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I want to be an ex...... smoker that is

Lalena75's picture

Started Chantix today, I just don't want to smoke anymore, but I like it too much and nothing has worked. I'm terrified of the potential side effects, I've responded irrationally to other meds before (paxil, welbuterin) they made me depressed and I hated humanity and food, and work so you can see why I'm worried. My kids and SO were made to read the med insert so they can recognize if I have problems (I refused to listen that the depo shot was making me crazy the second time I tried it just like the first time) and my doc knows my dd is allowed to call her if I'm responding badly and won't recognize it so my doc can intervene.
I want to quit, I would rather be nutty for a bit than slowly kill myself, I don't want my house smelling like cigarettes anymore, my clothes my uniform, my clinical paperwork (my instructor pointed out he could smell it on my dang paperwork and that's when I started thinking it was time to quit.
I'm glad SO's kids leave tomorrow they add stress and SO is more easily agitated and assholish when their here (course he doesn't think he is but we've all said so then of course he blamed me for not helping more or my ds being a tattletale bully preteen)
Anyway cross your fingers and I apologize in advance if I get a little snarky or short tempered or crazy on here lol.

Comments

stormabruin's picture

Good luck! My DH started the Chantix & was doing well on it. Unfortunately, our insurance wouldn't touch it & we couldn't pay the $115.00 every month.

We do know of one person who experienced the suicidal thoughts they mention, but DH didn't have any problem with it.

stormabruin's picture

Yep. :sick:

stormabruin's picture

I didn't even mind paying for it. We just didn't have the ridiculous amount of money.

We (I) pay out the ass for our insurance coverage & would like to think that that would cover something that can avoid the need for more costly coverage in the future should it turn into emphysema, COPD, or cancer or something.

It costs us more to be preventative than passive.

stormabruin's picture

Some insurances will cover it now. Ours just happens to be one that will not. I don't understand it.

BSgoinon's picture

Oh Hyp, we already pay for abortions. In fact BM has gotten state refunds for 3 of her 4... You're welcome BM. I worked overtime so you could intentionally get knocked up to trap a man, and then abort it when he left you anyway. You are SOOOOO very welcome.

Assholes.

whatwasithinkin's picture

Chantix works great however...some of the side effects that arent in the paperwork are the ones that get you.

Like the effect it has on your thyroid (for some people not all). I had a full blood panel jut prior to starting chantix, and after going off of it I had terrible headaches and pain in my neck. Another full blood panel was taken and my thyroid was completely off numbers wise. We waited to see of it was my body bouncing back from not having nicotine. The thyroid never came back.

I gained 10 lbs but I have a lapband. So I journam my food every day. I never changed what I was eating but gained anyway.

I would never take it again, the bloating from it is horrible.

This is only how it effected ME. But please make sure you monitor your side effects, most dont show up until you increase the dosage.

If you have anyway questions, inbox me Ill be happy to help if I can!

By the way it does work...but I am still smoking. Upside is I smoke half of what I used to.

RedWingsFan's picture

Same here. Never smoked a cigarette in my life. Mom smokes 3 packs a day, no lie. It's miserable being around her!

stormabruin's picture

Yep. LOL!

DH's mom is an ex-smoker & nags the shit out of him about quitting. I don't mention it. He's aware of the choices he makes & being a grown man he's entitled to those choices.

I'd be pissed if he ever said a word to me about putting a brownie or an Oreo in my mouth. They aren't good for me. I KNOW they aren't good for me, but I still have a really hard time saying "no" to them.

I consider that my addiction & can certainly understand the difficulty in dealing with it.

stormabruin's picture

LOL! DH is struggling with both. He gets nervous about quitting cigarettes because of the additional weight he'll put on in the process. He tried tackling both issues at the same time & it was too much.

He wanted cigarettes & told himself "no". He wanted food & told himself "no". When he ended up giving in it hit him like a double-dose of failure. It was too much to do at one time.

His doctor recommended choosing one at at time. DH asked which one he recommended he work on first & the doctor told him to choose the one he felt most committed to.

stormabruin's picture

I fell into the pressure to try it on 9/11...at 26 years old. LOL!

