Welcome Debra! You can do this! I really recommend the reading material. It really helped me. Good luck!

yEP DEBRA ANN Welcome to our forums. Like everyone says stay with us and read for the help. Your not alone in your fight and everone here. knows what your going thru and can help.   We are all there in the same boat.

Hi DebraAnne

Welcome to the forum!  As others have said there is so much good literature to read about quitting. Helps me so much. Plus lots of experience & strength here. Keep reading & posting!  You can do it!

nomosmok

ex-tobacco user 1/21/20 7:34pm

Welcome Debra and congrats on 1 month!  This forum is awesome! I have found it to be a tremendous help during those difficult times as I would come here and read articles or posts whenever those nasty “thoughts” about smoking would appear. Also I keep lots of mints and ice cold water handy.  Read all of the tips on here that you can, because it is so important to educate yourself on what to expect, etc.  And, if you are having a difficult day, post and let us know you need support!  Stay strong and remember you CAN do this!

Quit 12/6/19

Has anyone here been experiencing nightmares?  I am not using any nicotine replacements or drugs to quite.   Has there been anyone commenting on the nightmares or anything written about them.  They are quite unnerving and I wondered if there was some psychological studies on dreams when quitting smoking.

I have been keeping the ice cold drinks on hand as I noticed I seem to be constantly thirsty.  

Hi Debra,

Nightmares is a broad term but I can say that I had smoking dreams that I considered 'nightmares'.  I would wake up so sad that I had smoked but I had not.  As I look back I attribute  the dreams to that constant craving and brain healing esp in the first several months.  I had less and less dreams like that as time when on.

I did some research and found the following which is quite interesting:

For those of you who are newly quit, 

Vivid dreams are found to not be a side effect from stop smoking products. It has been discovered through research that it is part of the recovery process. The brain begins to repair itself and reverse damage caused from smoking. Neurobiologists have discovered that brain cells sprout new axons and nerve fibres during dream sleep. A chemical named serotonin in the brain triggers the brain to dream.

Smoking depletes serotonin production in the brain. When serotonin levels in the brain are balanced it creates a happy and contented state of mind. When serotonin levels are low a depressed and anxious state of mind is created. It is believed that smoking cigarettes can deplete serotonin levels by up to 50%. What compounds this problem is that the brain accepts the chemicals in a cigarette as a serotonin substitute on the basis that any chemical response is better than no chemical response at all. So therefore, when an individual stops smoking, serotonin production improves and the brain begins to compensate itself for lost serotonin production. The brain then produces more serotonin than needed, resulting in vivid dreams and nightmares.

Research has shown that it takes the brain 3 weeks to regulate serotonin levels.

Further research suggests that with an increase in serotonin levels there must be an increase in oxygen levels too. When a person stops smoking, carbon monoxide no longer takes priority over oxygen on the red blood cells. As a result of this change, oxygen levels of the individual increase. More oxygen is carried around the body and to the brain. When the stop smoker sleeps there is a higher percentage of oxygen reaching the brain than when they were a smoker. This process helps promote a process called rapid eye movement (REM) while sleeping. REM is an important process in dream production along with serotonin production.

It is essential to reassure a client that the first three weeks of a quit attempt are crucial. Vivid dreams are all part and parcel of the recovery process and the pathway to a healthier life style.

It is a positive symptom as it is the brains way of repairing itself and returning to a better deeper sleep.

I did some research and found the following which is quite interesting:

For those of you who are newly quit, 

Vivid dreams are found to not be a side effect from stop smoking products. It has been discovered through research that it is part of the recovery process. The brain begins to repair itself and reverse damage caused from smoking. Neurobiologists have discovered that brain cells sprout new axons and nerve fibres during dream sleep. A chemical named serotonin in the brain triggers the brain to dream.

Smoking depletes serotonin production in the brain. When serotonin levels in the brain are balanced it creates a happy and contented state of mind. When serotonin levels are low a depressed and anxious state of mind is created. It is believed that smoking cigarettes can deplete serotonin levels by up to 50%. What compounds this problem is that the brain accepts the chemicals in a cigarette as a serotonin substitute on the basis that any chemical response is better than no chemical response at all. So therefore, when an individual stops smoking, serotonin production improves and the brain begins to compensate itself for lost serotonin production. The brain then produces more serotonin than needed, resulting in vivid dreams and nightmares.

Research has shown that it takes the brain 3 weeks to regulate serotonin levels.

Further research suggests that with an increase in serotonin levels there must be an increase in oxygen levels too. When a person stops smoking, carbon monoxide no longer takes priority over oxygen on the red blood cells. As a result of this change, oxygen levels of the individual increase. More oxygen is carried around the body and to the brain. When the stop smoker sleeps there is a higher percentage of oxygen reaching the brain than when they were a smoker. This process helps promote a process called rapid eye movement (REM) while sleeping. REM is an important process in dream production along with serotonin production.

It is essential to reassure a client that the first three weeks of a quit attempt are crucial. Vivid dreams are all part and parcel of the recovery process and the pathway to a healthier life style.

It is a positive symptom as it is the brains way of repairing itself and returning to a better deeper sleep.

If only they didn't have to be such vivid nightmares!!