I am chewing nicotine gum but I have made it two weeks without tobacco. I will have to talk to my psychiatrist about outright quitting nicotine, as it effects the blood level of my medication- he told me to see him if I ever quit nicotine products. The first week was pretty horrible, the first night was pretty crap, I was sweating and restless. I get cravings in the mornings and at night. The morning cravings are pretty bad- I have considered caving in and having just one cigarette but remind myself that smoking will make me die early.
But for your information, nicotine does interact with most of our medications- a good psychiatrist will tell you to make an appointment to talk if you are a regular smoker and want to quit. I am on nicarette so I am still getting some nicotine, but I have noticed that I am a little sluggish. Nicotine is a CNS stimulant and peripheral NS depressant- it is also theorized to relieve symptoms, researchers have noticed that 80-90% of schizophrenics smoke cigarettes.
I picked the habit up when I was 18 and slowly but surely crumbling, and then when I began to hallucinate and experience delusions I started smoking half a pack every day, I would basically chain smoke after school. When I started college I really became a chimney, as I was free to smoke on campus and I began to smoke a pack a day. That and I had trouble sleeping every night and smoked at like midnight in an effort to go to sleep.
What made me quit was a moment of deep thought while driving home at night- I had just smoked a cigarette and it was my 17th cigarette that day and it was about 830pm- I remembered how I was before schizophrenia and how I said I would never become a smoker- so I stopped at walgreens and bought a big box of nicarette.
It’s already better, I dont have to go outside every 45 minutes, I dont smell like crap, my mouth doesnt taste like an ashtray, ect. I’m 21 now and have needed to quit for two years. It feels good to be able to hangout with my friends and family and not have to go outside and smoke periodically.
In a few weeks I am supposed to cut down on the nicarette- the box has a little pamphlet guide which had a 12 week nicotine-free program on it. Im going to see the doc soon like he told me to.
