I didn't want to dig up an old thread but thought I'd say I quit smoking on the 19th of April this year. I was forced to as my stomach became so bad I lost my appetite and was too nauseated to eat.
I went to the hospital to see the gastroenterologist and he said to avoid the risk factors/triggers for gastritis such as smoking, coffee, spicy food, etc and I followed all of his advice.
It took 4 or 5 months for my stomach to feel like new again but my lungs definitely feel like new. :-)
I still get nicotine cravings every other day but I tell myself that smoking is not an option as it would hurt my stomach again and all the other diseases that go with tobacco.
I feel more relaxed without cigarettes. My mood was cranky for a few months after quitting but now it is pretty much back to normal.
Now I can smell cigarettes a mile away.
Anyway, about my stomach.. the doctor at the other hospital didn't like Xanax and gave me diazepam instead. He gave me enough to cover for any withdrawal.
Diazepam was very sedating and I noticed my stomach felt like "new" again. No gastritis symptoms.. it felt very calm.
Maybe it's more of a "functional gastritis"..related to the mind.
I couldn't stay on diazepam for long as it made me depressed and exhausted so I went back to my pdoc and he put me back on Xanax. He didn't like diazepam and said it was making me worse.
Anyway, I hope anyone out there considering quitting smoking will give it a shot.
I don't think there's a product legally on the market that causes as many diseases as tobacco.
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this signature | Show by default | Change to hide (next time)alprazolam 1mg QID, famotidine 40mg QID, cetirizine 10mg BID, GNC Ultra Mega Gold 1x/day, Vitamin D 1200IU, probiotics, quit smoking 19/4/2013
Dx: panic disorder with agoraphobia, OCD