Steelroots,
Brenda is so right in all she says......below, please find an article I printed out from the site when I was quitting........
Relapsing
Hi. We all know about the first week and the next one, but after that, many people expect that it's all over. Well it just isn't. Nicotine metabolites can hang around for three weeks in your system, for instance, and those toxic additives in cigarettes have been affecting your body too.
The entire body goes through major changes. It's in serious recovery mode. In every single cell, from your lungs, your brain, your skin, to every part of you, everything is affected when you stop feeding it nicotine and its accompanying toxins. That requires a lot of cellular energy, a whole lot of adjustment. It's no wonder people are tired or feel spacey at certain moments. Those recovery changes do not end for a while. They are quite intensive in the beginning.
The brain undergoes physical and neurological changes too. Things start to even out or dampen at around 17 weeks, though the changes and the recovery still keep happening in a less obvious and perceptible way, except perhaps for a few cluster days every month.
Now while it's true that some people feel a whole lot better after the second month, many don't think they have it under control until the fourth month, though they have had increasingly good moments in between.
This does not mean that there can't be tough moments in the months that follow, but by the end of the fourth, if your skills have been developed, you have enough time in, determination and confidence to get through those moments.
If people know that they can feel depressed around 10 weeks and have lots of junkie thinking in the third month (inability to feel pleasure while the neurotransmitters are "realigning" so the question comes up "Is it all worth it?" (Along with a bargaining stage where they toy with the notion of having "just one", they will be better prepared to handle the quit.) Thus it's wise to have a reward plan.
_______________________
Many problems about relapsing occur around weeks 12-16. People inevitably say "I thought I could have just one" to get through a stressful moment, or test the quit, or "I expected it to be all over by now."
Steelroots.....you need to maintain just that.....strength and very steely roots right into your core to fight this stage of your quit. Be assured it is only a stage and, like everything else, it will pass. You will be so glad you hung in there, used your coping skills from the beginning of your quit and refuse to have this discussion with the demon. You will be so glad you did and the freedom you will feel in the end will be so worth it!
Love Lolly.
My Mileage:My Quit Date: 11/25/2004
Smoke-Free Days: 2018
Cigarettes Not Smoked: 70,630
Amount Saved: �10,090.00
Life Gained:Days: 267
Hrs: 19
Mins: 43
Seconds: 15