Hi, fellow snuffers, As a newbie, I have got hundreds of questions, and I am learning a lot reading new and old threads in this forum. But now I have an important question. I have been snuffing for two weeks, give or take a day. When I started, as almost everybody else, I sniffed very deep, and most of the snuff ended up in my throat, so I coughed a lot when snuffing. I am a slow learner, but I think I am getting the hang of it. I now pinch the snuff with my thumb and forefinger, and I “put” it in my nose, while breathing through my mouth. Then I close my nostrils gently with my fingers, so the snuff gets in the right place in my nose, and then I enjoy it. This method, learned in this forum, has improved my snuffing a lot. As of yesterday, I haven´t coughed at all while snuffing. Besides, I haven´t got a runny nose anymore. The problem is that I have developed a cough, maybe for the last three or four days. It´s not a constant cough, it´s more like two or three strong fits of coughing a day, which at first I assumed it was due to my poor technique, but now, two days since I started snuffing “right”, it is still there. Should I get concerned by it? Is snuff doing this to me? I would be very grateful if you share your experiences and comments with me. PS: I am snuffing maybe 1 gram a day, and I still smoke little aromatic cigars, 7 or 8 a day (until two weeks ago, I smoked 30 a day) which I inhale, like I always did. And I have never had any lung issues, just the occassional cold and flu. I am snuffing mainly Toque Chocolate and Poschl Apricot, and two or three pinches a day of Hedges The Snuff. Thanks a lot, and sorry for the long post.
It may be unrelated to the snuff. I used to have sporadic (but mild) bouts of nosebleeds which started after I ran into a wall as a 7 year old. I had one shortly after started seriously snuffing and attributed it to the snuff because the two coincided, it was only with hindsight I realised it was simply an old problem that was reoccuring and not entirely attributable to the snuff.
Enrique, I think its common to have period of getting used to a completely different way of taking tobacco. You might still be getting a small amount in your throat. Try puting the thumb and forefinger in your nostril and just very gently breathing in through your nose as though you are smelling something nice in the kitchen. No sharp sniff, just a slow and gentle breathe in. Also, don’t forget it is still tobacco and even though the risks are massively reduced snuff can still irritate until you are completely used to it.
I would’nt imagine snuff would cause your cough. If anything I would cut back altogether on the smoking, inhaling 7 or 8 little cigars a day…sounds like that might be catching up to you.
When you drastically cut down the number of cigarettes, this cough can occur, I think. Something similar happens to many people who stop or cut down smoking in short time. Your lungs start to clean themselves and that causes the cough. But if you suspect snuff, you can do this experiment: For a couple of days use only coarse moist snuff. It cannot reach your lungs. If you still have cough, its not the snuff! Actually I’m not sure that very dry fine snuffs can reach lungs, but lets say its possible in case of hard snorting.
If I had to wager a weird guess, but one based on my experience. That cough is from weening away from the cigars, your throat and lungs trying to heal themselves. If you quit them completely it would get worse but probablu be over quicker. My hypothesis based on my experience. Everyone is different, your results may vary, this is not professional medical advice or counsel. Did I get enough disclaimers in there to not get flamed? Ken
I would have to agree with Ken. I used to be able to smoke 1 1/2 packs of Lucky shorts a day and never had a sore throat and rarely coughed. Then when I quit and had the occasional smoke, it felt like the lining in my throat was sunburn, tickling, terrible uncomfortable. That may very well be what’s happening to you?
