How i quit smoking.

yeah. i had alot of those dreams where you are somewhere between awake and asleep. The ones where you know in your dream that you are asleep, and you are trying desperately to make yourself wake up because you feel that someone is in the room standing over you. And you are even trying to make your self scream "wake me up!" - but to no avail. ug. and that was only the tip of the iceberg of the dreams i was having while taking that stuff.

If I would have been having dreams of myself and 3 other ladies, i might have continued to take the chantix.

reply to post by DBCooper71


No after my month trip on Chantix I feel sick when I'm around people smoking or I catch a wiff of a cigarette randomly. Even two years later the results are the same, it makes cigarettes taste like what they really are and you combine that with your wanting to quit. I have absolutely no urge to smoke.

Originally posted by highpriestess
yeah. i had alot of those dreams where you are somewhere between awake and asleep. The ones where you know in your dream that you are asleep, and you are trying desperately to make yourself wake up because you feel that someone is in the room standing over you. And you are even trying to make your self scream "wake me up!" - but to no avail. ug. and that was only the tip of the iceberg of the dreams i was having while taking that stuff.

If I would have been having dreams of myself and 3 other ladies, i might have continued to take the chantix.

And THAT'S why I won't take that crap.. My dreams are weird enough. No need to enhance negative thought patterns while sleeping from a drug.

I was prescribed Zarloft about 15 years ago. I took it for about 4 days when realized I was poisening my brain to relieve anxiety attacks. How stoopod is THAT?

NOW it comes out the long term side effects are nasty....Gee..Ya think?

If you don't mind Night Terror to quit smoking,I guess that's ok long term..

Me? Big Pharma scares the heck out of me. I had a security clearance at one of the Big Guys for a few years working on a project. By the time the FDA get's a hold of test result's to submit 510k clinical studies for further market evaluation,believe me,the big guys already Know the side effects of the drug.

You shoud see results of the ones that DON'T make it to market. Talk about Terror.

reply to post by niceguybob


yeah. i agree. i just quit with good old fashioned will power this last and final time. there is no magic pill that will make you stop smoking, or lose weight, or any of the things that people don't want to do because it's hard and takes work. You just have to stop smoking and push through it while you detox from it, just like any other drug. Chantix is like the methadone of cigarettes, i'm sure.

I am also not a fan of Big pharma. My son was diagnosed with ADHD a while back and was medicated for all of a month... at that point i took him off the medication (it turned a vibrant child into a walking zombie) and just decided to let him bounce around and i just dealt with it. i loved my child even if he was high strung and annoying, and i took the time to give him instructions one at a time (as opposed to several at once: ie brush your teeth, get your pajamas on, make sure you go pee, feed the hamster...its bedtime. one thing at a time, instead of "the list") - we modified our lifestyle to deal with his ADHD, and he eventually learned how to control it and at 17 years old now he has pretty much outgrown it. he still paces, but he has learned to DEAL with it, instead of us just covering it up with meds.

reply to post by VreemdeVlieendeVoorwep


Different chemicals affect everyone's brain in different ways, there are hundreds of studies to support this. It is a very subjective experience. Who's to say that person a is going to be able to quit smoking the same way as person b? Is it because person a lacks the 'willpower' of person b, or could it be because person b experiences things in a different way that literally more difficult to quit?

I've quit tobacco, as well as harder drugs in the past, and I realized that addiction affects people in drastically different ways. So good for you if things got easier after your second day. Some people struggle with it for weeks until it gets easy, and I wouldn't say it's because they lack the willpower. It is great to offer others support, but I'd be very careful when it comes to giving others addiction advice because you can't assume they are going through the same thing you did.

EDIT: Sorry, didn't mean to come across so negative, I have just seen many people get discouraged trying to hold themselves to other standards, when it's such a personal and subjective experience.

Originally posted by highpriestess
reply to post by niceguybob

 

yeah. i agree. i just quit with good old fashioned will power this last and final time. there is no magic pill that will make you stop smoking, or lose weight, or any of the things that people don't want to do because it's hard and takes work. You just have to stop smoking and push through it while you detox from it, just like any other drug. Chantix is like the methadone of cigarettes, i'm sure.

