Qvestion

[angelchicken]

It has been two months (eight weeks, in any case) since I have quit smoking. (yay).

This is good.

But other than the "I need to put something in my mouth" munchies that accompany the quitting, does quiting have any proven effects on one's metabolism? Or is the quit-smoking-weight-gain strictly munchie related. Does anyone know?

And can I go home?

Also- to clear up something from my defeatest previous post, I am not actually going to do anything that could be considered destructive or anything. I just needed to vent. Purge the crappiness to make room for new crap. I have been seriously debating whether or not I should vamoose. Or maybe I'll stick it out like the plucky lil' trooper I am and then just call in sick on Monday. That is most likely what will happen. I just need to stop thinking about my soft, cozy bed and comfy, comfy jams, and start thinking about something else. I'm not sure what yet.

I want a massage. I might call my mommy and beg her to buy me one. The rest of my family had lobsters for dinner the other night. I deserve a massage.

Or she can fly to New York and have lobsters with me.

And I started a new book today (*gasp* a real book. Not fic! It's so exciting). It is called Blindness and it is by Jose Saramago. The story is about a city that is hit by blindness epidemic. My sister said it was wonderful, and Jose won the 1998 Nobel Prize for Literature. So I am thinking positive about it. I'll let you know.

After this I am rereading Jurassic Park. It's my favorite. And I haven't read it in about three years. It's time for a reread. Then I will reread It. While the days are still long.

Comments

[caltrask55.livejournal.com]

Or is the quit-smoking-weight-gain strictly munchie related. Does anyone know?

I'm sure it's different with everyone and you may not like hearing this but...

My mom was a 4 pack a day smoker. She joined Weight Watchers and was losing weight. She decided to then quit smoking. She was still sticking to the diet but her weight loss just stopped. She stuck it out for 3 more months and didn't lose one pound even though she wasn't cheating on the diet. She ended up quitting WW out of frustration. Five years later and she still isn't smoking but she has gained a tremendous amount of weight. I don't know if it's because she quit smoking or quit WW but there ya go.

Wow, I'm no help at all, am I? *hugs*

[angelchicken.livejournal.com]

Hugs always help. And I'm sorry about your mom. But it is good to know any possible outcome.

[godam.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure it's strictly munchie related. Smoking curbs your appetite, so you don't eat. Then you stop smoking, so you want to eat more often. Gum chewing helps, but I did gain when I quit.

[angelchicken.livejournal.com]

I've been doing a lot of gum chewing, and it certainly helps. But you have now lost 20 pounds (yay!) and so I have hope.

[rocknrollgidget.livejournal.com]

Also regarding your previous post, I don't know if it's different in states other than MA but here people sometimes take their car "off the road" like during the winter and then strip down their insurance coverage to where it's basically only for if someone or something hits the car and damages it.

[angelchicken.livejournal.com]

That is kind of what I have now. It is still hella expensive because it is in Queens. Which happens to have the highest car theft rate in the city. Woo. Hoo.

But thanks for the suggestion. I am planning on looking into seeing if there are any more corners I can cut.

[par-avion.livejournal.com]

Good luck with the no smoking.

I'll be interested to hear how you like Blindness - my now-defunct book club read it a few years ago.

[angelchicken.livejournal.com]

Thank you! At two months it is nice now that I don't really have the urge anymore. Occasionally I will want a cig, but it usually passes quickly.

And so far (20 pages in) I like the book. His writing style is kind interesting. I want to say it's soft, but I am not sure if that is what I am going for.

And I also have a defunct book club! I'm not sure what happened, but suddenly everyone just stopped going.

[dosidella.livejournal.com]

Okay, I have absolutely nothing to back this up, as it's essentially hearsay, but according to my therapist, who (just so we're clear) is not doctor, quitting smoking does have an effect on a person's metabolism. Apparently, and as far as I can remember, nicotine (being a stimulant) boasts the metabolism. If you've smoked for a long time, your body gets used to that, and once the added jolt is gone, your metabolism slows down. She said that using a nicotine substitute for a little while helps with this, though.

Anyway, like I said, that's totally unsubstantiated, but to me (with no knowledge of biology) it sounds plausible.