Chantix.

Hello ATS,

I have been attempting to quit smoking with little success so I spoke with my doctor and he prescribed Chantix.

To begin I was excited because I saw the commercials and figured this was a ‘miracle’ drug but I have been disappointed.

It has reduced my “nicotine fits” but some of the side effects are unpleasant. The main complaint I have is crazy dreams where I wake several times each night and often experience severe stomach distress.

I’ve been taking the drug for about four weeks but I’m going to stop. You are supposed to take a pill twice each day.

From the very beginning my stomach bothered me for about a half hour after taking the dose but I assumed it would pass as the treatment progressed if anything it’s worse. I’m on my fourth week and I nearly vomited last night after taking my pill.

If you have tried Chantix can you tell me if this is normal or share your experience…?

I tried it years ago and quit for a awhile, but had to stop taking it due to extreme dreams and night sweats.

I have been smoke free for well over a year and half now thanks to vaping. If you want to quit smoking, it's a safer bet than most any prescription medication. Look into it and see if it's right for you. You can step down your nicotine until you no longer need it.

I have heard of some folks having an issue with vaping due to one of the main ingredients, but nothing serious. You can purchase liquid without that particular additive if it causes you an issue (which is usually a rash or itchy throat).

I smoked for over 20 years. 2 packs a day and sometimes more. I never looked back.

Either way,I do hope that you can eventually beat the beast. It's one of the hardest things I have ever done mentally. I wish you luck in it.

a reply to: boogeywoogey

Took it for about a week years ago. Had terrible nightmares and it made me paranoid.

I switched to the patch for about 2 weeks and munched on celery and carrots. Haven't smoked since.

It's a hard habit to break but well worth quitting. Good luck to you.

a reply to: boogeywoogey

I never had stomach problems but it sure made me nuttier than squirrel turds.
I developed depression and thoughts of suicide.

On a plus side, it drove away my now ex-wife! So all in all i am on the fence about it.

IN ALL SERIOUSNESS, DO NOT TAKE CHANTIX IF YOU SUFFER FROM DEPRESSION. IM LUCKY TO BE HERE! THAT STUFF MESSED ME UP BAD!

a reply to: Kangaruex4Ewe

I'll look into it thanks for the advice.

You can't get off drugs through substitution. Doesn't your doctor know that?

The only way to quit is to quit. Yes, there will be unpleasant and sometimes unbearable withdrawal symptoms. You have to endure them. It's that simple.

There isn't a pill in the world that will cure addiction or eliminate withdrawals. If your doctor wasn't simply an underpaid drug pusher, he would've told you that.

The simple answer is to throw your cigarettes away and just deal with the ensuing calamity. It isn't easy, and it isn't fun.

You're making the right choice by stopping your drug "treatment".

originally posted by: MrLimpet
a reply to: boogeywoogey

Took it for about a week years ago. Had terrible nightmares and it made me paranoid.

I switched to the patch for about 2 weeks and munched on celery and carrots. Haven't smoked since.

It's a hard habit to break but well worth quitting. Good luck to you.

Thanks.

I think I may try the patch.

Amazing what main stream medicine is allowed to push on us. So far 100% (four out of four) patients have had extremely negative side effects without any success of treatment. They might as well just give you poison and cure the problem by killing you. How is this stuff even legal to sell?

a reply to: tvtexan

I've been a bit tired but mostly a stomach thing that has gotten worse.

My Doc. warned me about depression.

I just don't think it's working for me.

Thanks for your reply. I hope you're doing well.

a reply to: boogeywoogey

My father in law did the vape thing.

Now he can't stand cigarettes.

He got the nicotine drops and gradually lowered the dose till he was just puffing flavored drops.

a reply to: Kangaruex4Ewe

They didn't have vapes around when I quit but I have heard from others they work great and helps with not gaining weight.

Wish they had those things around when I was trying to quit.

I ate more carrots than a rabbit would eat in a lifetime.

originally posted by: CraftBuilder
Amazing what main stream medicine is allowed to push on us. So far 100% (four out of four) patients have had extremely negative side affects without any success of treatment. They might as well just give you poison and cure the problem by killing you. How is this stuff even legal to sell?

It's true.

Not one person has said "it worked!"

Makes you wonder.

a reply to: boogeywoogey

About 15 years ago I was thinking about taking Zyban, but I was in school and couldn't afford it. On top of that my health insurance wouldn't cover it, smh. Then I took a drugs and behavior phychology class and the Professor informed the class that Zyban was nothing more than Wellbutrin. She said to just go to your doctor and have them prescribe Wellbutrin instead of Zyban. Wellbutrin was first used to treat depression and they found out that one 'side effect' was that people lost the urge to smoke.

So I went to my Doc, actually a physicians assistant, and explained to her the situation and she wrote me a script for the cheap Wellbutrin. I took it for one year and was smoke free with ZERO side effects! Then I went on vacation and started smoking again....grrrrrrrrrr

Zyban has to be one of the biggest scams of the century!

