Surely, everyone knows that a healthy person is a person without bad habits. Therefore, if you have any, it is better to quickly abandon them and follow the correct lifestyle. You just need to be prepared to give up bad habits is not always easy. This is especially true for smoking. A person who smoked 2 packs of cigarettes in one day will not be able to just take it and refuse it. At first, his state of health will be, frankly, terrible.
Headaches, irritability, fatigue, stress – these are just some of the symptoms that torment you quit smoking. But the most dangerous in this situation is insomnia. Sleep problems are quite common when quitting nicotine, because the body is under tremendous stress. Many at this stage surrender and again drag on a cigarette. What to do if you quit smoking and insomnia began?
Why do you have trouble sleeping when quitting nicotine?
The appearance of insomnia on the background of nicotine withdrawal is absolutely normal. And it is quite understandable. During the time that a person smoked, tobacco smoke regularly entered his respiratory tract. During this period, the body has adapted to a specific habitat.
Important! The smoke of cigarettes contains a substance that is hazardous to health – nicotine. It is easily addictive and has a negative effect on the central nervous system. This becomes the main cause of insomnia after a sharp rejection of the habit.
What other reasons can cause insomnia if you quit smoking:
As you know, nicotine contains components that are similar in chemical composition to the substance acetylcholine. It is a vital hormone that is a mediator of nervous excitement. So, when inhaling tobacco smoke, nerve cell excitation occurs. To restore balance in the nervous system, the production of acetylcholine begins to decrease. After the rejection of the harmful habit in the body there is a deficiency of the hormone. The brain has no choice but to solve the problem in the usual way – to force a person to draw on a cigarette again. This does not allow the former smoker to calm down and leads to problems with sleep.
The second reason is a violation of the regulation of vascular tone. The fact is that nicotine has a vasoconstrictor and hypertensive effect on the body. As a result, when quitting nicotine, there are severe headaches, a feeling of apathy, fatigue, lethargy, unwillingness to work. In addition, the person begins to experience pain all over his body. It is clear that in such circumstances it is simply impossible to fall asleep.
The third reason is nervous excitement. Everyone knows that if you do not calm down, then a person is unlikely to fall asleep. And for heavy smokers without a cigarette is impossible. Surely, many will be interested in the results of the study of foreign psychologists. They proved that nicotine acts on a person in the same way as a baby’s dummy — smoked — calmed down.
Another important cause of insomnia with nicotine withdrawal is daily following a certain course of action. So, if you are used to smoking a cigarette at night to calm you down, the nervous system develops a habit of this ritual.
Important! Help in this situation can only create another ritual. For example, try taking a warm bath before bedtime, read a book, or take a walk in the fresh air.
What can cause insomnia?
Many ask doctors about the consequences of insomnia after quitting smoking? Difficulties with sleep can lead not only to poor health, but also cause serious health problems:
The development of disease. Stress and constant lack of sleep leads to depletion of the body. This can cause exacerbation of existing chronic diseases or lead to their development.
Nervous breakdown. If a person is constantly under stress, then it is an extremely negative impact on his psyche. And if this condition is still supplemented by chronic sleep deprivation, then a nervous breakdown may occur. As a rule, most smokers at this stage again return to a bad habit.
Disability. With a lack of sleep a person loses the ability to properly perform their work duties. As a result, there are problems with the authorities and colleagues.
Another dangerous consequence of chronic lack of sleep is a violation of the immune system. The fact is that sleep is one of the most important conditions for strong immunity. And even a few restless nights can lead to a sharp decline. As a result, a person will be vulnerable to infections and viruses.
What to do?
What to do if you smoked for a long time, quit, and insomnia appeared? The main thing – do not run to the store for a new pack of cigarettes. The first step you have already taken. Therefore, it is time to start the second – to learn to relax and calm down.
The first thing to do is to prepare the room for sleeping. Be sure to air it before night rest, provide cool and humid air. In addition, you need to learn how to go to bed at the same time.
Well, if you walk every day before going to bed. With regard to food, the last meal should be carried out for 3-4 hours before the rest.
Important! Do not take alcoholic beverages at night. Yes, alcohol in some way helps to relax. But at the same time, a new and at the same time harmful need for an organism, which is called “alcoholism”, may arise.
Here are some tips to help you fall asleep:
Inhale the air through the mouth at the expense of “4”. Hold your breath, counting to seven. Exhale, gritting your teeth so that a whistle is heard – at the expense of “8”. Repeat 10 times.
Try to tighten all the muscles one by one, and then sharply relax them.
Close your eyes and raise your pupils up (as far as possible). This exercise will help to quickly fall asleep.
If a person quits smoking and cannot fall asleep, this exercise will help. Open your eyes, count to 5, close your eyes. Now open again, count again to “5” and close your eyelids again. Repeat until you feel like falling asleep.
If these exercises did not help a person suffering from insomnia, it is necessary to take a sedative preparation. It is better to choose a medicine on a plant basis – valerian, motherwort. It would be nice to have a cup of aromatic herbal tea based on mint, lemon balm or chamomile with a spoonful of natural honey at night.
Important! In no case should not take sleeping pills or strong sedatives. This can at times aggravate the situation and cause addiction syndrome.
Remember: Smoking is the enemy of health. And the rejection of this addiction is a huge stress for the body. People who quit smoking should be constantly supported. If a close person who refused to nicotine, irritated, nervous – do not be offended.
It is better to offer him a stroll or make fragrant soothing tea. With such support from loved ones, it will be easier for him to permanently abandon his addiction, and one day he will finally say: “I no longer smoke.”