Smoking and Anxiety: The Cycle No One Talks About

Many people light up a cigarette when they feel anxious or stressed, thinking that it will calm them down and reduce anxiety. Initially, it may feel like it helps, but it’s actually making the anxiety worse. Smoking and anxiety are linked together in a cycle of temporary relief and rebound symptoms. 

In 2023, 40% of United States adults reported using nicotine tobacco products (NTP) in the past year, despite tobacco being the leading cause of death in the United States (1). More research is still needed to verify why smokers are more likely than those who don’t smoke to experience mental health disorders such as anxiety and depression (2). The relationship between anxiety and NTP is linked, whether anxiety disorders initiate anxiety and become addictive, or the prolonged use of nicotine causes increased anxiety.

Why Smoking Feels like Anxiety Relief 

When experiencing anxiety or stress, taking a break and smoking seems to provide instant relief, but it is temporary. What is happening is the brain is releasing dopamine, “feel-good, reward brain chemicals,” and it appears that the anxiety has decreased. This provides an instant psychological and physical event simultaneously. 

Nicotine is extremely addictive, and smoking relieves the withdrawal of nicotine in the body with the first puff as it floods into the body. This may seem to be treating the anxiety when, in fact, it is treating the nicotine craving and avoiding the uncomfortable symptoms of irritability, restlessness, and fulfilling the habit demand. 

The Rebound Effect: Why Anxiety Returns Stronger 

Smoking is a learned behavior, and it is 80% mental and 20% physical to kick the habit. Nicotine has a short half-life, which means it leaves your body quickly. When the nicotine drops, the craving returns along with the side effects of restlessness, irritability, and anxiety. 

This relief is not helping the anxiety but fulfilling the nicotine urge. Stepping away and inhaling a cigarette appears to help, but what really helps is deep breathing and walking away for a few moments to regroup. This is a vicious cycle that keeps repeating. The withdrawal-related negative emotions continue to reinforce this behavior and feeling as if the anxiety is lessened by smoking. 

Anxiety Dependence Loop 

When experiencing anxiety, it will likely increase smoking. If already in a habit of smoking, it may increase the risk of anxiety. The brain determines, “This is helping me cope”. Over time, this behavior has built dependence. The higher the frequency of smoking, the increased levels of anxiety. 

Using nicotine chronically will fundamentally rewire the brain’s natural ability to regulate stress, mood, or anxiety, and this creates a negative feedback loop that overall increases anxiety (3). 

This is a trap for nicotine users. They must continue to consume nicotine to feel normal and avoid the psychological discomfort of withdrawal. 

Why Smoking Feels Emotional, Not Physical 

Smoking has become a coping tool, pausing the current stressor, and a sense of control. It develops an emotional dependence of “I need this to cope right now” and conditions the brain to smoke when faced with stress, anxiety, or other emotional states. 

This is not a weakness; it’s a learned behavior of mental and behavioral attachment to smoking. It can be changed. 

What Happens When You Quit Smoking 

First of all, smoking is a physical and mental attachment. The mental attachment is how smoking is serving you; it’s a friend, something that can be relied on. It has been integrated into every part of life, and quitting would feel like life is incomplete. 

When you quit smoking, the nervous system recalibrates itself. This typically does not worsen mental health. Your body is adjusting and resetting naturally without nicotine. It may feel like anxiety is worse, but there are coping skills to practice that help ease the nicotine withdrawal.

Since nicotine leaves the body quickly, after 3-5 days of quitting smoking, your body has no trace of nicotine in it. Many other health benefits begin minutes after stopping smoking, such as reduced heart rate. Review the chart to see all the amazing benefits of stopping smoking. 

Many people light up a cigarette when they feel anxious or stressed, thinking that it will calm them down and reduce anxiety. Initially, it may feel like it helps, but it’s actually making the anxiety worse. Smoking and anxiety are linked together in a cycle of temporary relief and rebound symptoms. 

In 2023, 40% of United States adults reported using nicotine tobacco products (NTP) in the past year, despite tobacco being the leading cause of death in the United States (1). More research is still needed to verify why smokers are more likely than those who don’t smoke experience mental health disorders such as anxiety and depression (3). The relationship between anxiety and NTP are linked whether anxiety disorders initiate anxiety and become addictive, or the prolonged use of nicotine causes increased anxiety. 

Why Smoking Feels like Anxiety Relief 

When experiencing anxiety or stress, taking a break and smoking seems to provide instant relief, but it is temporary. What is happening is the brain is releasing dopamine, “feel-good, reward brain chemicals,” and it appears that the anxiety has decreased. This provides an instant psychological and physical event simultaneously. 

