While most of us are no strangers to possible harms caused by nicotine, we sometimes don’t understand when we have had enough. Starting from one dose a day, to ending the day with multiple doses, nicotine addiction can often get very serious very soon. More often than not, there is more than one sign of reliance, it could be physical, mental, and also behavioral. Your body can learn to crave the chemical, and you might develop habits around its consumption to cater to your cravings.
Additionally, you might also develop a behavioral dependency, and become accustomed to using nicotine-containing substances periodically in different situations. Before you know it, nicotine becomes a part of your routine, and you are well on your way to becoming a full-fledged addict. You might experience restlessness and hair fall from nicotine, or flu-like symptoms. If these sound familiar, you might have been neglecting the signs that you need to cut down your nicotine use.
When You Can’t Seem to Get Enough of It
If cigarettes are your form of choice, you might be guilty of having one first thing in the morning. If you have your first cigarette within the first five minutes of making up, Fagerström Test strongly suggests you might have nicotine dependence. The first sign can be easily identified, and it isn’t solely limited to the first five minutes, it can be a couple of hours after waking up. Additional signs could be:
- You smoke when you aren’t feeling well
- Be it rain or cold, you go out to have a smoke
- You find yourself in a difficult spot when you are in places you can’t smoke
- You make excuses to have a smoke break multiple times an hour
When You Blame Your Symptoms on Everything else
If you have experienced a few or all of the symptoms above in similar situations, you need to cut down on your nicotine intake. You might even disagree that nicotine isn’t the root of all these problems, and it’s just a change of pace. All Hair fall from nicotine is not because of the nicotine, rather it is because of the wrong ingredients in the shampoo. All those hours up at night are because of too many things on your mind, and not because of any withdrawal symptoms.
When you are making up excuses to defend your nicotine intake, it means you need to give it some rest. There could be a possibility that you “don’t” want your nicotine intake to be the problem, thus, refuse to acknowledge it as one. Since it is a highly active substance, and many parts of our bodies get accustomed to certain levels of nicotine, blaming it can often be difficult. Be sure to confront the matter as it is and get a professional diagnosis over a self-diagnosis, and seek treatment when necessary.
When You Experience Withdrawal Symptoms When You Go Without it
Perhaps the quickest way to spot an addition is going without it for some time. If you stop consuming nicotine substances for a day and experience withdrawal symptoms, chances are that you need to cut the nicotine out of your routine. Without your regular dose of nicotine, you might experience some physical and mood-related symptoms, some of which can be:
- Having strong cravings to resume consumption and a feeling of anxiety
- Feel irritability, anger, and restlessness the more the day progresses
- You might also find it difficult to concentrate, and feel frustrated most of the time
- Have flu-like sensation, insomnia, or lack of uninterrupted sleep
- Throughout the day you might get headaches, or feel dizzy
When You Admit the Dependencies but The Symptoms Don’t Matter
Let’s say you get the consultation and support needed to point out the dependencies, but they aren’t as convincing. If you have noticed the symptoms and believe you have gotten major health issues but still can’t seem to stop, you are not alone. A major sign of nicotine dependence is letting it be what it is because the health conditions don’t matter as much as the dose of nicotine. You might think to yourself:
- So, what? It’s only high blood pressure and we can take a pill for that
- I don’t feel well, I need to smoke to get my spirits up
- Respiratory failures and uncontrolled vomiting are a long shot, I’ll quit before that
When You No Longer Look Healthy
Another common sign is when you stop looking like yourself and might behave differently as well. You might look tired and run-down, and if you have experienced withdrawal symptoms, your eyes might be covered by dark circles from the lack of sleep. Additionally, you can lose or gain weight by replacing your meals with smoking or eating something every time you smoke. You can also develop mouth sores and different types of jaw pains.
It is important to pay attention to the signs as they appear, and seek proper medical help when the diagnosis has been confirmed. Nicotine dependency can cause numerous health problems that can affect the span and quality of your life. Prioritize healthy living, and proactively look for signs.