If you are about to read this article and you are taking a smoke break or get a cup of coffee, stop. Put the cigarette out and throw it away. Pour the coffee down the drain. If you are in recovery you should follow these directions very closely.
Philadelphia has just become one of a growing number of cities that require persons in recovery must also quit smoking when they enter state funded recovery. This city went even further requiring that all personnel have to quit smoking if they wish to continue to work in the clinics.
Having a cigarette with your coffee has been combination used by lots of people. People smoke cigarettes to calm nerves and coffee to pick them up. Coffee and cigarettes together can do damage to your heart. Coffee and cigarettes are both stimulants.
Coffee is a stimulant that can enhance awareness and energized your body. According to the National Coffee Association, 83% of Americans drink coffee everyday. Americans tend to drink three cups of coffee a day, which is 587 million cups of coffee being, drank a year. Coffee has been found to be good for your liver as well as reducing the chances of Alzheimer’s, dementia, stroke, and cancer. Too much coffee can also have consequences. Coffee can cause dehydration and insomnia. Cigarettes may bring on a euphoric feeling of relaxation but only harm comes from smoking cigarettes. When you inhale a cigarette you are exposed to 7,000 chemicals of which 69 of them cause cancer. Because the effects of smoking are only temporary, people tend to smoke every few hours.
When you combine coffee with cigarettes a few thing happen. The coffee will increase blood flow and cigarettes will restrict the amount of oxygen in your blood flow. This combination will help develop a plaque in arteries which will make them rigid and lose elasticity. As your arteries narrow your high blood pressure will increase putting you at risk for heart attack and stroke. The heart will be forced to work harder to meet the body’s requirement of oxygen in your blood.
One inhalation from a cigarette will result in nicotine hitting your brain in 10 seconds. Nicotine will increase the production of the dopamine neurotransmitter that will induce sensations of pleasure. The effects of nicotine wear off very quickly, after only a few minutes.
At the end of the an eight-month study in Florida, clients who had never smoked “reached full recovery of neurocognitive functions.” Those who still smoked “continued to be slower with mental tasks.”
I always hear that relapse is a part of recovery. What does that mean? Can you reduce your risk as with other diseases? How does my lifestyle play a role in relapse?
“Relapse can occur because an addictive disorder is a chronic disorder. As there is no cure, there is always the potential for relapse,” notes Stephen Gilman, MD, an addiction specialist in New York City. “Anyone can relapse.” Risk of relapse can also depend on the substance used. Dr. Gilman notes, “There is a high rate of relapse for opiate addiction. At one year after stopping opiates, there is an 85 percent chance of relapse.” With other substances, the rate of relapse varies widely. Alcohol relapse depends on the individual, but can range from 30 percent to 70 percent.
Selena Bartlett, from the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center at the University of California, San Francisco, thinks that the reliance on cigarettes by most recovering alcoholics has a biological basis and may actually increase the chances of relapse.
While drug relapse can be a challenge there are steps you can take to reduce the risk. Nicotine and Caffeine cessation are two lifestyle changes that go a long way in reducing your rate of relapse.
Cigarette smokers metabolize caffeine more rapidly than nonsmokers. This means that smokers have to drink more coffee to get the same level of caffeine in their blood. It’s this difference that can cause problems for those who have just quit smoking.
Researchers in San Francisco found that when ex-smokers drank their usual amount of coffee, the levels of caffeine in their blood rose 250 percent over previous levels because they were metabolizing it more slowly. These high levels could cause some ex-smokers to start smoking again. The higher levels of caffeine can make a person jittery causing an ex-smoker to use a cigarette to calm their nerves.
Nicotine is also part stimulant, and nicotine side effects can cause insomnia and withdrawal symptoms similar to caffeine. Smoking may also create other sleep disturbances. Research has shown that smokers spend more time sleeping lightly and less time in deep healthy sleep than non-smokers.
Here are some tips that will help to quit smoking and stay off the caffeine.
1. Keep a positive attitude. Believe that you can quit.
2. Get rid of all cigarettes and matches and have your teeth cleaned.
3. Change your habits. After a meal go for a walk. When you want to go out, go to places that prohibit smoking.
4. When the urge hits do something else. Plan several activities that you can do every time you get the urge.
5. Tell others that you’ve quit. They’ll be glad to remind you that you want to stop smoking.
6. Get more information about the hazards of smoking. The more you know, the better prepared you’ll be to deal with not smoking.
Caffeine is a psychoactive stimulant. It will increase alertness, decrease fatigue, give euphoria and elevate your mood. The bad affects of caffeine can include sleeplessness, irritability, anxiety and depression. A person can suffer the bad affects from one or two cups of coffee a day.
Caffeine is a chemical compound found in the leaves, seeds, and fruits of more than 63 plant species. Most commonly comes from coffee and cocoa beans, cola nuts, and tealeaves. Coffee isn’t the only source of caffeine. A can of cola contains 45 mg, green tea has 30 mg, an ounce of chocolate has 20 mg, and even aspirin can contain as much as 65 mg.
If you drink more than 250 mg of caffeine a day, which is about two and a half cups, you can suffer from caffeine intoxication. The symptoms include restlessness, nervousness, excitement, excessive urination, insomnia, heartburn, muscle twitching and rambling thought and speech.
There are some withdrawal symptoms when you try to break the caffeine habit. They can include depression, constipation, runny nose, nausea, headaches and a craving for caffeine. To quit it’s best to gradually reduce your caffeine intake. Try to reduce your daily intake of caffeine by 100mg each week. 100mg is about one cup of coffee. Continue decreasing your consumption until you’re down to a safe level, which is about one cup a day. Your plan should also include relaxation, stress reduction, good nutrition and exercise.
Alcohol, marijuana, nicotine, and caffeine are the most widely consumed drugs worldwide. All have been known to mankind for several centuries, alcohol, marijuana, nicotine, and caffeine have become an important part of culture, serving as a vehicle for “Social Interaction”.
There is a growing body of evidence that suggests that smoking cessation and the reduction of caffeine education for addicts can assist substance abuse clients on the path towards behavior change. Focusing on the role of physical health in the recovery process, clients may be better positioned to make informed choices about what they consume. Highlighting the negative impact of caffeine and nicotine, patients may be more open to reducing or quitting these habits.
Recovering persons who want to stop using nicotine and caffeine should prepare to make this transition to prevent unnecessary physical and mental stress. Chewing gum instead of smoking a cigarette can be helpful. Eating foods that are shaped like cigarettes, like celery or carrot sticks, can satisfy the urge to have something in your hand and provide nourishment that help with your brain function.
Exercising regularly, doing yoga and following a healthy diet can also make it easier to eliminate caffeine and nicotine.
Trudy, a 31-year old writer from Phoenix who is over six years sober, feels her dual addictions to food and booze were intertwined. In the end, she states, “quitting coffee or junk food or smoking or road rage — or anything that feels dangerous to your physical or emotional health — is a purely subjective choice. But whatever you do, remember that the goal of sobriety isn’t to earn a halo for your perfection but simply not to pick up a drink.” As Trudy goes on to say, “I’d rather be fat, sober, and happy then skinny, drunk, or dead.”
Before starting your fitness program, consult your physician.