# What's a nicotine "fit" like? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 22, 2002, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382 "2002-12-22T14:24:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2002, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/1 "2002-12-22T14:24:12Z")
Do you get the shakes and see things, or are you just vaguely irritable or what…? What are the specific physical characteristics of a nicotine withdrawal “fit”? ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2002, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/2 "2002-12-22T15:48:12Z")
I get restless, antsy, mildly jumpy, unable to concentrate, and varying degrees of irritable. No hallucinations, or pink elephants. (So far) ---
**Author:** ![Thylacine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thylacine/32/1143_2.png) [@Thylacine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thylacine)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/3 "2002-12-23T00:58:50Z")
When I quit the back of my head sweated nonstop for days. I gradually became more irate, more fidgety and simply obsessed with smoking. I decided to run with it and joined an online quitting community where everybody used the message boards to whinge about every stage. If you really want to see misery loving company head to [http://quitnet.com/](http://quitnet.com/) The resources section has a lot of information but the boards are where you see normally rational human beings unravelling and staying that way for a surprisingly long time. Most smokers have no idea of what they are staving off by lighting up that ciggie. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/4 "2002-12-23T02:07:19Z")
I got terrible headaches and was more irritable than I could ever remember being. No halluncinations, though. Actually, I wish there had been. Would have livened things up a bit. ---
**Author:** ![Essured](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Essured](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Essured)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/5 "2002-12-23T02:12:26Z")
Every time I tried to quit, (except for the last and successful time,) I was irritable, headachey, had difficulty concentrating and was very stressed. The last time I quit, which was ultimately successful was different. I had mild aches that were similar to hunger pangs. (not starvation pangs, but the sort of hunger pangs you get when you realise it’s 4 in the afternoon and you forgot to eat lunch) I also had a little bit of mental agitation, too IIRC. Nothing too severe, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/6 "2002-12-23T02:35:37Z")
My unsuccessful times were a bitch, which no doubt explains the lack of success. At one point I just sat down on a curb and cried, I was so miserable. Thank god those days are behind me. Smoke-free for 2 years, 3 months, 1 week and 6 days. Breathing easy and couldn’t be happier. Can’t even imagine what the hell I was thinking. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/7 "2002-12-23T04:25:51Z")
Oh man, people would scatter. Bitchy, frantic, pissed off, shaky, headache. On Thanksgiving it was 10 years without a cigarette, and I still miss it. I actually _dream_ about smoking. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/8 "2002-12-23T05:42:30Z")
Hm. My mom quit cold-turkey before she got pregnant with me. Dropped it like an old sock, or so she implies. She still has no patience for those with addicitive personalities. However, my dad still smokes. He’s tried gum, patches, hypnosis, and other things. I’ll never start, I just wanted to show the possible range. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/9 "2002-12-23T05:53:49Z")
Craving a cigarette was like being hungry for me. Sometimes I even had trouble deciding which thing I was craving, food or nicotine. When I quit, after about 18 hours I became incredibly lightheaded and stayed that way for probably 4 days or more. I know that sometimes on long car trips I’d become dizzy from not smoking. I felt agitated, not so much irritable as unable to cope with anything and was totally consumed with obsessive longings for a cigarette. I couldn’t think about anything else for nearly a month. My breakthrough was the day I realised that I hadn’t thought about smoking for an hour or so. In the worst of it, my mind was playing tricks on me, and I still have confusing dreams. One year, eight months, three weeks, five days, 14 hours, 48 minutes and 29 seconds. 11459 cigarettes not smoked, saving $3,437.51. Life saved: 5 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 55 minutes - it was so worth the agony. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2002, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/10 "2002-12-24T16:48:58Z")
**cazzle** , if you make that your sig, so help me … ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2002, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/11 "2002-12-24T17:06:30Z")
My dad apparently quit smoking without any major problems, or so my mom told us. It probably helps that he had said he was just a smoker because “everybody else did it” and was a very light smoker. When I was born, he was handing out the traditional cigars. The OB looked at him and said, “Smoking is bad for your baby.” He gave it up on the spot, and at least didn’t mention any troubles. My father-in-law gave up smoking cold turkey as well, after many attempts. His description of it is that it wasn’t hard on him when he finally did quit, though my husband and his siblings will attest that his behavior during that time was hard on **them**. ---
