hello im new to this

[zstinson21]

Hello, well im new to all this, i guess my story starts on this past sat. Well for abt a week now ive been trying to quit smoking cigarettes using the nicotine patch. Well i know ur not supposed to smoke while using the patch and i have no excuse for myself except for stupidity for why i was smoking with the patch on, well sat morning i was drinking coffee and ended up smoking 2-3 cigarettes in less than 2 hrs. I started feeling terrible with cold/hot flashes sweaty palms, dizzyness, vomiting, shakes, lower temp, alittle disoriented, and tight chest difficult breathing. Well i started googling my symptoms and it sounded as if i had nicotine poisoning so i called poison control. They said to take the patch off and wash the area which i already had prior to calling, and they said to drink plenty of water, avoid caffiene and take it easy and i should start to feel better after like 4 hrs. Well 4 hrs later the difficulty breathing and shakiness did subside but the other symptoms really didnt. Well when i woke up sunday morning all the symptoms from the day before came back and i was scared so i drove myself to the er. My heartbeat was rapid and they hooked me up to moniters drew blood, did xrays, then gave me ativan and zofran and a few hrs later i started feeling better. Well they sent me home with a script of 6 ativan to take every 8 hrs as needed for anxiety. Well the ativan knocks me out and im def not a pill kind of person, like i wont even take a asprin for a headache. So i was just taking one before bed so i could sleep. Well last night about a hour after i took it i got super dizzy and didnt help my state of mind to remain calm. Now today i keep having pains in my chest and anxious thoughts and cold sweats. Im at a lost for what to do as i dont want to take an ativan 1. After what happened last night 2. Im currently caring for my baby niece and cant just sleep. I was hoping to find someone to give me some insigjt on good home remedies or techniques to stay calm when the chest pains and clammyness sets in. Im hoping after kicking my cigarette addiction that my anxiety will stop. Thank u for ur time.

[alankay]

Tinson, well dropping smoking can increase anxiety temporarily but is worth it in the long run.
You really should get evaluated by a counselor to see if a cause can be found for your anxiety. Often times things are going on or have gone on that can cause it and may need to be talked over/brought out. For now use 1/2 a tab of ativan instead of a whole tab and see what happens. You can dissolve ativan under the tongue for a bit faster relief(it will taste like sugar).
Anyway seeing a counselor would be next or even a GP to see if you can get started understanding and perhaps relieving your anxious feelings. PM me any time, Alankay

[zstinson21]

Thank u so much for responding i will try the half of ativan tonight after my niece gets picked up. I havent seen a counseler or anything because i have no insurance and am currently unemployed. Im also nervous about developing a dependency on pills thats why i shy away from them. I notice at night is usually when my anxiety is at its worse, its always been like that since i was a child but until today when i found this site did everything really start coming together and making sense. I always just thought i was half crazy. I have not been diagnosed by a dr for anxiety but fron reading all these different forums i feel content at the moment that i may really not be crazy and there is a word for the way i think/feel half the time. I hope i can find a way to be able to deal with it temporarily until i can overcome it. I just need a little bit of guidance.