It was menthol. Thankfully all it took was inhaling when I lit it up to give me 3 weeks of pneumonia & breathing treatments at the doctor's office. That was enough to convince me that I wasn't a fan. Heehee!

DH started in junior high. It makes me laugh when he talks about "the smoking block" because he also used to play football. It reminds me of John Travolta in "Grease". The "bad boy" trying to turn "jock"... Smile

He actually quit once, though not completely voluntarily. He had an emergency appendectomy & said any coughing made him want to die. He just quit.

He started back 3 years later, right after SD was born, so he's been back on for about 16 years. He just turned 45. He kicks himself for it every day.

RedWingsFan's picture

Probably feels good to get it all out there though eh?

My friends came to me at age 14 with cigarettes and threatened that if I didn't smoke with them I'd no longer be cool and able to hang with them. I laughed in their faces. I grew up with a chain smoking mother. I CONSTANTLY smelled like smoke. My hair, my clothes, my room, our home. She smoked inside the house and the car, with the windows just barely cracked. I HATED it.

I actually would sleep in my bedroom with the window open and wet towels stuffed under my door in JANUARY in MICHIGAN to try and keep the smell out of my room. I always had candles lit and sprayed air fresheners in my room all the time. I couldn't escape it. It drove me insane.

If that's what would keep me from being "cool" and hanging with them - they could have that shit! I lived it every day so there was no way I was going to start just because they told me I had to!

BTW - mom STILL smokes 3 packs a day. She spends tons of money and could never quit.

RedWingsFan's picture

Sorry honey. I'm trying to instill in my daughter that she needs to maintain her independent nature and not care what her friends are saying or doing. She does with some things (drugs, sex) but always falls victim to a sob story. I told her "if you don't want to do something, don't fucking do it! You need no excuses, just say NO"... GRRRRRRRRRRR

Anyhow, her dad and his girlfriend also smoke but not in the house. Out in the garage. I dropped her off at home and they opened the garage door and I swear, it looked as though it were on fire! Just from the two of them in there. My daughter said "welcome to Hell, mom"

not2sureimsaneanymore's picture

I'm guilty of trying drugs and binge drinking too. Then when it began to get out of hand, like forgetting where the freak I put my car keys the next day, or forgetting important meetings, I stopped.

Brief two month flirtation with experimentation. But sometimes I miss it. Mostly because sex on certain things, ahem, is pretty damn good.

I can't wait until I'm done being pregnant so I can have a damn bloody mary though.

RedWingsFan's picture

^^My apologies as well. I'm in that boat of not knowing how hard it would be but when you compare it to chocolate, well, then that puts in all in perspective!

RedWingsFan's picture

I can't keep chocolate around my daughter because she'll hog it all. Wonder where she learned that God awful behavior? Blum 3

B22S22's picture

My DH did Chantix and it worked really well for him.

One of the side effects he continues to suffer is the 'Holier Than Thou' attitude because he's quit and I haven't (YET).

I truly believe that a person has to be motivated INSIDE, heart and mind, in order to make a life change like this. I'll admit it, I'm just not there yet. I have, however, been working on losing weight, and I've lost 20lbs so far (since Christmas). I've watched what I've been eating, cutting back on a lot of the unnecessary carbs, and have ramped up my exercise. I currently smoke about a half a pack a day, but can still do 3.5 miles on an elliptical every morning (at 5.2mph).

I'll lose the weight first. THEN quit smoking. No way can I do both at once.

misSTEP's picture

My hubby is on a week and a half of no smoking. I am very proud of him. He chose to NOT do the Chantix because my mom and his brother both tried it and had disturbing nightmares.

I thank the universe he made the decision to NOT use that medicine because he is a sleepwalker and also acts out his dreams. Woe to me if he WOULD start having horrible nightmares and acting them out when *I* am the one getting the brunt of the freak-outs!

GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!