**Author:** ![Roadwalker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19b73/32.png) [@Roadwalker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roadwalker)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2002, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/12 "2002-12-24T17:26:14Z")
A nic fit for me was like a thirst. I am 10 years smoke free and still have an occational craving. Sometimes I dream of amoking too. ---
**Author:** ![Broken\_Doll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@Broken\_Doll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broken_Doll)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2002, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/13 "2002-12-24T19:34:50Z")
I get agitated and bitchy, kinda like PMS, only without the cramping and the bleeding. I also start shouting a lot and I get this feeling in my lungs like “FEEEED ME!”…I guess that would be a hunger pang for the lung area. Hard to explain, but if you’ve ever been without cigs for a day or two, you know what I mean. Not nice. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2002, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/14 "2002-12-24T21:16:28Z")
"Where’s my cigarettes? Where’s my cigarettes? **Where the _hell_ are my cigarettes?!!!** Goddamnit, who the fuck took my cigarettes? I left them right here— RIGHT THE FUCK HERE!!! Which one of you fuckers took my cigarettes? HOLY SHIT, I CAN"T TURN MY BACK FOR ONE MOTHERFUCKING SECOND WITHOUT ONE OF YOU NON-SMOKING ASSHOLES STEALING. . … Oh, here they are. Never mind." At least that’s how my nicotine fits go. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2002, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/15 "2002-12-24T21:30:48Z")
For the first 24 hours I’m usually okay. Then I just get irritable and wander around going damn I want a smoke… but no I shouldn’t… but I want one… and kinda argue back and forth with myself. I also usually get into an argument of somekind after the first 24 hours and go out to buy a pack. That’s actually what started me up again after having quit for 2 years, a major blowup with my father. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2002, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/16 "2002-12-25T05:15:55Z")
I always loved Denis Leary’s observation (or was it Bill Hicks?)- yeah, smoking will take years off your life, but they’re the really shitty ones at the end! ---
**Author:** ![Billy\_Rubin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/billy_rubin/32/3622_2.png) [@Billy\_Rubin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Rubin)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2002, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/17 "2002-12-25T05:35:24Z")
I’m with Biggirl. I’m almost a year smokefree at the moment- and it’s been a bitch the whole time. I still have moments when my lungs talk to me- "wouldn’t you like to have a yummy, tasty cigarette right about now? boy, wouldn’t that go well with that nice fresh coffee you just brewed? Maybe we could even go for a car ride together! " hey, it’s a big pain, but the $10 a day I’m saving helps make my truck payment. b. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2002, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/18 "2002-12-25T14:45:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by EJsGirl \* > \*\*I always loved Denis Leary’s observation (or was it Bill Hicks?)- yeah, smoking will take years off your life, but they’re the really shitty ones at the end! \*\* Unfortunately that belief is not true. All too often it condenses the “shitty ones” into double strength varieties, and puts them two-thirds of the way to the end. I’ve had as patients an awful lot of chronic lungers smoking thru their tracheotomies and noisily breathing their way thru their late 50’s and early 60’s, then out. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2002, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/19 "2002-12-25T18:31:53Z")
I’ve quit twice – the first time for ten years and this second (and last) time for 18 months. The “fit” for me was just a bit of an antsy feeling that lasted for a minute or so. I was expecting it, and it passed. If the craving was really as bad as we’ve been told, wouldn’t we be waking up in the middle of the night wanting to smoke? That never happened to me, even when I was at two packs a day. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382/20 "2002-12-26T04:15:16Z")
Damn **Pam** , what was it like to pick up again after 10 years? I can’t imagine it. Maybe more to the point, I can’t ever imagine quitting again. And I did wake up wanting to smoke, and I never got out of bed until I’d had my first smoke of the day. As with my other vices, I firmly believe that I only had the one “quit” in me. If I were to pick up a cigarette tonight (or a drink, or a drug, or whatever), I could never put them down again. **QtM** , I was only kidding. I have watched people take out their oxygen tubes to smoke, and it’s so gross. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-nicotine-fit-like/144382.md?page=2)