Tying to quit smoking...

[jimson]

forkit

I own several ecigs but they still haven't got me off smoking yet. They are better than nothing but they don't quite quench the craving. I am hopeful someday I can motivate myself.

However if you are going to claim you know people who died from Chantix and Zyban, you ought to tell us the circumstances. Allergic reaction? I suspect you will say suicide brought on by the psychological effects since these drugs are of an antidepressant variety, but that really wouldn't be able to be proven, would it?

In any case, sorry for the loss of your friends

I also lost my best friends wife to champix and my now wife lost her last boyfriend to the same sort of drug zyban and i can tell you first hand (as i dont sell OS) that these drugs are not the way unless all else fails as in my small world i know of 3 dead people that tried to give up smoking.

[mijoieau]

The people i knew:
were normal people that got the drugs from their local doctors without any hassle just mentioned that they wanted to give up, these drugs were not made to give up smoking but they were a psychotic behavior (for people that are out of it and should be locked away)

A quick and easy search will show stuff like:
thinking of using Champix of the following safety information for the drug:

Patients taking Champix, as well as their families and friends, are reminded to be aware of any unusual thoughts, feelings or behaviours, especially those related to depression, aggression or self-harm. Patients should stop the drug immediately if there are such concerns.
Tell your doctor if you have experienced depression or other mental health problems before taking Champix, as these symptoms may worsen while taking the drug.
Patients are also reminded to avoid driving a car or operating hazardous machinery until they are reasonably certain that Champix does not affect them adversely.
Health Canada is currently working with Pfizer, the manufacturer of Champix, to update the prescribing information to reflect current safety information. This update is the result of continuing reports, in Canada and internationally, of serious psychiatric symptoms associated with the use of Champix, and is intended to increase awareness of this risk. Label changes will be communicated to consumers and health care professionals when finalized.

All i can tell you is that i wish the 3 people i knew still smoked and didnt go mad, they were normal people that in weeks turned, and they turned on everyone around them and the only thing that had changes was they all took the same drugs.

Again google is your friend have a look in forums and other sites to see how bad these drugs really are.

Myself as a very on edge person i know that any drug like this would be a no no but then some can quit and have no bad affects due to the drugs original use i would hope that doctors and the users read into what the drug was originally used for before they worked out that all the pycos gave up by chance when on these tables.

Forkit

[Elfie]

I quit. Yes, I'm a quitter.   

I was smoking 2 packs a day and I'd been smoking for 27 years when I quit. I read a book by a guy named Allen Carr. I'd never made it more than 8 hours before I was ready to rip someone's head off and crap down their neck. After reading the book I put down the cigs and never picked one up again. And, it was easy. I didn't experience any of the usual symptoms while trying to stop either.

Mr. Carr used to run smoking cessation clinics and had a 95% success rate. You can find his book at Amazon.com. Unfortunately, Mr. Carr died from lung cancer in 2006. It's estimated that he helped as many as 10 million people kick the habit in his clinics.

Good luck in your quest to become a quitter Sir.

[JunkyII]

Got back to my COP where everyone smokes or dips.....and gave in 

Definately cut way back from what I was at...trying the wheening method.

(Use a bit of Obama here)

Let me be clear...my life is more stressful then yours might ever be and I've been smoking a pack a day for a long time...and all the people I work with can actually buy cigs legally kid

[gyrene81]

The people i knew:
were normal people that got the drugs from their local doctors without any hassle just mentioned that they wanted to give up, these drugs were not made to give up smoking but they were a psychotic behavior (for people that are out of it and should be locked away)

A quick and easy search will show stuff like:
thinking of using Champix of the following safety information for the drug:

Patients taking Champix, as well as their families and friends, are reminded to be aware of any unusual thoughts, feelings or behaviours, especially those related to depression, aggression or self-harm. Patients should stop the drug immediately if there are such concerns.
Tell your doctor if you have experienced depression or other mental health problems before taking Champix, as these symptoms may worsen while taking the drug.
Patients are also reminded to avoid driving a car or operating hazardous machinery until they are reasonably certain that Champix does not affect them adversely.
Health Canada is currently working with Pfizer, the manufacturer of Champix, to update the prescribing information to reflect current safety information. This update is the result of continuing reports, in Canada and internationally, of serious psychiatric symptoms associated with the use of Champix, and is intended to increase awareness of this risk. Label changes will be communicated to consumers and health care professionals when finalized.

