Poor circulation and smoking: any advice?

So, I’ve got some pretty bad circulation issues
In the winter, by the afternoon or evening, my hands turn all sorts of red, purple, blue... I don't even know

One doctor even told me that I shouldn't smoke, even if I were crazy, because I could end up having a stroke

Does anyone have any info on this? Maybe some personal experiences?

If I’m remembering correctly, we might be looking at Raynaud’s 😎. With circulation issues like that hitting you, there's no way around it—smoking is a total non-starter if you actually want to stay healthy and avoid a mess of complications. 😲 👎

Smoking is a losing battle, even when you’re feeling perfectly fine. It’s a dead end.
Now it’s time to actually take charge of your health.
Exercise keeps me sane, even if I can barely find the time for it.
Change your environment—go skiing, hit the pool, just get your body moving.👍 Maybe then things will start looking up.👍

I'm currently in San Diego

I can probably cross skiing off my list right now, since I'm broke
Climate change will hit when I head to Chicago this fall
Swimming has basically dwindled to nothing—just one trip to the beach a day during summer... sometimes we just show up at the shore to kill some time before grabbing coffee

I really need to start hitting the gym
To be honest, I've been planning this forever, but it always comes down to those $67 monthly
expenses It all boils down to those conversations like, "You don't even need to lose weight," or "You're only going just to slim down, don't waste money on that," and then the talk with my mom and dad is over

I'm wondering how concerning this actually is
That drop really spooked me😳

Sports isn't about weight loss; it should simply be defined as "health."
When I'm active, I'm flushing out stress and dumping all that negative energy. I feel incredible physically. It lets me forget my problems—at least while I'm working out, running, skiing, or swimming (when the timing is right, obviously)
It’s funny, really. If people can find the cash for cigarettes, why can't that money go toward a gym membership or a pool? To me, it's way cheaper and infinitely better.😘

Rosemary tincture has always been the go-to for poor circulation. I guess you really need to pinpoint the actual cause first, but using rosemary in a massage helps a lot with blood flow—I know from personal experience. 🙂

Here’s a decent link

ironmaker822 said:It’s weird. If she can find the cash for cigarettes, why isn't that money going toward a gym membership or a pool? Seems way cheaper and better to me.😘

A pack and a half a week
I spend about $80 a month on it.

That's not even half of what a gym costs.😳

smješka said:a pack of Marlboros a week
I’m dropping about $80 a month just on that.

That doesn't even cover half a gym membership.😳

The best way to stay active—and honestly enough for most people—is just walking for 30 minutes, three to five times a week. You definitely don't need your parents to foot the bill for that.😎

Also, smoking habits aren't directly linked to Raynaud's phenomenon. That said, you really ought to avoid any exposure to smoke, whether you're lighting up yourself or just breathing it in around others.

So, let's talk about cigarettes. See, cigarette smoke is loaded with carbon monoxide. Because CO has a much higher affinity for hemoglobin than oxygen does, your blood cells essentially stop delivering enough oxygen to your system, causing them to die off. That’s what triggers atherosclerosis, which eventually leads straight to a heart attack.

If you're already dealing with poor circulation on top of that, you're basically playing with fire. The risk just skyrockets.

Which is why smoking is a hard "no" from me.😉

Maybe those were my last five cigarettes today😳

Honestly, I'm hoping

smile said:maybe those were the last 5 cigarettes😳

I'm honestly hoping

It’ll be better for your health and your wallet, which I guess should be enough motivation to quit. But it's easy for me to sit here and talk about what I don't have to deal with; the body just wants what it's used to. Just stay strong.🙂

placidfox55 said:The best kind of exercise—and honestly enough for the average person—is just walking for 30 minutes, three to five times a week. And you definitely don't need a trust fund from your parents to make that happen. 😎

There I go again...I smoked about 60 to 80 cigarettes a day for 32 years...until I finally quit at age 46. I wanted to be able to tell my younger son not to start, but he was only 13 back then. How could I ask him to stay clean when I was still lighting up?

My older son is 42 now and still smokes. He’s already had three spinal surgeries—including hardware installed to hold everything together. His recovery just isn't happening like mine did after my second spinal surgery (a laminectomy for stenosis at L5-4 and L4-3), mostly because of the smoking.

It was already noted a while ago that I have some calcified plaque in my bilateral carotid arteries...and considering that, along with my Apnea, I have to use a CPAP machine at night. Because of various health issues, frequent X-rays show "vascular calcification"...which tells my primary care doctor to keep a very close eye on my cholesterol levels. Luckily, I've always kept it under 4"...but that just means most of the damage came from the cigarettes..
A specialist told me straight up: the consequences are definitely from the smoking.

Now that I know I have Asbestosis too...I'm just glad I quit smoking 18 years ago. My pulmonologist says my lungs have recovered 100% since I stopped. It usually takes about 10 to 15 years for lung capacity to fully bounce back from years of smoking.

With the Asbestosis, I would be in serious trouble breathing if I hadn't quit. I wonder if I'd even still be here... or at the very least, if I wouldn't have had a stroke.

Over the last 15 years (I'm 64 now), so many people my age have passed away from lung cancer or suffered heart attacks or strokes.

Don't mess around with your health like that...especially if you have kids. You're killing them through secondhand smoke, too. I'm certain my grandson developed asthma because of my older son smoking in the house and in the car. To make matters worse, the kid is almost 18 now and he's already a smoker himself..

placidfox55 is spot on. I've said it many times before: all you really need for your health is 30 minutes of brisk walking every day. No excuses. If it's raining, find a mall or an office building and walk the stairs. Or hit a big shopping center. That will do you more good than any expensive gym membership...and it doesn't cost a dime!

