Quit smoking need advise about Nicotine and my lungs

[something]

Hello, Doctor,

I am 23 years old woman , have been smoking for 4.5 years, Have stopped 6 days a go, have never tried to quit but this time is the first and am sure the last one, I am not willing to touch any cigarette anymore. I have got a question about Nicotine gums which I am using, what they do and are they addictive? Secondly, I can not sleep at night recently do You know why? Thirdly, how do You think how much damage have I done for my lungs while smoking and can I get a lung cancer at my age 23? What are my chances to develop lung cancer now after 4 years of smoking? ANd one more question I used to cough before stopping smoking, but strange thing happened I stopped coughing immediately after I stopped smoking am not coughing for 6 days , did not cough even once? Why it happened like that , You have mentioned that people who stop smoking develop a cough till lungs are all cleared up.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR time~
Brigita

[something]

THank You so much for Your reply, I am not used to smoke even 1 pack of cigarettes a day... just around 10. I am really hoping I did not do many damage to my lungs yet...Thank You for Your help, I am still smoke free. I do not think that I will get addictive to Nicotine gums as they taste so bad... it is really disgusting staff.

[National Jewish Health]

Nicotine gums substitute for the nicotine in cigarettes, to reduce the nicotine addiction desire to smoke.  If used properly at the recommended dosage, with gradual tapering and for the recommended time frame, the gum is not addictive.  However if used in higher than recommended doses for long periods of time, you will become and remain addicted to the nicotine just as happens with cigarettes and, to a significant degree defeat the purpose of the gum.  Your note suggests that you are committed to quitting.  That commitment will go a long way towards your smoking cessation being successful and permanent.

Your sleep disturbance is probably a nicotine withdrawal effect.  Assuming that you smoked less than 2 packs daily, you are unlikely to have sustained permanent lung damage and extremely unlikely to get smoke-induced lung cancer.  Your risk of this will progressively diminish with time and will be approximately the same as that of your peers who have not smoked, 3 years or so after your quitting.  The fact that your cough ceased immediately is a good sign; a sign that the smoking has not resulted in enough inflammation to cause excessive mucus production and lung clearance of mucus.

As the American Lung Association says that by quitting, “You have just committed a death-defying act.”  Good luck at sticking with it.