All i can tell you is that i wish the 3 people i knew still smoked and didnt go mad, they were normal people that in weeks turned, and they turned on everyone around them and the only thing that had changes was they all took the same drugs.

Again google is your friend have a look in forums and other sites to see how bad these drugs really are.

Myself as a very on edge person i know that any drug like this would be a no no but then some can quit and have no bad affects due to the drugs original use i would hope that doctors and the users read into what the drug was originally used for before they worked out that all the pycos gave up by chance when on these tables.

Forkit

sorry you experienced such tragedy forkit. the warnings are and have been very clear for almost as long as the drug has been on the market. anyone with underlying mental issues, especially depression to any degree should absolutely stop taking the drug if they experience any changes in their behavior, or not be given the drug in the first place. not many people are willing to admit they have depression to any degree, especially those who appear to be outwardly normal and lead fullfilling lives, but there are signs. in my opinion a good doctor will monitor their patients if/when the prescribe drugs like chantix.

the thing is, chantix works if you follow the process. when my doc prescribed chantix to me a couple of years ago, she insisted that i return for follow up visits every 2 weeks for the first month just to monitor me. i didn't experience anything more than very bizarre dreams. nothing scary but, seriously strange and everything i experienced throughout the day got mixed into the dreams, including television shows.

[Tigger29]

It's so hard  Everyone around me smokes, any suggestions to make it easier?

I haven't read this thread so I don't know if it's been covered or not but here's how I see it - Don't worry about the people smoking around you.  I know it sucks but it isn't them smoking making it suck it's the normal addiction issues one faces when quitting smoking.

Yes it might be easier if you were removed from people smoking around you but that's something you're just going to have to learn to deal with.  If you're going to cave just because you're with someone who is smoking then you haven't really quit have you?

When I quit half of my coworkers smoked (inside the building and next to me while I worked).  Also half of my family smoked when I went to visit.  Even most of my closest friends smoked too!  Yet I didn't let it bother me and now.. two and a half years later.. when someone lights up near me it doesn't even occur to me that I might want one.

I quit with the gum.  I had been thinking about quitting anyway and I was in Walgreens to buy some personal items and I saw the gum was on sale half off so I bought a box for when I was ready to quit.  On the way home I was thinking "Well hell I have the gum might as well quit now!"  So then I reached a compromise with myself, telling myself I would quit as soon as I was done with that pack.  So then I opened the pack and there was only one left!  So I figured... "Well I guess this is it then!" and I smoked it down all the way to the filter taking my time to enjoy it one last time.. and that was the last one I had!

A few weeks later I went back for more nicotine gum and it wasn't on sale anymore.  Then my "cheap side" kicked in.. "HELL NO I'M NOT PAYING $50 FOR A BOX OF GUM!" so I got some trident instead.  A few days later my jaw was sore from chewing gum all this time and I had had enough so I quit chewing gum.  And that was that!

Of course I put on about 50 lbs over the next couple years but I'm not slowly working that off too.

It's funny because I'll go several weeks and then I'll start craving a cigarette.  Just enough to be mildly annoying.  Then I'll have a dream where I'm smoking a cigarette and as soon as I'm done I think "oh crap I quit!  dammit!" and then I wake up relieved that I didn't really smoke one and then the craving is gone for a few more weeks!

[guncrasher]

I work in a steel mill, most guys around me smoke but I quit using wellbutrin.  that was 3 years ago, now our company is going smoke free and all the guys are begining to use wellbutrin to.  they like it as they dont get anxious and it's one of those things that you take and forget about it.  You dont think about quiting or stuff like it just happens.  I know you are in the combat zone so be carefully a lot of medications will make you dizzy and nauseous if you stand up quickly.  my suggestion is wait till you come back or use gum/patches then use medication when back in the states  .

semp

[perdue3]

It's so hard  Everyone around me smokes, any suggestions to make it easier?

