24 septembre 2009
Kübler-Ross grief cycle
The Kübler-Ross model identifies five discrete stages in the grief cycle when coming to terms with any significant emotional loss. Albeit chemical, dependency upon nicotine may have been the most intense and dependable relationship in our entire life. Unless wet and it wouldn’t light, never once did it let us down. Unlike when hunting for a lost pet or when our parents were angry with us, nicotine’s “aaah” was always there. If we smoked nicotine ten times per day and averaged 8 puffs per cigarette, that’s 80 times a day that we puckered our lips up to some nasty smelling butt spewing forth scores of toxins and thousands of chemicals. What human on earth did we kiss 80 times each day? Who did we depend upon 80 times a day?
How many
times each day did we write or say our name? Imagine being closer to our
addiction than our own name.
In 1982
Joel Spitzer applied the Kübler-Ross grief cycle model to the emotional
loss encountered when quitting smoking.346 The five stages of emotional recovery
include:
(1) Denial: “I’m not really going to quit. I’ll just pretend and see how far I get.”
(2) Anger: “Have I really had my last nicotine fix? “This just is not fair!”
(3) Bargaining: “Maybe I can do it just once more.” “I’ve earned a little reward.”
(4) Depression: “This is never going to end.” What’s the use?” “Why bother?”
(5) Acceptance “Hey, I’m feeling pretty good!” “I can do this!” “This is good.”
It’s important in navigating emotional recovery to not get stuck in a stage prior to acceptance. Seeing and understanding each stage’s roots will hopefully help empower a smoother and quicker emotional transition home. As we review each stage keep in mind the fact that the Kübler-Ross’s grief cycle of emotional loss is not etched in stone. Some phases may be absent while others get revisited.
15 septembre 2009
Symptoms of caffeine intoxication
An earlier study found that the clearance rate of caffeine from blood plasma averaged 114
milliliters per minute in nicotine smokers and 64 milliliters per minute in non-smokers.
Symptoms of caffeine intoxication have been seen with as little as 100 milligrams of
caffeine daily, and may include restlessness, nervousness (anxiety), excitement, insomnia,
a flushed face, increased urination and gastrointestinal complaints. Intoxication
symptoms seen when more than 1 gram of caffeine is
consumed per day include muscle twitching, rambling
flow to thoughts and speech, irregular or rapid heartbeat,
irritability and psychomotor agitation.
Many of us can handle a doubling of our daily caffeine
intake without getting the jitters. But how can we tell
whether the anxieties we feel are related to nicotine
cessation or too much caffeine? It isn’t easy.
Experiment with an up to 50% reduction in daily caffeine
intake if at all concerned. Be careful not to reduce normal
caffeine intake by more than 50% unless you want to add the symptoms of caffeine
withdrawal to those of nicotine withdrawal.
Caffeine withdrawal symptoms can include headache, fatigue, decreased energy,
decreased alertness, drowsiness, decreased contentedness, depressed mood, difficulty
concentrating, irritability, and a foggy mind. Symptoms typically begin 12 to 24 hours after caffeine use ends, reach peak intensity at 20 to 51 hours, and normally last 2 to 9 days.