Nicotine is extremely addictive, and smoking relieves the withdrawal of nicotine in the body with the first puff as it floods into the body. This may seem to be treating the anxiety when, in fact, it is treating the nicotine craving and avoiding the uncomfortable symptoms of irritability, restlessness, and fulfilling the habit demand.

The Rebound Effect: Why Anxiety Returns Stronger 

Smoking is a learned behavior, and it is 80% mental and 20% physical to kick the habit. Nicotine has a short half-life, which means it leaves your body quickly. When the nicotine drops, the craving returns along with the side effects of restlessness, irritability, and anxiety. 

This relief is not helping the anxiety but fulfilling the nicotine urge. Stepping away and inhaling a cigarette appears to help, but what really helps is deep breathing and walking away for a few moments to regroup. This is a vicious cycle that keeps repeating. The withdrawal-related negative emotions continue to reinforce this behavior. 

Anxiety Dependence Loop 

When experiencing anxiety, it will likely increase smoking. If already in a habit of smoking, it may increase the risk of anxiety. The brain determines, “This is helping me cope”. Over time, this behavior has built dependence. The higher the frequency of smoking, the increased levels of anxiety. 

Using nicotine chronically will fundamentally rewire the brain’s natural ability to regulate stress, mood, or anxiety, and this creates a negative feedback loop that overall increases anxiety (3). 

This is a trap for nicotine users. They must continue to consume nicotine to feel normal and avoid the psychological discomfort of withdrawal. 

Why Smoking Feels Emotional, Not Physical 

Smoking has become a coping tool, pausing the current stressor, and a sense of control. It develops an emotional dependence of “I need this to cope right now” and conditions the brain to smoke when faced with stress, anxiety, or other emotional states. 

This is not a weakness; it’s a learned behavior of mental and behavioral attachment to smoking. It can be changed.

What Happens When You Quit Smoking 

First of all, smoking is a physical and mental attachment. The mental attachment is how smoking is serving you; it’s a friend, something that can be relied on. It has been integrated into every part of life, and quitting would feel like life is incomplete (4). 

When you quit smoking, the nervous system recalibrates itself. This typically does not worsen mental health. Your body is adjusting and resetting naturally without nicotine. It may feel like anxiety is worse, but there are coping skills to practice that help ease the nicotine withdrawal. 

Since nicotine leaves the body quickly, after 3-5 days of quitting smoking, your body has no trace of nicotine in it (4). Many other health benefits begin minutes after stopping smoking, such as reduced heart rate. Review the chart to see all the amazing benefits of stopping smoking (5). 

Infographic of smoking cessation benefits within the body 

Breaking The Cycle 

Awareness is the first step. Breaking the cycle begins with wanting to quit smoking and recognizing that it is a mental and physical attachment. This learned behavior can flip over to a positive, healthy change by rewiring the brain.

Making small shifts to change your habits and know why you want to quit smoking. Begin by making a list of when you smoke during the day and night. Review and examine your triggers. Create small changes in your habits to interrupt the current brain pattern. 

When feeling stressed or anxious, it’s the deep breathing that calms the nervous system, not the cigarette. Nicotine in the cigarette is a stimulant, which does the opposite of calming down. Nicotine constricts blood vessels, increases heart rate, and causes the heart to work harder. Deep breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system, automatically reducing heart and breathing rates. 

Make a list of distractors so when you are craving a cigarette or feeling anxious, the list is in front of you, ready to go, just choose an activity such as exercise, walking, stretching, deep breathing, reading, adult coloring books, or any distraction to change the path of wanting to smoke or continually focusing on the stressor. This will break the cycle. Perform an internet search of smoking distractions ot get started. 

Smoking, The Anxiety Cycle Wrapped Up 

Smoking may feel like relief; however, it often maintains anxiety. The cycle is understandable, and it is possible to make a change. Smoking may increase the risk of anxiety if a habit of smoking already exists. If anxiety is present, it may lead to smoking as a way to cope with emotions. Either way, smoking is not the healthiest choice for anxiety.  There are national quit lines for help. They provide free confidential support to help you quit smoking at 1-800-QUITNOW (6). What if the thing you thought was helping you cope is keeping you stuck? 

References: 

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030646032500262X#b0200 (1) https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/diseases/depression-anxiety.html (2) Does Nicotine Actually Decrease Anxiety? - Biology Insights (3) 

Psychologist Shares How to Quit Smoking (4) 

Benefits of Quitting Smoking | Smoking and Tobacco Use | CDC (5) 

Benefits of Quitting Smoking | Smoking and Tobacco Use | CDC (source for infographic) Quitlines and Other Cessation Support Resources | Smoking and Tobacco Use | CDC (6)