Smoking Cessation

[Ash]

Everytime that I quit smoking, I come down with certain psychotic symptoms. Is this because of the BP? Is there anyway I can quit smoking without going through that?

 

[David Baxter PhD]

I missed this post yesterday, Ash...

What symptoms do you experience when you try to quit smoking?

 

[Ash]

What symptoms do you experience when you try to quit smoking?

The typical cognitive dulling; I can't think straight, I can't concentrate, I can't follow what people are saying.

I can't stand to be in my skin; everything bothers me, I can't tolerate excess sensory input such as noise, light, and touch.

Things don't seem real, as if everything around me is off in some way. It's almost like I'm in some alternate reality.

I also become very paranoid; I feel that people know what I am thinking or can see me when I am alone.

I don't know if it's mood swings but I go from being manic and feeling as if I can't take another minute on this earth to feeling absolutely nothing, not able to move or speak or feel.

I do tend have these issues even when I am not trying to quit smoking. All in all, it's very uncomfortable and worrisome. Granted, my symptoms are relatively minor in comparison to a breakthrough. However, my biggest fear is losing that grip on reality so any symptoms I have make me extremely nervous.

I've been wondering if having a mood disorder would make withdrawal from a drug (nicotine) that much worse.

 

[David Baxter PhD]

To be honest, I've never been asked this question before. However, some of the symptoms you describe are "normal" for someone quitting smoking, especially in the first few days to a week or so. For example:

The typical cognitive dulling; I can't think straight, I can't concentrate, I can't follow what people are saying.

I can't stand to be in my skin; everything bothers me, I can't tolerate excess sensory input such as noise, light, and touch.

Things don't seem real, as if everything around me is off in some way. It's almost like I'm in some alternate reality.

Some of the others aren't typical withdrawal reactions but may be secondary give your diagnosis -- perhaps triggered because of other things that are happening to you neurochemically during withdrawal, or because of the anxiety you experience which raises fears about going into a hypomanic state, etc.:

I also become very paranoid; I feel that people know what I am thinking or can see me when I am alone.

I don't know if it's mood swings but I go from being manic and feeling as if I can't take another minute on this earth to feeling absolutely nothing, not able to move or speak or feel.

It might be worth discussing this with your physician. One possibility that occurs to me is that it might be helpful to increase your medication(s) for the first week or two of quitting smoking...

 

[Ash]

Thanks, David. I'm aware that some of those symptoms are normal in this case. Either it's the intensity or the combination that concerns me right now. It's too close to other times that I've come close to losing my grip. I'll talk with my pdoc to see if I should up my dose for a little while. I've also thought about getting on an ad since I have SAD and it's almost the time when it kicks in.