Smoking and Nursing, coping with stressors?

DDD · Aug 2, 2006

Well, I'm a hypnotist. If you live in KC, I could help you. A hypnotist can also teach you self hypnosis and other relaxation techniques to calm you in those stressful times. If you see one, don't pay more than $50...they'll try and rip you off.

stpauligirl · Aug 2, 2006

I was a heavy smoker and started in my late teens, I quit when I was 36. Thank God for that because at that time I felt the effects of heavy smoking. I was always tired, had colds often and generally didn't feel too good. My chest was hurting and I also suffered from depression and a thyroid condition. I was seriously breaking down at that point.

Today I am 46 and can't remember when I had my last cold. I am in the very BEST shape of my life. I have a gym membership. I jog 3 miles a few days a week and do other cardio exercises like stationary biking or group classes. I recently reached my dream weight goal because I worked out with a personal trainer for a little while over the summer. I weight train 3 to 4 X a week and love free weights. I now have 'abs of steel' and look and feel at least 15 years younger than what I really am. Please quit while you are still young, at this point you wont have done too much damage to your body. It will only get harder to quit the longer you smoke and the older you get. I used the patch back when I quit but there may be better methods available today.

When I quit we had weekly meetings and a support group, talk to your doctor if something similar is available for you because it's easier to do if you have support.

Exercise is a great stress reliever for me. Couldn't do what I do without it, that's for sure.

Good luck, quit as soon as possible and pump some iron instead :pumpiron:

atrice, BSN, RN · Aug 2, 2006

I am a smoker and start the nursing program Aug. 28th. I have to quit!! I took a summer class in preparation for our nursing program and it was from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and there was no time to really smoke. The nursing instructor said that the hospitals we will do our clinicals at are smoke-free facilities and we can't smoke their or in our cars on the way to the hospital. I have smoked for about 12 yrs and I'm having trouble quitting before the fall semester starts.

You are not alone....in the summer class there were 3 smokers out of 9 students and one that had recently quit. I need to just lay them down....it is the only way.

mt33133 · Aug 2, 2006

I am in the same boat. Keep trying to quit and then when it gets hard or a stressor appears in my life I jump right back to them. For me it is more psychological than actual nicotine withdrawal. I found the below software that can be downloaded to a PDA or Smartphone. I am thinking of ordering it b/c it might be just the motivation I need with me all the time. Any little bit will help!

http://www.mastersoftmobilesolutions.com/lastcigarette_ppc.php

KScott · Aug 2, 2006

I started smoking when I was 14 years old. I quit when I was 39 - six years ago. Here are some tricks to help you, but the only way you will quit is if you really want to. If you have a bad day at work, home, or school - a cigarette won't fix it. It will ensure you have less bad days, for sure, because you will have less days in you life to deal with!

1. Brush your teeth after you eat - instead of smoking a cigarette.

2. Drink lots of water.

3. It takes 7 days to get nicotine out of your system. Drinking grapefruit juice will help clean it out. Any cravings after 7 days are psychological - not physical.

4. Hard candy and gum helps.

5. Clean your ashtrays and get rid of them.

6. Have your car washed and have the inside cleaned and deodorized.

Within a day, or two, you will notice the most tremendously beautiful fragrances around you - most especially the smell of your own hands. Keep smelling your clean hands. You will begin smelling smokers yards away and wonder how you could have gone through life smelling like that. Your food will taste so delicious! You will probably gain a little weight, but that's not the end of the world. The cells in your body will be fresh and clean and you will have tons of energy.

After a few days, something will happen that will make you think you NEED to smoke. A cigarette won't fix it. Remember how hard you've worked to get this far.

This website has a lot of support and tricks including a free, downloadable program that will help you track how many cigarettes you have not smoked, how much money you have saved and how many days you have added to your life. It's amazing and a lot of fun.

http://www.silkquit.org

Six years ago six people in my family smoked, heavily, and one used chewing tobacco. We are all now tobacco free. If we can do it, you can too! Good luck!

On edit: They've changed things a bit at Silk Quit. The no smoking meter is now a $4.99 donation.

Also, if you slip - don't give up. Just start over again. You can do it!

