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Champix aka Chantix/Varenicline
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Hi Everybody,
Great thread!! I took champix almost 2 years ago for only 4 weeks as they were making me nauseated& I felt I was cured from my nicotene addiction
& so I ended up not smoking for 1 1/2 months! but went back on them :mad: & here i am 2 years later 
!! I really do think champix are a wonder drug & last nite I decided enuff is enuff and I went and got a new prescription today & will begin taking them 2mar & Plan to give up on day 8..... & Continue the course for the 4 months or what ever! I realllllllllllly want to give up but I am completely addicted & Im afriad of failing again.... The doctor gave me stemitil to help with feelin sick! I cant wait to be smoke-free!! I am 23 and have smoked for 8 years approx 20 per day the last few years.... does anybody know if after stoppin champix is it much more desirable to smoke? Also does any one know how long phsical withdrawals last for? Thanks all 0 -
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Hi DonnieL
Thank You very much for all your helpful information!
WOW, 50 years and then to give up is amazing well done!! I have no excuses so. I started the pack today & only read your post now! I didnt take it with much water, so a while later I was real nauseated so I took a stemitil, so from 2mar Ill remember to take it with food & lotsa water! Ill keep you posted on my progress..... hopefully smoke-free progress:D 0 -
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:)Hi Everybody :-)
Well ive been on champix now 7 days, and I have cut down considerably on the cigs! they just dont taste right:D The only thing is I finding myself wanting to enjoy a cigarette even tho I do want to give up! I find im constantly thinkin of them... I usually smoke 20 a day and Im down to 4/5 now and tomorrow is my quit day! I find myself quite irritable & I dont want that.... I think it is nicotene withdrawals coz I have cut down so much,.. DOes any one know how long the cravings last for when you give up? and any methods that work to distract yourself? Thanks
;) 0 -
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Starting tomorrow or Thursday on Champix--wish me luck.Prescriptions in my wallet and Im just waiting to get paid so that I can pay for them.
I have used Zyban in the past and managed to stay off them for 3 years but ended back on them for some stupid reason.
Dont ask me why but its something I regret since I did.
20 a day man and double that if Im drinking so hopefully this stuff its all its cracked up to be.
Whats the ideal day to decide to stop on--The doc said day 10--is that correct?
Cheers
Richie.
Good luck mate. You won't look back, hopefully.
I started on the Champix about a 1.5 months ago. Was 20 a day man. Second week into Champix, I cut down to 1 or 2 a day, overnight. Yeah I know. I didn't do it the RIGHT way but I did it MY right way.
Gave up with my better half and her sister at the same time. He sister works in our home office so it was better if the three of us gave up at the same time.
I didn't have any major problems with Champix. Constipation was the main thing. My g/f had severe reactions to the Champix so had to stop talking them after 3 weeks. Fair play she is still off the cigs but is a bit harder for her than it is for me.
After about 3 or 4 weeks on Champix, I thought I was cured [any didn't want to live with the constipation any longer] so stopped taking them. WORST mistake I could have made. Within 24 hours I turned into an antichrist for 2 full days. Within an hour or two of taking Champix again, I was fine. I have no idea if it was a physcological thing or not but I was fine for another week or so.
I think I'm about 2 weeks sober now and I only take the Champix when I think of it, which is about twice a week. I still have the cravings but it's under control. I don't drink alcohol anymore, that helps. I decided to give up the drink for 2 to 3 months, as I double my cig intake while drunk
My g/f and sister still drink. g/f drinks like a fish [which I am keeping a VERY close eye on] and her sister still drink at the weekend. However, she also smokes the odd time on those weekends, well up until a week or two anyway.
I now feel confident in 99% of smoking situations, that I do not want a cig at all. I can be in the company of smokers without problem. I can have a meal without wanting a cig after. I feel cleaner. Can't say I feel healthier yet but I'm sure that will come.
I have MUCH more money than I used to. I want to be crystal clear on this point. I'm saving twice or three times more than I normally spend on cigs. The main reason : When I go to the shop to buy cigs, I also used to buy other shoite : Sweets, magazines, crisps, other luxury items. I now only go to the shop maybe twice a week.
Where previously I'd spend €60 on cigs a week, I feel I'm saving an extra €150 to €200 a week overall, more if you don't include the drinking I'm not doing at the moment.
Hmmm, I started off just to wish Hellrazor [and indirectly everyone else] good luck in their journey... I guess I branched out into my own experiences. I suppose sharing my experience may help others decide on what to do and ease some of the doubts.
Good luck all. It will be worth it. I would not have managed this easily if it wasn't for the wonder drug.0 -
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Hey everyone! Great thread!!!!
Got an appointment to see my GP today and hope he will prescribe champix to help give up this dirty habit of smoking. Im on 20 cigs a day and they are really starting to affect my health and im only 23
Gonna start taking my first tablet tomorrow and I hope it goes welll with little or no side effects but even if there is side effects its worth to help me give up. Ive never been so determined to kick the habit so hopefully it will work.
