10 Tips for Tackling Nicotine Withdrawal for People Who Recently Quit

So you’ve decided to quit smoking to improve your health. Way to go! Here’s how you can manage nicotine withdrawal symptoms. You’ve got this.

Ten years ago, a family member who smoked one pack of cigarettes every day for over 30 years was hospitalized. While in the hospital, she didn’t smoke or use any nicotine replacement medications and was very surprised at how good she felt without cigarettes in a short amount of time.

She wasn’t sure she was strong enough to quit permanently and feared “the damage was already done.”

Together, we came up with a plan to keep her hands and mind busy and stay focused on her physical improvements, which included not coughing and breathing better. Fast-forward to today — she is still smoke-free!

Nicotine, the main ingredient in tobacco products, has a high potential for addiction. As you continue to smoke, your body craves it more, making it very difficult to quit. Smoking also exposes you to harmful chemicals in tobacco and tobacco smoke that can cause serious health issues like COPD.

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Nicotine withdrawal symptoms

You may experience nicotine withdrawal symptoms when you quit smoking. Symptoms depend on how long and how much you smoked. They’re usually worse in the first week and then fade throughout the month, although withdrawal can last longer for some.

These symptoms may feel uncomfortable at first, but it’s important to remember symptoms will continue to go away over time.

4 to 24 hours after your last cigarette

You’ll likely crave a cigarette, feel irritable, hungry, and fidgety, and notice a tingling in your arms and legs as your circulation regulates without nicotine.

Days 3 through 4

This is when symptoms are often the most intense and may include:

• stronger cravings
• headache
• sore throat
• cough
• trouble sleeping
• feeling anxious or depressed

The next month

Your cravings and other symptoms continue to decrease, and you may become hungrier, more tired, or have gas or constipation. After about a month, your symptoms will likely fade away.

10 tips for coping with nicotine withdrawal

Regardless of your age or smoking history, it’s never too late to quit smoking and improve your health. When you stop, you’ll decrease your risk of cancer, heart attack, stroke, COPD, and bronchitis.

Research shows that your blood circulation improves, it becomes easier to breathe, and you may have more energy.

Here are 10 tips to help you manage nicotine withdrawal based on my training as a pharmacist and information from the CDC, the National Cancer Institute, and American Lung Association:

1. Look into quitting programs and support

Talk with healthcare professionals and let them know you are quitting. They may have tips, programs, and expert help to offer.

Explore different group and individual counseling and smoking cessation programs to see which may fit you best:

• American Lung Association’s Lung HelpLine
• National Cancer Institute’s Smoking Quitline
• Smokefree.gov
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Quit VET
• Quit for Life, powered by UnitedHealthGroup

2. Make a plan to distract your hands or mind when you begin to crave cigarettes

In the days before quitting, practice other substitutes for cigarettes such as chewing gum or cinnamon sticks, using toothpicks, drinking water, or snacking on crunchy fruits or vegetables.

Distract your mind by walking, reading, knitting, doing a puzzle, and using a stress ball or other fidget item. See which ideas you like, make a list, and save it to use when you quit.

3. Speak with former smokers who successfully quit

Ask others who have successfully quit smoking for advice, tips, and support that were helpful on their journey.

4. Lean on your support system

A support system will encourage you to keep going. Tell others you are quitting. Avoid being around smokers, places, and situations that could trigger your desire to smoke.

If you are around someone who smokes, ask them not to smoke by you or offer you a cigarette. Continue to focus on what you have gained and achieved by quitting smoking.

5. Create a reward system

Make a list of what you can buy or save now that you no longer smoke, such as your dream vacation. Reward yourself as you hit the goals you set for remaining smoke-free!

6. Throw away old reminders

Get rid of ashtrays, lighters, matches, leftover cigarettes, and anything else that reminds you of smoking. Wash clothes, blankets, coats, or other items that smell like smoke.

7. Ask your doctor about treatment options

Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) can help support your body’s cravings and limit withdrawal symptoms by giving you small doses of nicotine. Nicotine patches, gum, and lozenges are available over the counter.

Prescription medications that do not contain nicotine are also options for you to consider. Talk with a doctor or pharmacist to learn which medications may be best for you.

8. Follow a consistent exercise program

Some people are worried about gaining weight when quitting smoking. Exercise and being more active can help stop cravings while keeping you healthy.

Check in with your doctor to ensure you follow a routine that works best for you.

9. Practice good sleep and relaxation habits

Cut back on how much caffeine you eat or drink before bedtime, and develop a calming bedtime routine if you have difficulty sleeping.

Yoga, deep breathing, meditation, and journaling can distract you when you have a craving. 

10. Talk back to your urges

That’s right. Talk back to the urge in your mind!

An example of an urge is, “It would be so much easier to smoke a cigarette.” Talk back to it and say, “It may be easier, but quitting for my health is important to me. This craving will pass if I wait it out.”

Takeaway

Quitting smoking is very difficult but has a lot of health benefits regardless of your age. While nicotine withdrawal affects most people who quit, there are many tools available to help you on your journey.

Work with a physician or pharmacist for tips, resources, and possible medication options to see what will work best for you.