BeccaznRN, RN · Aug 2, 2006

I am an ex-smoker. I smoked for seven years, and when I went to get my wisdom teeth removed I took that opportunity to give up the habit. It's been six years now and I'm still smoke-free. :yeah: I believe (as I was told by an ex-smoker while I was quitting) that the urges to smoke never completely go away, but they do become fewer and weaker as each day passes. Even after six years I still get the occasional "Wow a cigarette would be nice" feeling once or twice a year, but what keeps me smoke-free is remembering how good it felt to smoke and how hard it was to give that up. I don't ever want to go through it again.

Everyone here has given good advice, and I would say to take it one day at a time. It's the absolute hardest thing you'll ever do, and I can remember just like it was yesterday sitting around with a splitting headache crying my eyes out because I was in so much pain and wanted to smoke so bad. You have to keep fighting through it, keeping your ultimate goal in mind. With each day that passes, it DOES get a little easier, even if it doesn't feel like it at first.

All my best wishes to all of you out there working to quit. Hang in there!

trjohnson0213 · Aug 2, 2006

I have never been a smoker but I am sure it is very difficult to quit but I wish you the best of luck to find other ways to do so When I am stressed out I relax by watching tv, exercising, reading, & coming to this site lol

tookewlandy · Aug 2, 2006

I have been smoke free for a few months now. i actually posted on ere when i first quit. What worked for me was the patch for 7 days then sheer determination. Alot have said that you should wear the patch and do it stpe by step, i ried that and it just mad eme want to smoke mor ewhen i was done. So i wore it for a few days then took it off and then siad ok i can do this every time i though tof a smoke. Now i still occasionally (VERY VERY RARE) sometime think about a cigarette, but then i think of how i would feel if i smoked one and that passes really quick. If you can get past the first 7-15 days then you can do it.

sangreal · Aug 2, 2006

It seems to me from my own experience that more nurses smoke than don't smoke....

MaleRNstudent21, ASN, CNA, RN · Aug 3, 2006

Thank you all gave me very good information. Someone said they now have a 6 pack of abs, from working out thats great! Congrats on your accomplisments and your progress on quitting smoking.

I'm a smoker who smokes every other day. I know I can stop eventually. I usually smoke the most with I've been out having drinks with friends,ugh. Or when I have had a stressful test after class I would light one up. I once stop smoking for 10days recently. I agree its after the 15 day period. When I had stopped I would often get the gitters and feel gittery. Did any of you feel this way as well?

Also, I loved the fact of brushing you teeth after a meal instead of after a smoke. Having hard candy or peppermints available to fix the oral fixation that was applied to smoking.

Well once again thank you all! I have just 1 more cig in this pack,lol. I'll let this be the end to my smoking and on to starting a healthy life.

bladensburg,OHrn · Aug 3, 2006

I am a nurse, and I have smoked for 24 years. It's a nasty, filthy habit, and I truly hate it! I wish i never would have started in the first place. I beg to differ with those that believe that more nurses somke than not, but that has been my experiences. I work 12 hour shifts, and CHOOSE not to smoke throughout my work day. It's not a problem for me...I just keep busy, and take good care of my patients, spending more time with them than I would if I took smoke breaks. That's my choice. I DO drink a lot of water, brush my teeth a couple times throughout the day, and occasionally chew gum. I can't stand to smell of smoke, and I don't think most sick people like to smell it either. I have "quit" before, but as one posted, I got beyond the physical dependence, but succumbed to the psychological dependence. Now, I don't smoke too much now anyway, but still feel many negative effects from so many years of smoking. Stop now....while it still may be easier. Limit yourself to where you can smoke. I don't smoke in my house, or in my car (when my son is with me), or around my son or his friends. Your posting has inspired me to quit too. Since I'm down to smoking very little, this may just be the time. I feel for me, I would have to just throw them out, and be done with it! My father-in-law quit many years before he died, and he told me the best success he had in quitting was keeping himself busy, and before he started into a new project he'd tell himself, "when I finish this, I'll have that cigarette" ; then, after that project was done, he'd find another project before he smoked that cigarette, and say the same thing. Before he knew it, most of the day was gone, and he'd say, "well, too late to have that cigarette now". And he never did have that cigarette. I've found this very helpful in REALLY postponing when I have a smoke. It's when I don't have enough to do that I feel like smoking...maybe it could work? As for stress - definitely exercise !!! I know I feel so much better after a trip to the gym, or just a walk. Sometimes at work, I'll take a walk outside if I get too stressed. No smoking, just a quick walk, and then I'm back at it. It really does work. Good luck to you in your efforts!!!