10 days and no cigarettes…

 I’m not going to lie, I am really proud of myself! However I am suffering at the same time.

I am exhausted – The last 2 nights I have been in bed before 9:30pm and asleep very quickly (without any assistance) but even though I have been sleeping like a log I am super tired all day.

Headaches – I wake up with a headache, spend most of the day wishing I didn’t have a headache and then go to bed with a headache. It’s is worse than when I was smoking and it is driving me cray!

Nausea – I took a tablet after Pilates last Friday and as soon as we got in the car I had to wind down the windows and prey I didn’t vomit all over the dash. The nausea usually gets me about 30 minutes after I have taken the tablet but not when you add in exercise! It was so quick and so intense. Yuck.

The strange dreams – I mentioned this in my last update and they still haven’t stopped. I still haven’t had any nightmares so I can handle that, but I did have a dream about ET cheating on me and laughing in my face so that was quite unpleasant.

Reading about the side effects of varenicline;

The most common side effect is nausea, affecting about three out of 10 people. This might be eased by taking varenicline with food, or your doctor may recommend reducing your dose. Nausea is usually mild to moderate and fades with time. Other side effects include stomach or bowel problems (e.g. constipation, gas, dry mouth, vomiting, indigestion), headache, dizziness, sleeping problems, unusual dreams, feeling tired, increased appetite and changes in taste. They are usually mild and they generally appear in the first week of taking the medicine.

I have:

- Nausea

- Dry mouth

- Headache

- Dizziness

- Unusual dreams

- Feeling tired

- Increased appetite

- Changes in taste

I have been on these tablets for 3 & ½ weeks so I would assume it would be over by now… I need to go back to the doctors to deal with it all.

There are some things I have realised about my ‘smoking self’ that really disappoint me… When we decided to go to bed early on Monday night my first thought was ‘but I can’t smoke in bed’ – WHAT WAS THAT? It really concerned me that that was who I was before. I’m sure this will be more common as time goes on, but I really don’t want to see what I was like for all that time. It really did control my life.

I am trying to avoid sugar & carbs because I CAN’T STOP EATING!!! I am happy to continue eating lots, I just need to be careful about what I am putting in.

The extra time means I have extra time to get myself to pilates, I did a class last night just because I had time. I missed this morning because my clock was 1 hour fast and woke me up at 4:30am, I was not getting up! I want to go again on the way home tonight but that means I have to skip the doctors… and then Friday & Saturday mornings.

Exciting news!! One of my friends got engaged!!! I’m so over the moon for them. It’s so exciting and she will make a beautiful bride. Plus now I have someone on my wavelength when it comes to a non-traditional wedding. Oh and they just got back from Sri Lanka – check out her blog here  – The food looks amazing, I can’t wait to go one day.