Yes, buy a pack of Camels.

[dirtdart]

QUIT HANGING OUT WITH TANKERS junkyII   

[james]

It doesn't matter who you promise you will quit smoking. You can tell god whatever you like about it. Until YOU are ready to make an effort to YOURSELF than it wont happen. Have to be selfish at quitting smoking. Don't go where people smoke, don't hit the pack of smokes after hearing a soda open or eating chocolate. Find the triggers that make you want one and stay away from them for a little while. Learn a whole new daily routine and let your new habits take over the old ones.

By the way, GOOD LUCK at it sir!

[Wiley]

Got back to my COP where everyone smokes or dips.....and gave in 

Definately cut way back from what I was at...trying the wheening method.
(Use a bit of Obama here)

Let me be clear...my life is more stressful then yours might ever be and I've been smoking a pack a day for a long time...and all the people I work with can actually buy cigs legally kid

Heh.  Buddy of mine was a crew chief.  He was trying to quit, after 4 days at work, one of the guys on his crew walked up to him and held out a pack of smokes and just said, 'Please take them.'

I've only quit twice in my life.  I've been off them for almost 2 years now.

What worked for me was straight out cold turkey.  The first time, I quit on a Thursday, toughed it out Friday and locked myself in my house and avoided all human contact all weekend.  After that, it got better and I was able to function.  A month later my girlfriend moved in who smoked, and 3 days later I was back at it.

The second time, I got pneumonia and was pretty much in bed for a week.  It was one of maybe 2 times in my life I'd been too sick to want a cig.  After the week was up, the wife and I figured 'If I've made it this long, why not keep on?' so I did.

Tyrannis's other stuff aside, the initial comment about not feeling 'cravings' when he doesn't have a smoke does occasionally happen.  My dad has smoked all his life, he was 2 pack a day when I was a kid.  He can have a pack around, and pretty much pick them up and put them down at will, with little to no discomfort.  I don't understand how he does it, but that's the way he operates.  If I bought a pack, it would be gone in a day and I'd be buying another tomorrow.  But, everybody's different.

IMO cutting down just prolongs the agony, but I also think quitting is different for everybody.  I seem to get over the chemical addiction quickly, it's the habitual things and psychological addiction that get me.

Good luck with it, the one other thing I'll say is IMO you've got to want to quit, it's not going to work if you're doing it because you feel you should, or that it's the smart thing to do.  You've got to want to.

Wiley.

[katanaso]

Junky,

If you're not in an environment where you can quit yet, don't beat yourself up over not being able to do so.  Making a concerted effort to cut back is a good first step until you're in a safe environment and can use the aid of some meds, OTC or prescription.

I quit cold turkey back in 1998.  I gave myself a date, March 1st, and as soon as 12am hit on March 1st, I threw my pack of smokes out of the window and suffered for a week.  My method was to take a lot of naps and sleep through the cravings.  I took a lot of Benadryl for 5 or 6 days, purposely getting drowsy.  I also felt like complete hell with all of the phlegm I was coughing up.  After a week, I was no longer physically craving the cigarette, which made fighting the psychological addiction much easier.  I still 'wanted' one, and would dream about them, for nearly a year.

The biggest success factor for quitting, in my opinion, is making the decisiong to quit, setting a concrete date for quitting, mentally preparing to stick it out, and attacking that challenge knowing a week or two of suck is going to pay huge dividends in life.

[DaCoon]

Junky, I feel for ya bro. On my maybe 4th time this year trying to quit. I've tried the patch, the pill, and the gum.... none of it is a guaranteed method. Even weened myself from a pack a day to about half a pack a day in the last month. Only will power will get you through, but stay the course. Quitting is a dern sight better than the alternative.



           

[Anodizer]

Weakling......  

Just quit, already! 

[1pLUs44]

From your last post, you would know what a retort from a 13 yr old looked liked, wouldnt you?