O and congrats to everyone who has managed to stay off them, its a real big achievement and probably one of the most difficult tasks you will ever face.
Wish me luck 0 -
Hey everyone! Great thread!!!!
Got an appointment to see my GP today and hope he will prescribe champix to help give up this dirty habit of smoking. Im on 20 cigs a day and they are really starting to affect my health and im only 23
Gonna start taking my first tablet tomorrow and I hope it goes welll with little or no side effects but even if there is side effects its worth to help me give up. Ive never been so determined to kick the habit so hopefully it will work.
O and congrats to everyone who has managed to stay off them, its a real big achievement and probably one of the most difficult tasks you will ever face.
Wish me luck
Congrats Ladd and all,
I think I'm up to 8 weeks sober now and going strong, although I do have the odd bad craving day.
May I suggest that you start to cut down by as much as possible when you start Champix. If you on 20 a day now, maybe aim cut down to 2, 3 or 4 a day.
I was on 20 a day and what I just suggested would have scared the hell out of me 2 months ago. When I was cutting down, I didn't force myself. A lot of giving up is will power but it's also frame of mind. Keep a pack of cigarettes with you for comfort. At least you know they are there if you "really" need them.
Then when you get a craving, you are in total psychological control. You only have to fight the actual craving now, not your mind. Put off having the cig for 3 or 4 minutes. If the craving gets worse, try put it off for another few minutes, maybe go get a cup of tea.
After my first few days of this, I limited my 1 or 2 cigs to after 7pm. That allowed me to tell myself that if I didn't smoke at all during work and waited until I got home, it would be worth my while. Something to look forward to... until I was strong enough to kick it totally.
I say "really", above, because in a few weeks from now you will KNOWthat you do NOT "really" need them . The craving, no matter how bad it gets, will go away pretty soon.
This is how I started to cut down in the weeks before giving up. It REALLY helped me as it took the edge off when the cravings got very bad.
8 weeks later, I don't have to bring my pack or lighter with me. I can now move from going minutes at a time to days at a time without panicking.
Do I still get cravings? Hell Yeah. But mentally, I'm in a much stronger place than I was 8 weeks ago. Sometimes the cravings are as bad as they were in week 1 but the difference is that now I KNOW I can get past it.0 -
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Thanks RangeR and DonnieL - really good pointers there. I think you're right I will try to cut down immediately.
Well I got my champix today and was surprised that the doc told me to take one today instead of just waiting till tomorrow. I took my first tablet just after eating with loads of water and im feeling normal apart from just being a tad dizzy (out of sorts) but thats it.
He is also putting me in contact with a support group ("new clinical trial" as the doc put it) for people who want to give up the cigs, he says it has a good success rate so Im gonna give it a go. PLus its free which is great since the Champix are costly little feckers lol.
The scary part was that he said my throat is very worrying, something about the lining of my throat. But its just givin me more motivation to kick the habit.
Ill keep ye posted of my progress anyway lads, thanks again 0 -
Ladd19, Great news! The support Group is a Great Idea!. Here in the States support is offered through Chantix and is called GETQUIT! It's great. When you first start they email you pointers every morning, plus they ring you up every day at a time designated by you. Mine was at 5:30 PM. My phone rang precisely at 5:30 PM every evening, 7 days a week. They check to see if you have smoked that day. They continue the emails after your 12 weeks on a weekly basis for a year. It really works out. Congratulations and Best of Luck!:pac:;) 0
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Ladd19, Great news! The support Group is a Great Idea!. Here in the States support is offered through Chantix and is called GETQUIT! It's great. When you first start they email you pointers every morning, plus they ring you up every day at a time designated by you. Mine was at 5:30 PM. My phone rang precisely at 5:30 PM every evening, 7 days a week. They check to see if you have smoked that day. They continue the emails after your 12 weeks on a weekly basis for a year. It really works out. Congratulations and Best of Luck!:pac:;)
Thats sounds great what ye have over there in the States. I think thats what this support group is like also. She has my number so she is gonna ring me everyday or every couple of days to see how im getting on and how i feel and so forth. Really pleased with my GP for going to the effort of setting it all up for me and he will be staying in contact with the support group also to see how I am doing. It's a great little set up they have going on, shame it couldn't have been done sooner but thats Ireland for ya lol.:):):):) 0 -
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great to c your doing well. champix is great. have been off the fags nearly 4 months don't give up. the rewards, even down too how easy it is to sleep at night with clear lungs is great. My advise is to listen to donniel.
4 Months? that is amazing, well done and thanks for the support.
Well Day 2 is going okay, no huge difference to be honest except I find it hard to finish a cig and feel kinda sick when I actually do smoke. Gonna try to cut down to about 5 today if I can.:eek:
Hope everyone else is doing well and keep up the good work 0 -
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