Bupropion (Wellbutrin)
Prescription drug
Consult a doctor if you have a medical concern.
Treats depression and aids in quitting smoking. Also prevents depression caused by seasonal affective disorder (SAD). This medicine is an antidepressant.
Side effects - Warnings - How to use
National Library of Medicine
Brand names: Wellbutrin, Zyban, Aplenzin, Buproban, Budeprion
Molar mass: 239.74 g/mol
Pregnancy risk: Category C (Risk cannot be ruled out)
Drug classes: Antidepressant, Aminoketone
Other drugs in same class: Venlafaxine, Mirtazapine, More
May treat: Major depression, More

I rarely post on here but I had to comment on this topic as I have first hand experience with Chantix. Both my wife and I were prescribed it. We had no depression or mood disorders. No ill health at all. About a week after starting it, I began to get involuntary twitches in one of my arms and numbness in my fingers. I stopped taking it. My wife continued to take it for a month and then began exhibiting unusual behaviors - anxiety over strange things, mood swings, recklessness, etc. She was taken off the medication immediately. She continues to this day to have anxiety issues and mood swings. She now takes four different medications for it but hey, she quit smoking, so its ok right? Bull. This drug is the worst way to quit smoking, they even had to issue warnings about suicide to patients with no history of mental disorders. She took it when it was new and none of this was reported on the side effects sheet. Needless to say, I think the medications she has to take now are worse for her than the smoking was. I don't recommend anyone taking chantix, I quit through step down nicotine patches and never felt any withdrawal symptoms. Please, try that first before resorting to this supposed "miracle drug." There have been far too many reported side effects. If you take the anecdotal evidence you can find online, I think the chances for mental side effects are much higher than they report. I regret talking my wife into taking it because she is no longer the same confident, outgoing person I married. Her personality shift was, to say the least, intense and scary. Take what I say as you will but this is apparently more common of an experience than is let on by the drug maker.

a reply to: boogeywoogey

I did not use this product. But, you have now not smoked for 4 weeks. This is a very good period of have under ones belt, to have begun the new neural patterns of quitting.

When I quit, after twenty years of two packs, I treated the smoking not as one big habit but as numerous small habits. Individually they were easier to deal with. The immediate cig after eating. The immediate cig after getting into the car.
The immideate cig after getting down from a ladder(I did construction work. The immediate cig sitting down to TV. Lots of little ciggie habits.

I faced each little habit with a couple of deeeeeeeppppp breaths, trading the breath neural patterns for the ciggie patterns. That was 25 years ago. Good fortune boogiewoogie.

a reply to: Blinkydoo

Blinkydoo, everybody on this thread needs to read your post!

originally posted by: Blinkydoo
I rarely post on here but I had to comment on this topic as I have first hand experience with Chantix. Both my wife and I were prescribed it. We had no depression or mood disorders. No ill health at all. About a week after starting it, I began to get involuntary twitches in one of my arms and numbness in my fingers. I stopped taking it. My wife continued to take it for a month and then began exhibiting unusual behaviors - anxiety over strange things, mood swings, recklessness, etc. She was taken off the medication immediately. She continues to this day to have anxiety issues and mood swings. She now takes four different medications for it but hey, she quit smoking, so its ok right? Bull. This drug is the worst way to quit smoking, they even had to issue warnings about suicide to patients with no history of mental disorders. She took it when it was new and none of this was reported on the side effects sheet. Needless to say, I think the medications she has to take now are worse for her than the smoking was. I don't recommend anyone taking chantix, I quit through step down nicotine patches and never felt any withdrawal symptoms. Please, try that first before resorting to this supposed "miracle drug." There have been far too many reported side effects. If you take the anecdotal evidence you can find online, I think the chances for mental side effects are much higher than they report. I regret talking my wife into taking it because she is no longer the same confident, outgoing person I married. Her personality shift was, to say the least, intense and scary. Take what I say as you will but this is apparently more common of an experience than is let on by the drug maker.

Thank you for sharing. I'm sorry to learn of such a horrible result from taking this medication.
Take care.

a reply to: boogeywoogey

Chantix was an awful experience. But it worked and I was able to quit.

Before you stop taking it, just compare it with smoking. Would you rather have a few weeks of nightmarish life or a lifetime (shortened) of hacking, smelling bad, and spending tons of money on something you don't want?

a reply to: TerryMcGuire

Thanks.

As they say 'one day at a time'.

originally posted by: grey580
a reply to: boogeywoogey

My father in law did the vape thing.

Now he can't stand cigarettes.

He got the nicotine drops and gradually lowered the dose till he was just puffing flavored drops.

I can believe it, because my husband still smokes. There is a carton here at any given time, and his packs are always right at hand, and I have never went back. I would be lying if I said I didn't want to try a cigarette on a very rare occasion, but mostly they just stink now. I've been off of them too long to even think about going back to such a disgusting habit at this point.

People wouldn't believe how much better they would feel in just a week. Let alone months and years!