Do a person's lungs heal back to normal after smoking for years? I thought I had read sometime in the past, that smoking damage to lungs does not heal after a person quits smoking or do not heal very much. But have read that they do heal. Sorry, but I do not remember where I read any of it. Anyone have any experience with this one way or another? Any medical people here who know? Thanx!
Do lungs really heal?
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My take is every part of us heals when not abused.In the past anti-smoking people have stated that the first smoke did damage that you will live with forever, which may be true, I do not buy it.If you want to get really grossed out go to a bodiesexhibition.It really made me want to quit smokes.
I have read that if you do not get cancer, the lungs get back to their original state in about 10 years. Don't have a link, but I have also heard several docs say the same thing, so they must be teaching that in med school.
10 years, huh. That's good! Here's hoping I live that long. : ) How sad it took so long to hear about e-cigs.
I read 5 for the pink to come back. Of course, it's all contingent on the cessation of inhaling anything directly into the lungs. vaping is one step of a much larger recovery, imho. Since none of this has any approved science behind it anything anyone says is all their own opinion.
Everyone should live so long, smitti and recover.
There was no other point to vaping, was there?
I had smoked a half a pack a day for 5-6 years up until a month ago. I had been weening myself off of analogs before vaping so the transition was very easy and the side effects were minimal. At the end of my chapter of life as a smoker I was noticing constant congestion and difficulty breathing, which made quitting much easier. For the first few weeks I noticed I was feeling better, but my breaths were still shallow. I figured that these symptoms were normal during the body's recovery from cigarettes, but after 4 weeks I'm starting to get nervous. Is difficulty taking deep breaths 4 weeks after quitting something I should be worried about, or is it a normal side effect for quitting?
njrockpd: As I recall the time frame of 4-6 weeks post cigarettes ... it was around that time I became aware that I could inhale DEEPLY, for the first time in decades. I think there may be cause for concern if your situation doesn't improve soon.
If I'm not feeling better in the next few weeks I'll head to the doctor. Thanks
Last night I was unable to sleep because I was having a hard time getting my breath. I was told it may be anxiety and my mother (RN) said that maybe it was the e-cig I've been raving about. I dismissed her for that assumption, but I was wondering if there was anyone in the medical field that may be able to give me some advice.
There's a lot of threads on here regarding allergies to PG and less often VG. If you've only tried one then try the other to see if that makes a difference. I don't think I'd worry too much if I'd only ever smoked half a pack a day for 5-6 years.
Thanks for the advice. Would I have to mix my own juice to us VG instead of PG or are there companies who sell VG liquid?
I think vaporbomb.com lets you choose 100% VG on premixed or if you want to mix - freedomsmokesUSA.com also might-I don't recall off-hand and with free shipping, ECOpure liquid is only a few $'s more than other VG vendors (not sure if their Ritze juices are also vg but while it seems just a few choice, you can mix their flavors together to make your own (ie vanilla with cherry(or another fruit flavor) would give you the taste of a different ice cream- I think it's all VG because of the amount of vapor) - intellicig.com carries both + mixers. ....incase it's not obvious, the last one is my favorite because they list everything that's in the ECOpure + a data chart explaining how the science was done and a mixing guide.
It depends on your preference and there's probably many other vendors that offer VG options both to mix or ready to vape. These are just three that come to mind.
Perhaps others can suggest a few others or correct me about the ingredients being available. It's possible you might have to ask (I didn't though would still purchase from any of these vendors for VG.)
HTH
I wouldn't be too concerned. Are you getting any excercise? Your lungs are "calibrated" to breathe while you smoke. It will take awhile before "breathing" becomes "natural". I think the best way to jump start the act of breathing air is to excercise. Force the issue.
I smoked for 35 years and it's day 50 for me. I've been going to the gym every day and doing moderate cardio. Some days my lung capacity feels great, other days it feels like I'm sucking air in through a straw! I think my lungs are just freaking out with all the new found air!
Since nicotine itself is a vascular constrictor it causes the arteries to narrow - it also causes a short-term increase in blood pressure, heart rate and the flow of blood from the heart. I would encourage a check up at the clinic njrockpd if you are thinking about the tightness of chest, inability to breathe by more than just a passing thought. You can try a few deep breathing exercises and see if that helps <sit in a good chair, lift arms out to side inhale as deep as you can slowly, hold it for a count of 1, 2, 3...exhale slowly then repeat counting to 6, relax for a few minutes, then repeat, with arms over your head. This is to encourage the entire lung / chest area to expand, slow control is to prevent hyperventilation, freedom of movement is important, but safety is paramount.>
What mg level are you vaping and is it PG or VG or a blend?
While the lungs can recoup some after damage, they never come back 100%....its my understanding that the tar remains not so much an all over coating, but more so of spots < as seen and heard on Dr. G, Medical Examiner >
What mg level are you vaping and is it PG or VG or a blend?
While the lungs can recoup some after damage, they never come back 100%....its my understanding that the tar remains not so much an all over coating, but more so of spots < as seen and heard on Dr. G, Medical Examiner >
Thanks a lot for the great advice I'm definetly going to look into it if the problem continues.
I wouldn't be too concerned. Are you getting any excercise? Your lungs are "calibrated" to breathe while you smoke. It will take awhile before "breathing" becomes "natural". I think the best way to jump start the act of breathing air is to excercise. Force the issue.
I smoked for 35 years and it's day 50 for me. I've been going to the gym every day and doing moderate cardio. Some days my lung capacity feels great, other days it feels like I'm sucking air in through a straw! I think my lungs are just freaking out with all the new found air!
That's great that after 35 years of smoking you are open minded enough to try something like this. I've been working out 3 -4 days a week for the past 6 months. I hope that the problem is my lungs don't know what to do with the excess of air, but it's the second night in a row that I was unable to sleep due to breathing problems. I made a doctors app for next week so hopefully it's nothing, but I might as well check to make sure I'm healthy, which is kind of why I started vaping in the first place. Thanks for the advice everyone.
I'm vaping 11 mg PG. I just bought a 510 and 6 mg liquid is on the way so at least I can lower my nicotine level.
One thing is for sure...quitting smoking won't make your lungs any worse...LOL. Before getting off cigarettes (approx. 16 years smoking) I was at the point of getting light headed on a sneeze or getting close to blacking out if I stood up too fast. Shoveling the driveway? Ya, right! Now I can fly up my stairs. I can jump on the bike and do something with it. Hell, I bet when it comes time to put the snow tires on the cars I'll leave the air tools in the garage and do them all with hand tools...and without stopping on each tire to have a smoke....or take an entire day...LOL. Wait, I'll still be vaping like crazy. Maybe half a day. I'm actually looking forward to winter (ya, really) and shoveling the driveway and building snow forts with my 3 year old son. Last winter was sad...no....pathetic. My poor kid just wanted to play in the snow and all I had was about 15 minutes of energy in me. This winter will be fun!
As asti suggested, deep breathing exercises are important to regain lung capacity. As you do them do a slow exhale so as to COMPLETELY empty the lungs and then slowly refill. Will your lungs ever completely heal? Probably not. But as only a 1/2PAD for 5-6 yrs, you will have very little damage, this is pretty light smoking comparatively. I've been a nurse for 15 yrs, but have never worked in pulmonary medicine, so this is just an educated guess. You also have to consider, every body heals differently and genetically, we are all different. There is no cookie cutter answer to this, unfortunately. But, by quitting now you have drastically if not completely eliminated your chance at developing COPD and lung cancer esp. considering how little you smoked for that short a duration. Hope this helps
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