Smoking and A.D.D.

[Mike/NY]

Im a heavy smoker. While nicotine acts as a stimulant in small doses in larger doses it acts as a depressant. It also is a vasoconstictor. (decreases the diameter of the blood vessels). As such the blood flow to the brain and thus the oxygen is diminished.

The common consensus is that smoking helps to concentrate. I believe that to be a fallacy. Unfortunately it's a b*tch to quit. So I cannot test my hypothesis.

I was wondering if anyone who has smoked heavily and has managed to quit has noticed any discernable differance in their mental functioning/moods.

[Imnapl]

Hi Mike,
I found a thread that might interest you. http://www.addforums.com/forums/show...hlight=smoking

I smoked my last cigarette on June 21, 2005. I posted this two days later. http://www.addforums.com/forums/show...3&postcount=11

Mike, I gave up most of my smoking "habits" before I really quit and it was so easy that I'm sorry I didn't try Buproprion years ago.

[relvinnian]

Originally Posted by Mike/NY

Im a heavy smoker. While nicotine acts as a stimulant in small doses in larger doses it acts as a depressant. It also is a vasoconstictor. (decreases the diameter of the blood vessels). As such the blood flow to the brain and thus the oxygen is diminished.

The common consensus is that smoking helps to concentrate. I believe that to be a fallacy. Unfortunately it's a b*tch to quit. So I cannot test my hypothesis.

I was wondering if anyone who has smoked heavily and has managed to quit has noticed any discernable differance in their mental functioning/moods.

Nicotine is a peripheral vasoconstrictor, meaning it selectively constricts peripheral vessels (extremeties, and outer skin layers), while it dilates blood vessels that lead to the brain and supply the large muscle groups, improving bloodflow. Unfortunately, cigarettes contain many noxious poisons, including carbon monoxide, that act to negate any positive effect this dilation might have.

For a seasoned smoker it requires high doses to block nicotinic transmission, and nicotine generally acts as an agonist, improving the performance of many important systems. Nicotine is a proven, highly potent, cognitive enhancer, and shows evidence of anti-aging/neuroprotective activity as well.

The real problem is not nicotine itself, but its method of delivery! Cigarettes are by far the worst, but chew, snuff, cigar, and pipe tobacco products all work to quickly and potently increase nicotine levels in the brain. They contain many chemicals that modify the absorbtion and dynamic profile of nicotine itself, which results in a flood of DA in the limbic regions of the brain (especially the ventral tegmental area, and nucleus accubens). This leads to tolerance and addiction.

Nicotine has proven effective for Alzheimer's treatment, ADHD, and pharmaceutical companies are looking increasingly at stable compounds that modulate specific nicotinic receptors in the brain. Nicotine itself is a very cool compound that effects many different neurochemical systems, including improving cholinergic function and dopamine modulation, as well as effects on glutamate, gaba, serotonin, norepinephrine, and various neuro- and peripheral steroids.

Maybe we should be looking a little closer at nicotine . Tobacco, and the chemicals that are infused within it, are the true killers.

[irish guy]

I was almost a 2 pack a day smoker for 15 years and when i quit my ADHD symtons really started to show. I was able to quit with wellbutrin...it was pretty easy.

[sgolden5374]

I am a smoker with ADD and recently I gave Wellbutrin SR a try in hopes that it would help the ADD and help me quit smoking. Unfortunately, it only increased my anxiety to intolerable levels and I had to stop taking it altogether before I could discern any benefits.
I have quit smoking in the past for extended periods and, frankly, I still felt the same except I no longer smoked.

[Draven]

I quit smokeing for 2 years to have my kids and I kid you not I got to a point that I was having 5 and 6 anxiety attacks a day. My dr tried everything at the time and I had not been diagnosed yet with ADD. I got to a point where i thought I was going crazy and wanted to die. I decided one day to smoke a ciggerate and ended up starting back to smokeing. I was amazed that I went down to maybe 1 attack a week and then about 1 or 2 a month. that was after I had gotten tired of all the meds and quit taking them. I believe that nicotine in it's self helps and no Dr. can convince me otherwise after what I went through but I also know now that I also need meds too in order to minimize my anxiety attacks and other disfunctions.

[speedo]

I have read that smoking increases serotonin levels in th ebrain by ovewr 100X. It definitely does improve concentration. Conversely, quitting smoking suddenly leaves you scattered, doistracted as serotonin levels will plummet when you stop smoking.

Me

Originally Posted by Mike/NY

Im a heavy smoker. While nicotine acts as a stimulant in small doses in larger doses it acts as a depressant. It also is a vasoconstictor. (decreases the diameter of the blood vessels). As such the blood flow to the brain and thus the oxygen is diminished.

The common consensus is that smoking helps to concentrate. I believe that to be a fallacy. Unfortunately it's a b*tch to quit. So I cannot test my hypothesis.

I was wondering if anyone who has smoked heavily and has managed to quit has noticed any discernable differance in their mental functioning/moods.

[hb34]

I guess it depends on the person and how much they smoke. When I quit I didn't notice any difference in my ability to concentrate on things. Of course I only smoked around a half to maybe a whole pack a day so it's not like I was losing a dramatic amount of nicotine per day. Or maybe my ADD is so extreme that nicotine of any dosage is going to be of little help to me. The way I feel I'd try cigarettes if I hadn't already. What's the worst that could happen? I'd get cancer and die? These days it's a close call between feeling like I do right now for the rest of my life and feeling a little better (aided by nicotine) for a shorter time. There are a lot of variables that are up to each of us to decide on as to what is best for us individually. In other words (I'll put it in English this time - lol) no one can tell you what will work for you but you. Whether it's nicotine, Ritalin, Adderall or something else... it's all trial and error and it depends on who is trying it. There is no right answer as to what works with YOU. There's only one way to find out.

JMHO

[Imnapl]

Could it be the habit of smoking while doing something? Are we distracted because we miss the cigarette while doing certain things?

I have watched two people die slow, painful, oxygen deprived, deaths due to smoking related heart disease. Until I went on Wellbutrin, I had resigned myself to the fact that an oxygen tank would be a necessary fashion accessory sometime in my future. Planning an outing by calculating how much time I have on a small tank of oxygen may still happen, but I hope I'm not too late to prevent it.

My doctor is very happy for me and my son just got a prescription for Wellbutrin because it worked for me. My son is motivated because he has witnessed my failed attempts during his lifetime.

[kyla]

Mike,

I was a 2 to 3 pack a day smoker from many years before finally quitting 5 years ago. I had never even considered quitting prior to that, since I couldn't imagine going without a cigarette for a couple of hours, let alone a whole day. Fortunately for me, I hated smoking enough to go through the pain of giving it up. There is no question that my ADD symptoms were exaccerbated by quitting. In fact, it was only after I quit that I was diagnosed with ADD. I had a terrible time adjusting to not smoking, and it took me over a year before I felt pretty sure I'd be able to function as a non-smoker. This isn't true of everyone...many people quit a lot more easily. The good news is that if you are willing to ride it out, and absolutely refuse to pick up a cigarette, you really do start to feel normal again and then, lo and behold, the time comes when you don't even think about smoking, or have any desire to.

I quit by going through SmokeEnders and then going to a support group for over a year. I could never have just thrown the cigarettes away. SmokeEnders is a very structured 4 week program that focuses on teaching cognitive skills for dealing with quitting, and I think that may be particularly helpful for people with ADD.

Good luck!