Bart, the reason I looked to snuff and snus was my throat just couldn’t take smoking anymore, I was a pack a day plus smoker for 15 years and it was just getting worse and worse for me. Numerous quit attempts that lead to cigar and pipe smoking and the end result is I cannot smoke tobacco because it just goes too far and I am inhaling freaking pipe and cigar tobacco then right back to cigs. Bottom line is I am a nicotine addict and harm reduction is my only recourse right now. Plus I never liked the patch. Ken
That could be true but also in the absence of smoking your body should relearn how to deal with them without the chemical assistance in a short bit of time. Ken
Coughing is a result of very small long hairs returning back once you stop smoking /smoke much less. Everybody who tried to quit smoking has this experience, nothing wrong with that. The tar and smoke burn them / let’s them stick together… no you have to get used to them growing back again…
Thank you all for your comments. Today I am still coughing, but not so strong as yesterday (it was a really bad day). I don´t feel so anxy (is that word correct??), nervous, about any health issues anymore. So, if coughing means that my lungs are getting rid of all the mud I have been getting in them in all these years, let´s cough happily!! Thanks again. Enrique
Most smoker coughs when they quit or reduce, it happens. I remember being told by someone once that nicotine helps the lungs clear mucous and that the morning smokers cough was a minor withdrawl from the over night nicotine fast. Never confirmed the factuality of it but it does correspond to many who quit cold turkey and their experiences. Ken
Enrique, you might want to see a doctor. He might tell you what to do to avoid coughing. The lung is a very sensitive organ. Nothing to worry about, just to make sure.
Can’t add anything re the coughing, lots of good advice here, but I know if I inhaled 7 little cigars a day I’d be a wreck. I still smoke a pipe and an occasional cigar, but I don’t inhale and am sure it would wreak havoc if I did. Hope you can quit the butts, you’ll be amazed at how much better you will feel, that was certainly true in my case when I quit them 15 yeas ago. I’m a pretty new snuffer myself and I also found your method to be the bee’s knees. And, if I may agree with the post about coarse and moist snuff? I recently got hold of some F&T Santo Domingo. Fabuloso. Bien venido.
@wildwilliam: I know you are right. I am a very heavy nicotine addict, I tried pipe smoking some time ago, and I liked it a lot. In fact, I still have an occassional bowl, amoratics being my tobacco of choice. Have you tried McBaren’s Vanilla Cream and Dan Tobacco’s Blue Note? They were my favourites. The problem with pipe smoking for me was twofold: on one hand, aromatics made my tongue a wreck, just having a bowl a day I ended up with a sore tongue; on the other hand, I couldn´t stop myself from inhaling. So, I inhaled the whole bowl!! As you know, pipe smoke is far richer than cigarette smoke, maybe less harmful, but nonetheless it was too much for me, so those two problems made me “retire” from pipe smoking. @Alex. Yesterday night I happened to receive a phone call from a close friend of mine, who is a doctor, a neumologist, and after the pleasantries, I asked him about this coughing. And I have to say that this forum’s members are absolutely right. He told me that many heavy smokers, when quitting or reducing considerably, develope this cough, something about cilia growing back and alveoli cleaning themselves (I don´t quite remember the medical jargon). He said I shouldn´t worry, it will go by itself in several days, two or three weeks at most. He even extended a prescription (by phone, lol :)), an over the counter cough syrup, which I may buy this morning. And most importantly, which I want to share with this forum’s members, He told me that many people, when developing this cough, GO BACK TO SMOKING, because they think that not smoking they are getting sicker than when smoking. So, for anybody who is trying to cut down, there goes my little piece of advise: my friends, go on, don´t look back, if you are coughing, it means your lungs are healing, THE DOCTOR TOLD ME SO. It is just a temporary issue, just a matter of days. This morning (it´s 7.40 am here) I haven´t coughed at all, so things are getting better!! Yesterday I smoked 6 little cigars which, for the first time in many years, I just half inhaled. Up to now, I was a deep inhaler. Thanks everybody and sorry for the long post. PS: The words in bold don´t mean I am shouting them, it´s just to emphasize their importance.
@Enrique: Good news. Great to have a doctor as a friend.
I had a mad cough for about 2 weeks when I quit the butts. They cleared up after that.
Ah - that explains my cough when I gave up last year…
Aromatic cigars shouldn’t really be inhaled into your lungs Enrique… that sounds very bad. I’ve been smoking 20 cigars a day but i don’t take them down into my lungs.