I am also not a fan of Big pharma. My son was diagnosed with ADHD a while back and was medicated for all of a month... at that point i took him off the medication (it turned a vibrant child into a walking zombie) and just decided to let him bounce around and i just dealt with it. i loved my child even if he was high strung and annoying, and i took the time to give him instructions one at a time (as opposed to several at once: ie brush your teeth, get your pajamas on, make sure you go pee, feed the hamster...its bedtime. one thing at a time, instead of "the list") - we modified our lifestyle to deal with his ADHD, and he eventually learned how to control it and at 17 years old now he has pretty much outgrown it. he still paces, but he has learned to DEAL with it, instead of us just covering it up with meds.

edit on 1-8-2011 by highpriestess because: typos

The thing about old fashioned way (cold turkey), you will never get rid of that craving deep down inside you. Cigarettes will taste great after just a few puffs, but with Chantix you lose all sense of pleasure and you have no cravings at all. When people smoke around you it pisses me off cause it smells like an asshole! I too tried to quit cold turkey and low and behold after a year without the damn things I smoked one and it was like I never stopped smoking!

I will agree, if you quit cold turkey and have the will power to never smoke again then all the power to you. But if you're like me you will need something to block it completely so that you never have temptation or anything of that matter. Like I said I only took Chantix for one month (box says take it for six months) and it cured me of the smoking disease and still to this day I'm happy and smoke free(2years). Its like I never smoked, almost like a reset in my mind.

Yes I know the dreams are bad, but supposedly they reduced the drug so it doesn't come with the harsh dreams or supposed mood swings/suicidal thoughts. I wish you all a happy and smoke free life!

Peace!

I'd also like to add after taking Chantix for one month and becoming fully cured. Here I am two years later and am perfectly healthy(crosses fingers). Doctors checked me out not to long ago with the EKG and other tests I'm completely normal, and I took the drug when it first came out when it supposedly had bad effects. Just saying for people who are still skeptical about Chantix.

fortunately for me, i really don't have any cravings. and i think they smell very bad... can't stand the way someone smells when they come in from outside having smoked, something about the smell of outside combined with smoke grosses me out. being in an elevator with someone who just smoked outside is the WORST.

i mean, any addiction is going to leave you with cravings. that's why alcoholics are alcoholics for life. not for just the time they are "quitting" drinking. they make a conscious effort every day to not drink. i make that same conscious effort and choice every day to not smoke. Usually i have no desire. the only time a cigarette smells good to me is when it is freshly lit, but just as quickly as that sensation comes to me, it goes away from me and i am instantly repulsed.

there are many methods for quitting smoking, and each person has to find the one that is best suited to him or her self, but the bottom line is it ll comes down to how badly you want to quit. the first time i tried to quit, i did use the chantix (as stated in previous comments, i chose to discontinue use due to nightmares and erratic sleep patterns); however, when i was taking the chantix, i had NO PROBLEM smoking a cigarette. it did not make me ill or turn me off of them in any way. it DID help to curb the cravings when i wasn't smoking - i was less of a nervous wreck (were it not for my bad dreams... heh. Shakespeare. ) but believe me when i tell you that i smoked out with my croak out when i was on the chantix. perhaps the chantix, mixed with your personal chemistry creates a different reaction for you... or maybe it could even be that you just wanted to badly to quit and so badly to not LIKE the cigarettes (so that you didn't feel like you were actually making a sacrifice) that the chantix actually had that sort of placebo effect on you... either way, it helped you quit so it is a success for you, right?

congrats!

Originally posted by highpriestess
there are many methods for quitting smoking, and each person has to find the one that is best suited to him or her self, but the bottom line is it ll comes down to how badly you want to quit. the first time i tried to quit, i did use the chantix (as stated in previous comments, i chose to discontinue use due to nightmares and erratic sleep patterns); however, when i was taking the chantix, i had NO PROBLEM smoking a cigarette. it did not make me ill or turn me off of them in any way. it DID help to curb the cravings when i wasn't smoking - i was less of a nervous wreck (were it not for my bad dreams... heh. Shakespeare.

) but believe me when i tell you that i smoked out with my croak out when i was on the chantix. perhaps the chantix, mixed with your personal chemistry creates a different reaction for you... or maybe it could even be that you just wanted to badly to quit and so badly to not LIKE the cigarettes (so that you didn't feel like you were actually making a sacrifice) that the chantix actually had that sort of placebo effect on you... either way, it helped you quit so it is a success for you, right?

