Often, heavy smokers are faced with a deterioration in health: they notice the appearance of cough with sputum, shortness of breath, interruptions in the work of the heart. In addition, smoking has a negative effect on the appearance: teeth turn yellow, the complexion becomes dull, and the skin becomes dry. As a result, almost every smoker has tried to give up the bad habit at least once.
However, instead of immediately feeling better, many people find that they literally hurt everything after smoking their last cigarette. As a result, a person returns to smoking and, as it seems to him, chooses the lesser evil.
Let's see why certain unpleasant symptoms can occur with a sharp cigarette refusal? What to do if a person quits smoking but has health problems
Processes in the body after quitting smoking
Any smoker who decides to give up cigarettes must understand that their dependence on tobacco is not only psychological but also physiological. Nicotine in the truest sense of the word is involved in the body's metabolism. Therefore, the cause of the discomfort associated with smoking cessation is similar to that associated with drug withdrawal. The fact that a person tied to an addiction got sick suggests that without the involvement of nicotine, the body is rebuilding to work.
In addition, it should be noted that these health problems are temporary and no longer bother after the adjustment period has expired. In other words, someone who is determined to quit smoking should be patient and get through this period of uncomfortable symptoms.
Important!In fairness, it should be noted that not all smokers of yesterday are confronted with pronounced problems. Someone has very severe withdrawal syndrome while others simply and easily give up cigarettes.
Gastrointestinal tract
Every second person who quits smoking experiences a gastrointestinal disorder. Most often in this case, people notice that they have abdominal pain, because against the background of cigarette refusal, there may be a decrease in intestinal tone. As a result, increased gas production and constipation begin to worry.
The situation is no less common when a person has stopped smoking and is sick. Heartburn often occurs after smoking. The reason for such symptoms is the action of tobacco smoke, which gets into the stomach, irritates its walls and provokes the appearance of gastritis.
However, while a person continues to smoke, nicotine has some anticonvulsant properties and relieves pain. When the absorption of an alkaloid into the body stops, gastric juice with increased acidity irritates the mucous membrane, causing heartburn, nausea and pain.
If a person quits smoking and notices that their stomach is starting to hurt, the reason may be a stomach or duodenal ulcer that formed during the addiction. This is a serious illness that requires the supervision of a gastroenterologist. Therefore, if a patient quits smoking and finds they have heartburn, nausea and belching, constipation, and abdominal pain, they should see a specialist as soon as possible.
Skin problems
Many yesterday's smokers notice pimples on their face and back after quitting smoking. This phenomenon can have several reasons:
- Changes in vascular tone. During the active effects of nicotine on the body, the smoker's skin becomes dry and the small vessels that nourish it are in a spasmodic state. In smoking cessation, the opposite process can be observed - an increase in oily skin. The high sebum production in turn is an excellent background for the development of acne;
- If a person quits smoking and has acne, it may indicate a hormonal imbalance, which can also occur in the body against the background of nicotine cessation. It should be remembered that quitting smoking puts stress on the body, which can affect all of its organs and systems;
- Pimples after smoking can form due to a mundane exacerbation of acne for the same reason: a stressful situation in which the body finds itself during the transition to a new way of working;
- After all, the onset of skin problems can be explained by the fact that a person who gives up a bad habit is so exhausted from struggling with the craving to smoke that they simply don't have the strength to take care of the skin. As a result, acne forms on the face due to banal violations of the rules of hygiene, especially if the skin is initially predisposed to the appearance of such problems.
Throat and oral cavity
Frequent complaints from smokers are also sore throats and "scratchy" in the throat. As an example, consider a situation: A woman quits smoking and finds that her throat hurts. If she was previously able to drown out such symptoms with a cigarette, the smoker is more likely to return to cigarettes. In the meantime, it should be understood that a sore throat is also a temporary phenomenon caused by the process of cleaning the airways or the exacerbation of chronic infection on the background of refusal to accept nicotine.
Another problem for yesterday's smokers is bleeding gums. Sometimes the process is so pronounced that after refusing a cigarette, the teeth hurt and become less durable.
The main reason why a person who decides to stop smoking has bleeding gums, stomatitis or loose teeth is a decrease in immunity against the background of nicotine refusal. It becomes difficult for a weakened body to withstand gingivitis and tooth decay that formed during the period of tobacco addiction.
Joint and back pain, varicose veins
Yesterday's smokers often experience a feeling of stiffness in the back and joint pain. It seems that there cannot be a link between quitting tobacco and the fact that there is, for example, back pain. However, the appearance of such symptoms can have several explanations at the same time.
If a person quits smoking and their legs hurt, it may indicate a manifestation of something called drug withdrawal. It is no secret that nicotine has the effects of a weak drug, so it is quite possible that phantom pain will appear throughout the body when it stops entering the body.
Attention!Another explanation for the fact that a smoker has joint pain after giving up a bad habit is that chronic diseases (arthritis, osteoarthritis) worsen in a stressful situation for the body. If the legs ache badly after smoking, and the joint pain does not go away within a few days, you should consult a doctor in this regard.
Other side effects after quitting smoking
The symptoms listed are not an exhaustive list of the problems a person may face when deciding to get rid of a bad habit. Almost all former smokers notice weakness, weakness, general malaise in the first few days after quitting smoking.
Without cigarettes, addicts become nervous and irritable. It is not surprising that many of them fail such a test and soon break down and light a cigarette again.
Normalization period
However, those who have survived the difficult first phase after quitting tobacco will soon notice an improvement in their wellbeing. The phenomena of so-called withdrawal usually go away by the end of the first week. Within a month, the work of the gastrointestinal tract and blood vessels is restored. The skin no longer becomes dry and bad breath disappears.
Full normalization of the condition of most ex-smokers usually occurs no later than six months after they quit smoking completely.
graduation
Despite the fact that giving up a bad habit can be very difficult, usually none of the people who quit smoking have any regrets about their decision. Smoking is really bad for the body. So when you stop using nicotine, people actually get healthier, feel better, and look better.