🙂 😉 😎

Jamie Clark74 said:
Here I go again...I smoked for 32 years—about 60 to 80 cigarettes a day...finally quit when I was 46...mostly because I wanted to be able to tell my younger son not to smoke without looking like a hypocrite. He was 13 at the time—how could I lecture him if I was still lighting up?

My older son is 42 now, still smokes, and has already had three spinal surgeries—fusions and mesh to hold everything together. His wounds just won't heal properly because of the smoking, unlike mine did after my own spinal surgery—a laminectomy for stenosis at L5-4 and L4-3.

It was already showing that I have some calcified plaque in my bilateral carotid arteries...and between that and dealing with Apnea, I’m using a CPAP machine at night. With all these issues, frequent X-rays keep showing "vascular calcification"...which tells my GP to keep a very close eye on my cholesterol levels. Luckily, it stays under 4"...but that really just means most of the damage was already done by the smoking..
The specialist told me the consequences were definitely from the cigarettes.

Now that I know I have Asbestosis too...I'm damn glad I quit about 18 years ago...because my pulmonologist says my lungs have recovered 100% since I stopped. It usually takes 10 to 15 years for lung capacity to fully bounce back from years of smoking.

If I were still smoking while dealing with Asbestosis, my breathing would be a nightmare. Honestly, I wonder if I'd even be alive...or if I'd have suffered a stroke by now.

In the last 15 years—I'm 64 now—so many people my age have passed away from lung cancer, heart attacks, or strokes.

Don't mess around with your health...especially if you have kids. You're killing them via secondhand smoke, too. My oldest son's kid almost certainly developed asthma from his dad smoking in the house and in the car. And to make matters worse, the kid is nearly 18 and he's already smoking himself..

placidfox55 is spot on—I've said it plenty of times before: you only need 30 minutes of brisk walking every single day to stay healthy. No excuses. If it's raining, find a building and walk the stairs, or just head to a large shopping mall...it'll do you more good than any gym workout ever could...and it's free.

🙂 😉 😎

Hi Jamie Clark74! I really like your honesty. I'm new to this forum, so I haven't read everything you've posted yet—just a bit. But from what I've gathered, it sounds like you and your family could use a small hospital, or maybe a whole team of specialists. 🙂
How did you end up with Asbestosis living in the States? I thought that was something localized to certain industrial areas near places like old factory towns in the Rust Belt...
Hope you're doing okay now. Take care!
And to everyone else struggling with circulation, I hope you stay strong and manage to kick the habit in the New Year!

M. Reynaud's is essentially a functional circulatory disorder. Smoking definitely makes things worse because you're basically starving your tissues of oxygen, and being out in the cold isn't helping matters either. placidfox55, it’s just common sense, right? I honestly can't believe that someone with even a passing interest in medicine would think smoking wouldn't tank the prognosis for Reynaud's disease.😲 🙄 👎

Sophia Martinez65 said:Hi Jamie Clark74! I really like your vibe. I'm new to this forum, so I haven't had a chance to read everything you've posted yet—just a little bit. But from what I can tell, you and your family probably need an entire small hospital, or at least a whole team of specialists from every field. 🙂
How did you end up with Asbestosis while living in Australia? I always thought that was something localized to people near San Diego, because of that factory out there...
I hope you're doing better now. Take care!
And to everyone else dealing with circulation issues, stay strong. I hope you all manage to kick the smoking habit in the new year!

Unfortunately, Asbestosis is a global issue with over a million victims worldwide... you can find more info on Asbestosis in my thread here:

🙂 😎

smile said:so I have poor circulation
In the winter, by late afternoon or evening, my hands turn red, purple, blue, or who knows what else.

One doctor even told me I shouldn't smoke even if I were losing my mind, because I could end up having a stroke.

Does anyone have any info on this? Any experiences?

Could you describe the episode in more detail? How does it start, how does it spread, what symptoms follow, how long after being exposed to the cold does it happen, how long does it last, and does anything make it subside?😉

Smoking with poor circulation? 😲
Absolutely not!🙄

smiling said:so basically I have terrible circulation
In the winter, by late afternoon or evening, my hands turn this crazy shade of red, purple, blue—honestly, who knows

And one doctor actually told me that I shouldn't even think about smoking, even if I were insane, because I could end up having a stroke

Does anyone have any info on this? Any actual experiences?

...And honestly, why on earth would you EVEN smoke?!?!?! On top of all the other toxic crap we're already breathing in every day, you'd want to go out and just inhale more of it directly...
👎

brightmarlin44 said:Reynaud's is basically a circulation glitch. Smoking starves your tissues of oxygen, so it’s definitely going to make things worse, just like getting stuck in the cold. placidfox55, does that sound crazy? I can't believe if you have any medical background, you'd think smoking wouldn't tank the prognosis for Reynaud's.😲 🙄 👎

Don't just dismiss me—find some actual sources and prove me wrong. 🙂 😎

Besides, go back and read what I wrote above. 🙂

And yeah... "cutting back" on cigarettes isn't going to fix Reynaud's. You really need to stay away from smoke entirely.

Don't tell me to stop?! 😲 Look, I deal with poor circulation too, and ever since I picked up smoking again, my vision’s been acting up and the headaches won't quit...
Damn, now I finally see where it's coming from... 😲

Kate Garcia2 said:Could you describe that little flare-up? Like, how does it start, how does it spread, what shows up next, and maybe how long you have to be out in the cold before it hits? Does it last a while or go away after something specific?😉

I mean, I shouldn't have even asked, I guess.😉

thanks everyone
🙂At least now I know what I'm dealing with and what to look up.