This might seem unusually cruel but I'm putting FamilyMan on the spot here and asking in an open forum whether or not he was able to go smoke-free today-- on Chantix for a week, today should have been his first day without smoking. Since quitting will substantially alter his prognosis, I'm making his efforts at quitting-- which have thus far been admirable and impressive -- a public issue.
So man, how's it coming along?
??? ( I second that)
Sorry for the delayed response guys. I have been away from the computer for several days.
I am proud to annouce that I have not had a cigarette since Sunday, October 3rd. 4 days down, a life-time to go. The Chantix has definately made this week quite a bit easier then I expected. At this point I highly recommend it for those looking to quit. My good friend decided to quit with me and he is doing very well with the Chantix also.
Ross-Thanks for the public call out. Every bit of extra motivation helps.
Congratulations! Good to know you’ve got a friend quitting with you.
Your “4 days down, a lifetime to go” comment is the kind that I made when I quit, it’s also the kind that my wife couldn’t make when she quit; for whatever reason, she could only quit if she told herself that her last cigarette wasn’t necessarily the last in her life. For her it was debilitating to imagine never having another cigarette. to each his or her own, whatever gets you there.
Again congrats man, it’ll be worthwhile.
Ross
Familyman.... Hi! I had a quick question. I had tried Chantix about a year ago and it did seem to work (smoking no longer eased my cravings).
However, I noticed I delved into a sudden depression, almost immediately after taking the first pill. DId this happen to you?
And congratulations dude!!!! *HIGH FIVE*
Seasonal-Me,
I know depression is one of the more worrisome side effects of chantix. I have been very lucky so far as I have not had any notable side effects. I do have a decreased appitite and occasional nausea, but I was dealing with both of these prior to starting the chantix. I do have a history of childhood depression as well; However I haven't had any mental health issues since I was 17 years old.
Sounds like your chantix induced depression was pretty severe. It would be difficult for me to choose between the pros and cons of chantix if I had experienced that. Do you have any immediate family members that can help monitor your behavior and attitude. Is it possible that your depression could have been compounded by anything going on in your life at the time?
If so, you may want to talk with your doctor and consider giving it another try. My wife has been keeping a close eye for any major changes in my behavior, and we agreed that I would stop the pills immediately if she becomes concerned about anything.
At the end of the day, it may be a matter of choosing the lesser of 2 evils. On one side you have the side effects of chantix, on the other, the withdrawal effects of quitting using another approach (NRTs, cold-turkey). I would go with which ever you can deal with best while still having success with quitting.
Thanks for the props, its very encouraging to hear. Good luck on your quest to quit and feel free to contact me anytime if you have more questions or just need to chat. I have tried to quit in the past using other techniques and know how much it sucks, but even after just 4 days I am already feeling better.
Thanks so much for elaborating. I’ve tried to quit using pretty much every trick (except the gum… for some reason I think I’ll end up chewing the whole pack in a day and be even more nicotine dependent…)
I actually have made a lot of progress recently. I was up to a pack a day (Camel Turkish Royal). Since cold turkey and nicotine replacement therapy (patch) hasn’t worked with me, I decided to approach it from a different angle. I switched to American Spirits and immediately I cut the amount of cigs I smoke each day in half. yesterday without even realizing it I only smoked four.
Sooooooo I may talk with my doc about Chantix again. I was reading all the “small print” about it and it says that if you have a history of depression than you need to be extremely careful when taking Chantix. I do have a history of depression, so I have a feeling that perhaps the chemicals just triggered something in my brain. For a woman I’m pretty logical (unless it’s that time of the month, lol). I figure if I can remind myself that its just the drug causing these feelings I may be able to weather the storm.
Thanks so much for your testimony. I have quit successfully for months at a time and I remember the feelings of freedom and victory I had over nicotine far outweighed the momentary gratification of puffing on a cig.
Thanks Ross. I think I'm going to set up a "game plan" of sorts. Pick a quit day and they get all my artillery ready for the big event. I definitely need to stay busy, which is easy to do. Except I have found in the past times I've tried to quit, I have a very short attention span. Any hints on battling the temporary ADD?
No, sorry, I don't ... I suppose I had a short attention span while quitting as well but only because I was impatient, and in a bad mood.
The best thing about quitting isn't the better health you'll have-- seriously, it's not. at least not day to day. maybe in the long run, yeah, but in that same long run is where cancer's danger was. and it's why the fear of cancer generally scares about zero smokers a year. anyway the best thing about quitting is that it never gets old. it's always a relief not to have to go to the store and buy more smokes. it's always a relief not to smell like cigarettes. it's always a rewarding feeling to have quit. unlike virtually every other experience you'll ever have, the novelty of this one just doesn't get old. you'll walk past smokers years later and think, 'thank GOD I'm not like him anymore'.
anyway, ADD, got nothing for you. oh, except to stay away from ADD drugs that have amphetamines, since I think they have a way of promoting smoking if you're already a smoker ....
My wife picked me up a couple of goofy toys to keep my hands busy. I used to smoke when I would talk on the phone so it helped quite a bit to have somthing else to mindlessly mess around with while chatting.
I also used the time before my quit date to start breaking long time habits. I stopped smoking with my morning coffee, after meals, while on the phone, ect. I also went to a different "spot" to smoke as well. By the time my quit date rolled around I no longer associated alot of these things with a cigarette.
I wish you the best of luck. I can say that I am feeling better after only 6 days and as Ross said, the little daily rewards actually help to keep things going.
I have been on and off of Chantix for four month's, finally i am not smoking but i want to and i hope i keep strong. All day today i wanted to go buy a pack, i think it is because i gained forty five pounds.
It was the hardest thing to quite smoking for me after everything i went thru fighting for my life after 100 days after transplant I had to smoke again well 17 months ago for some reason I just stopped I must of been ready. Yeah to not smoking i cant believe I liked smelling like that.
I've been curious about Chantix, I'm sick of these things running/ruining my life.
Thanks guys.
April (COUGH)
Congratulations to all the quitters! I stopped on 12 May 1991, and I think I'm over it now. That's my idea of a joke, by the way. By about day 21, I knew I was never going to smoke again. I gained lots of pounds, that being our unit of currency this side of the Atlantic. I should have spent them more wisely, but hey, nobody's perfect. I did gain weight, but, and this is another aside, I lost 15kg in 2 months when I fell ill with HL. And I never put it bck on when I got better! Drastic as a weight control plan, but a rare benefit.