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I had quit smoking for many years and started again a few years ago.....very lightly, but nevertheless, smoking again. I found it extremely difficult to quit and my wife (in the medical field) suggested Chantix. Do understand, and I'm sure you do, that you have to be very committed to quitting regardless of what method you choose. I took my first Chantix pill at about 9am and had a craving for a cigarette at about 11am. I went to the garage (usual setting), lit up, and it tasted horrible. Took about three hits and put it out. Had another craving at about 3pm and the same thing happened....tasted horrible and put it out after one or two hits. I had a REALLY bad craving at about 5pm that same day, but really fought the urge (successfully). You're taking a small dose once daily for a week. During that week I got up every night to hit the washroom (that never happened) and I had some very strange and vivid dreams, all sexual in nature, but not how you may perceive. For example, during one of these dreams, I was seated in a leather chair in my den and had Kim Bassinger standing over me. She was dressed in long-sleeved flannel pajamas and was yelling at me for getting her pregnant. The act of impregnating her was not involved in the dream, but as usual, I was getting yelled at by a beautiful woman. The weird thing is that when you wake up, you'll remember the dream in detail due to the Chantix. After the first week, the dosage doubles, one pill in the morning and one in the evening. This dosage interfered so much with my sleeping habits that I quit the Chantix altogether and have not smoked since. My wife missed the morning narratives concerning my dreams and disagreed with my decision to stop taking the Chantix. My wife has been in the medical profession for over 30 years, but I knew that I was ready to stop smoking, so I went against her advice. I never had another cigarette and I never cheated. As time went by, I would have felt stupid if I cheated and bummed a smoke from someone, undoing all of the effort that I had accomplished.
So, Dave, here's my take on the whole thing.....I appreciated the Chantix because it allowed me an easy physical withdrawal during those first critical few days. Actually, from what I've read, the nicotine is a non-issue for your body physically after about three days. After that it's the psychological withdrawal that you're fighting. The fight that you put up depends, as I stated earlier, on your commitment to quitting. Success rates from the use of Chantix, patches, hypnosis, laser, or cold turkey are not drastically different from each other, but rather dependent on the will of the individual. I was ready to quit the Chantix after about three days because my physical cravings were over and I REALLY, REALLY didn't want to smoke any longer. Occasionally, I'll get an urge for a smoke, but it's a mental urge, not a physical one. Smokers light up at the same time every day and out of habit, like after a meal, with a drink, after changing the oil, after an evening with Kim Bassinger, etc. The Chantix helps you with the physical addiction, but ultimately, you are the key to the mental success of this undertaking. You're supposed to take the Chantix for three months to allow for the most important thing here.....behavioral changes. Some people need that time, others don't.
As far as the FDA warnings about mood swings, irritability, depression, and suicidal thoughts.....c'mon. You're trying to quit smoking, a habit with PROVEN ill-effects
I know that it's difficult and I wish you the best of luck.
Steve
posted by 24.12.7...
, Tue, 5 Feb 2008 13:36:39
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