Kicked Xanax Hello Tobacco

[DEXPLICIT]

Hi, I made a thread a couple months ago contemplating going cold turkey on a slightly less than a year benzo addiction. I was taking 9-12mg Xanax and 4-5mg K-pins a day.

I was provided help and information here and with help of a MD specialising in Psychotherapy was able to kick my Benzo addiction and luckily other than some rough days of headache and just general discomfort, my taper worked well.

I was basically always given Valium and Ativan (at one point K-Pin) till I was at a point where I was on a week of 5mg valium and then sort of EOD before 2.5mg for a couple days and voila, never felt the need to take benzos. Was on Quetiapine for a week too right at the end - 25mg (when the benzo was the lowest dosage) and of course a Seizure threshold increasing acid - Valproic acid that also had a tendency to make me sleepy before it was switched out for Quetiapine last week of taper.

Now I don't need or take any medication involved in the withdrawal taper

But you never kick addiction. You just have to find a healthier one.

My job is Sedentary and despite trying I couldn't get back to my exercise regimen that had me dead lifting 200kg.

Instead, I would do some body weight exercises and since I play poker and get a break every hour I started smoking cigs a lot.

I have smoked half a J of good ol' mellow afghan black for many years and only once a day but now the later half of the day gets augmented by the urge to smoke cigs. I am talking like 10-15 in 6-8 hrs.

I have already planned a nice vaca to Svaalbard before meeting some family in Detroit and relaxing for a few months after a successful year money wise and feel I will be able to reduce smoking fags considerably but that is 3-4 months away.

Long story short (and this might be a stupid set of questions):
1. Does chain smoking over a few hours lead to acute symptoms like headache and generally not feeling well the morning after a binge?

2. I am determined to kick this habit but for now I haven't, and sometimes acute mildest-nausea and feeling like shit next day wouldn't be lingering symptoms of benzos right? I haven't had one for more than a month.

I have also started to abhor Alcohol and my idea of getting fitter before the vacation changed to post vacation....

Not having much other than sports/movies/couple nights a month with friends and Poker (which is basically my livelihood) I can't seem to find a hobby or motivation to better my physical self.

I thought a PS4 VR and my love for video games (scary and action/adventure) would occupy my mind more than movies when I have down time but all I end up doing is pausing the game, smoking one and back on.


When I was on the benzo bender I had started smoking quite a bit because despite always having an aversion to them unless I was drunk (back in college days) I didn't feel that aversion, probably because of the xanax.

Now there is cognitive dissonance in my mind - I hate the after effects of smoking but think a diet coke will make me not feel bad because I get this instinctive urge to light one up.

Smoking hash has not changed at all. Still the same - 'take the edge off 3-4 puffs' once a day....usually a few hours after waking up.



Mainly I want to know that apart from the obv high risk of cancer, what more acute side effects come from chain smoking over a short burst in the day?

The mind is a strange thing man. Very hard to practice good habits (although sometimes I will get fed up of feeling like shit and go for a run, lift some weight and feel so bad that a protein shake (a tasty one) some chicken and a bit of carbs for dinner, lots of water, sometimes Gatorade and I pass the F out. However, I do it too less and job makes it harder to find time or keep a regular work schedule.

Been eating a lot of sweets as well.

 

[Mafioso]

While I understand what you are saying and can relate a lot, it isn't true that people never overcome addiction. Yes, it is very easy to replace one habit with another, especially when it involves psychoactive substances. We are creatures of habit, it's difficult to fully put down or put away some habits. Habits relating to coping mechanisms are much deeper than just the habit itself. Attempting to mentally avoid anxiety by finding another activity to occupy yourself is not corrected just by putting down a drug habit. It often times is the start of deeper change though, by putting down the coping mechanisms you can start to see your true emotions. You start to notice things about yourself that you covered up with drug use. Also, behavior is tied to thoughts and feelings. Some therapist believe that automatic thoughts drive feelings which determine behavior. For example, an automatic thought might be something negative like "no one likes me", something formed over time as a result of situation, which then gets repeated and leads to feelings like anxiety and fear. Those feelings are part of what dictates our following behavior.

To answer your questions:
1. Does chain smoking over a few hours lead to acute symptoms like headache and generally not feeling well the morning after a binge? More than likely, apart from the nicotine you are inhaling so many bad chemicals. I'm sure just inhaling that amount of smoke and tar alone would make a person feel pretty lousy regardless of what the smoke is from. I used to smoke a pack or two when going out with friends. I definitely felt it the next day and when I stopped smoking altogether I felt better in the first week.

2. I am determined to kick this habit but for now I haven't, and sometimes acute mildest-nausea and feeling like shit next day wouldn't be lingering symptoms of benzos right? I haven't had one for more than a month.
I don't think so, but it could be. If it seems to be linked with panic or anxiety I'd say it may be possible, but I don't remember any lingering physical symptoms myself.