Lalena75's picture

whatwasI thinking: It might not of been the chantix that caused the thyroid problems, both my mom and 2 siblings quit without meds and within 3 months all had thyroid problems I checked it out and their are studies aware of the issue but don't know if nicotine causes it then keeps it under control, or masks a problem then when it's out of your system thyroid problems emerge. It's what I'm worried about most as it happened to all the smokers in my family I almost wasn't going to quit to avoid the chance of it happening to me, but after 8 hours clinical in cardiovascular ICU I don't ever want to be a patient there.
My SO is calling his doc to try the same but I think it will be better if he starts after me, #1 I have way more will power than him. #2 both of us going crazy at the same time leaves my 17 y/o to deal lol.
Stupid reason I started smoking I broke up with an exbf who smoked who liked that I didn't, it was to be an ass to him, now that's a stupid reason. I'm also quitting cause I just can't afford it, luckily it's covered for both SO and I (he pays more but still cheaper than smoking and all the crap that comes with. I don't mind gaining some weight I'm under weight as is I'd like at least 10lbs, and I got gifted by my parents with a gym membership for trying to quit smoking (it's month by month and they said if I don't quit they will revoke it)so SO is getting a membership too and he really needs this more than me he's overweight drinks way too much Mt. dew smokes, doesn't exercise, and has already had issues with chest pain headaches and dizziness during um intense activity and he only just turned 30!

New second wife-step-mom's picture

DH weaned himself off with no help except alot of hard candy!

I know a couple that used the patch and both did pretty good except for the nightmares. The man used the patch longer than his wife. She stopped using it after one month.

A friend of mine got some sort of drops put in his ear and has not smoked since.

He said the doctor told him to get chewable vitamin C and tear them up all day long until the withdrawals stop. He said it really did help!

All of them had smoked for 30+ years.

Lalena, I know you can do it! Hang in there!!! Smile

not2sureimsaneanymore's picture

As much as I commend people who decide to quit cold turkey, I think it's also important about the age and the health of the person.... I only say this because my grandmother was 78 when she quit--stone cold turkey--had a stroke within a week.

A few of my friends whose grandparents did as well, also had a stroke within a week or so of cold turkey quitting. We don't know if quitting caused it or they were just ready to blow... but... yeah... just be careful.

Otherwise, good luck! If you ever feel the urge to buy cigarettes, or you actually do buy them--get some bitter apple (the stuff to stop dogs from chewing on things) and spray the hell out of it before you have a chance. That's how I stopped biting my nails.

Oh and acupuncture! They have "stop smoking" points and other points to help addiction. A lot of addiction centers now employ acupuncturists.

AngeLily's picture

Watch out for the depression that sometimes occurs around week two or three. If you feel ANY irrational lows or thoughts, notify your prescriber. Cinnamon candies help a lot too or very , whichever you prefer. Also, get something like a stress ball or even a pen you can click a lot to keep your hands busy. A lot of the oral and tactile needs can still be met and you don't often experience that subconscious "need". Good luck to you and congratulations on going on a healthier journey! Smile

Cdngirl's picture

I am going on 4 weeks of my immitation of a non smoker. The biggest thing I can think of to help is that I can't think about never smoking again, it is still too scary for me. Instead I just try to get through the minute, hour or day depends on how bad I want one. Also after the first week I kept telling myself that I don't want to go through that again. Having a calendar to mark of the days is a good visual for myself. What ever way you choose to do this it sucks so bad, but it is going to be well worth it to actually be a non smoker and not just immitating one.
I also found talking to ex-smokers gave me that extra support because they gave me some tricks to get through the rough parts and they are the most supportive people I know.

hismineandours's picture

I started smoking when I was in college. Something to do in between classes and during my long commute. Stopped after I got out of college. Started again when my first dh died. Quit when I got pregnant with my last dd. almost 12 years ago!! Started again last year when ss lived with us for 4 months and my dh went temporarily insane. I smoked for about 3 or 4 months and then quit. I still think about smoking although I dont like it. Dh smokes and I cant stand it. He doesnt smoke in the house, but will occasionally walk thru with one in his hand and I'm on top of it.

They wouldnt even prescribe him Chantix due to his mental health profile. It causes bad nightmares for a lot of people and with his ptsd it was a no go.

hismineandours's picture

I am sure that this was not the intended effect, but sadly reading these posts make me want a cigarette. Thankfully, my laziness overrides my desire for the cigarette so I will continue to sit her on my happy azz and ignore the cravings.

simifan's picture

DH & I quit using Chantix 6 years ago. Neither of us had any problems - awesome vivid sexual dreams was the only side effects either of us noticed but we certainly weren't complaining }:)