I am trying to quit smoking and the patch isn't working...

[CrackpotAmerica]

Anyone have any suggestions?

I have been trying to quit for a while now and I have had tremendous difficulty.

Thx~!

[davsand]

1. Ask your doc for Zyban.

I swear it works. I quit with it. It is an anti depressant (Wellbutrin is the generic name for it) and it needs to be established in your system to help you quit. What it does, is it makes those cravings a LOT less intense.

You still crave a smoke when you are accustomed to having one--but it is nowhere NEAR as intense as it is without it.

really, the first four days are the ones that are so difficult because your body is working thru the actual nicotine withdrawal. What I did was to substitute bottle of water. EVERY time i wanted a smoke I'd start slugging watter out of that bottle. It helped partly to keep me busy, but also to flush the nicotine out of my system a bit faster.

One bit of advice about using Zyban? I'd suggest you start on it slowly or else you are gonna be really (almost icky) stoned if you just start on it full dose. You start on it about two or three weeks before your actual quit date, and as the dose increases your cravings for a smoke reduce.

Good luck. Quitting is very hard. It is also terribly important to your health. You CAN do this.



Laura

[CrackpotAmerica]

3. Thanks ! Are there any side effects?

I took ATAVAN a long while ago when my crazy ex girlfriend drove me to the brink of insanity myself. (ever see Betty Bleu?)

That really made me a mess and I would rather smoke than feel like that again.

[davsand]

5. I was pretty mellow.

I was on it for the elections. Shrub won a second term, my husband lost his race, and we elected Obama and a few more Dems locally. They called Ohio for the asswipe and I had my last smoke.

I was also working for a major league asshole at the time and it did wonders with that relationship. I didn't threaten the harassment lawsuit until after I was off the Zyban.

:evilgrin:

All in all, I did notice it made sleeping a bit hard at first, and I do think it elevated my blood pressure some over the long haul. I am VERY serious when I say work up to the dose on it. My Doc said one pill a day for a week then up it to two a day. I started with the one pill and I was pretty damned stoned the first few days. Stuff that would probably send me into annoyance right now just seemed to roll off me.

They also will tell you to taper off of it, similar to some of the other anti depressants. I had no problem with that part of it--but I was only on it for about 8-10 weeks.

Good luck!


Laura

[Whoa_Nelly]

6. I tried Zyban

And followed my doc's advice to increase it slowly while cutting back on smokes over two week period. I did quit for two weeks, but had to quit the Zyban....it was making me an emotional zombie. It was like I was a flatliner emotionally. I hated it. Am not a depressed person, and I think the anti-depressant effect of Zyban did a number on me.

[CrackpotAmerica]

7. That's what I was afraid of NT

[Whoa_Nelly]

10. But, you're not me! :-)

And you're male.

Am female, have been on HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy) for over 13 years, and a redhead....all factors as to how drugs can affect me.

Give it a try...meanwhile, will see ya in the Smoking Cessation forum. Gotta quit again, and am hoping I can do it for good this time! :hi:

[JimmyJazz]

2. You have a star.

There is a smoking cessation group who might be able to help. :)

[CrackpotAmerica]

4. Cool, Thx!

[devilgrrl]

8. Has anyone tried that Freedom Laser Therapy?

???

[CrackpotAmerica]

9. I saw that on TV. Looks a littly flaky! NT