth again.
Active smokers have a 10 to 15 times as high a risk of developing lung cancer as non-smokers. With every day without a cigarette, this risk is lowered downwards.
Snus as an alternative to smoking
An alternative to smoking is the consumption of snus, if you do not succeed in quitting smoking completely. Since snus does not have a combustion process, it is called a smokeless alternative to cigarettes, making it up to 99% less harmful than smoking. Snus can either be obtained with a high nicotine content of 20 mg/g as in noble COLD or with less nicotine as in e.g. VID Fresh Cola with 12 mg/g. For people who want to quit smoking, we recommend the nicotine-free variant noble CBD Mint .
https://www.wmn.de/health/body-fitness/rauchen-abgewoehnen-id15651
https://www.netdoktor.at/gesundheit/rauchstopp/rauchen-was-der-koerper-verzeiht-6824911
https://www.lungenaerzte-im-netz.de/krankheiten/lungenkrebs/risikofaktoren/
https://www.nicorette.at/ab-jetzt-rauchfrei/nikotinentzug-entzugserscheinungen
