Quitting smoking caused my anxiety/panic disorder!?

[bherm324]

I'm a former smoker. I quit cold turkey in April of 2012, it's been over 2 years now. I just started to realize that none of my anxiety symptoms started until months after I quit smoking. My first experience with anxiety was in August of 2012, 4 months after I quit. I didn't have an anxiety attack, I just got very flustered & my hand started getting itchy & tingling, like it was swelling up but it wasn't, while at a birthday party. I was that worked up because of it, I had to go lay down in my car. My first real, full blown panic attack was 1 year, 7 months after I quit smoking. I had racing thoughts, pounding heart, etc. Could quitting cigarettes be the reason I developed a panic disorder & all these other anxiety symptoms? Before I quit smoking, I was a completely different person. I enjoyed life. I enjoyed doing things, socializing, drinking, etc. Now, as a non-smoker, I can barely leave my house. I have such severe anxiety, I don't like to go out or to social gatherings. I don't drink because I'm petrified of what having 1 single beer might do to me. I don't enjoy life like I use to. I have more health related issues now then I did as a smoker! Is this even possible!?

[Im-Suffering]

I'm a former smoker. I quit cold turkey in April of 2012, it's been over 2 years now. I just started to realize that none of my anxiety symptoms started until months after I quit smoking. My first experience with anxiety was in August of 2012, 4 months after I quit. I didn't have an anxiety attack, I just got very flustered & my hand started getting itchy & tingling, like it was swelling up but it wasn't, while at a birthday party. I was that worked up because of it, I had to go lay down in my car. My first real, full blown panic attack was 1 year, 7 months after I quit smoking. I had racing thoughts, pounding heart, etc. Could quitting cigarettes be the reason I developed a panic disorder & all these other anxiety symptoms? Before I quit smoking, I was a completely different person. I enjoyed life. I enjoyed doing things, socializing, drinking, etc. Now, as a non-smoker, I can barely leave my house. I have such severe anxiety, I don't like to go out or to social gatherings. I don't drink because I'm petrified of what having 1 single beer might do to me. I don't enjoy life like I use to. I have more health related issues now then I did as a smoker! Is this even possible!?

What was the motive for quitting? Lets get you to start thinking, focus inward for a moment, and forget the cig's, you cant use health as an excuse to restart smoking !! "My life was perfect, and i owe it all to cigarettes!"

6 months leading up to quitting, prior, how was your emotional life? Trauma, breakups, health, job issues, money, family, loss, you tell me, surely life wasnt perfect. What was going on? If youd rather keep private, than talk with someone in person about it that you trust.

Youll find the issues were wrapped in your emotional state at that time, and not inside the rolling paper. Speaking of rolling paper, did you smoke marijuana at that party...or previous few days. If you were sensitized from the events leading up as i asked, the pot would have magnified your chemical reaction, thus giving birth to the feeling you call anxiety. That day truly is then, your birthday.

Only you know the truth.