Chantix doesn't start to take effect right away. In fact I smoked regularly for the first 2 1/2 weeks I was taking chantix day and night. It was only until that 3rd week when it started to hit me, I'd smoke a cigarette and have to put it out half way or take a few puffs then put it out due to the horrid taste and after taste.

After about another week of (puff puff put out) I started to notice how sick to my stomach I would feel after smoking, and the smell just like lingered on me in a way that was just horrible. I finally just said to hell with it and gave away all my cigarettes and stopped taking chantix. I've been smoke free ever since.

Congrats to everyone who successfully quit the god awful things.
I'm sadly still within nicotine's grip. Tried Champix - By God it made my eyeballs ache. The dreams I could cope with, but my eyes...Oh my eyes!!!

Originally posted by Suspiria
Congrats to everyone who successfully quit the god awful things.
I'm sadly still within nicotine's grip. Tried Champix - By God it made my eyeballs ache. The dreams I could cope with, but my eyes...Oh my eyes!!!

Give up the remedies that supposedly helps you quit. Its all a money making scheme. If not cigarettes, you'll be hooked to the remedies

Just give it up without thinking or discussing with anyone (even on ATS). Be that way for few months and then surprise us with your post on ATS Thats what I did but ofcourse I didn't even post on ATS about it Kept it to myself until I saw the thread.

reply to post by VreemdeVlieendeVoorwep


Hey, I haven't had a cigarette for 122 hours.
Thanks to you and your thread, I've decided to go cold turkey.
And I'm doing better than I expected.
So thanks for the inspiration.

Cheers
Cooper.

reply to post by VreemdeVlieendeVoorwep


Just wanted to stop in a say that reading this thread the other day inspired me to try and quit smoking again. I then found this website which has been helping me stick to it!

forums.about.com...

I will succeed this time! So anyway I wanted to thank you for inspiring me to give quitting another go!

reply to post by zionistsareterrorists

Trouble is i know youve got to really want to give up, i remember about 20 years ago i really wanted to lose weight more than anything, i went down from 10 and a half stone to 7 stone 5, im only little 5 foot 1 so 10 stone was quite big for me.
trouble is i like smoking, but i want to save the money, i want to make the kids proud, why am i not strong enough?. Next im gonna use the electronic cigarettes im praying to god these will help me. I really want them to work.
Well done sincerely mate.

reply to post by VreemdeVlieendeVoorwep


Good for your 3V. When I quit smoking last year I felt the craving so bad as well but I did this not only for my own personal health but for my family as well. I also figured since I was getting out of the army anyway then there was no need to continue smoking cigs anymore so quit cold turkey without any special help at all. To everyone that wants to quit, it's not too late to do so. Don't be the ciggarette corporations B**ch. Live your own life on your own terms and take control once again.

15 days...still smoke free.

reply to post by VreemdeVlieendeVoorwep


47 days now.

How are you doing?

Thanks to everyone who has posted here - its really given me inspiration, I desperately need to change all my bad habits. I hope this thread keeps updating, as I will be watching it closely and maybe even posting. It's nice to know I'm not alone and more importantly that I can make change happen myself.

Maybe its the anonymous power of the internet, or just the mindset of fellow forum members, but I appreciate your candor and honesty in posting your stories and experiences.

Yay, a whole year smoke free.....thanks too this thread inspiring me.

Originally posted by DBCooper71
Yay, a whole year smoke free.....thanks too this thread inspiring me.

Congratulations, DB!!!
I don't know how, but I think with help from above, I was able to go cold turkey March 12, 2012. I did have ONE cigarette exactly one week later (it was either that or smash my house apart), but luckily having that one did NOT take me back to smoking. After smoking for 44 years, I am cigarette free...22 weeks today since I put them down, 21 weeks with zero cigarette consumption.
I am having some previously-undiagnosed-health issues [heart] (non-cigarette related) but hopefully once they are resolved, all the benefits I expected to feel/achieve by becoming cigarette free will occur. I do know had I remained a smoker this problem, more than likely, would have continued undiagnosed--it's an uncommon condition, and smoking helps mask it, too. Having extra money is definitely a boon!!