I quit smoking using Chantix. But, if I had to go through it all again? I’d still be a smoker. In my opinion, the side effects of Chantix are far worse than cigarettes.
If you’re considering taking such a controversial drug, at least read about those of us who are allegedly the “rare” cases. Pfizer is paying big money to put a positive spin on this medication. I put up my own money to host this site. There is no advertising whatsoever. I’m running a site that is designed to educate people about the dangers of Chantix, period.
Have a Chantix story to share? Mail it to me at info@chantixsucks.com I will contact you to verify your story
I am one of the people who took this “miracle drug.” It has been over two years since I went through that hellish nightmare. I managed to quit smoking, but when you go to the edge of insanity and back, and almost die, you are kind of motivated NOT to smoke again. There’s no explaining to anyone ever again, “Hey, but I just wanted a cigarette… even though quitting could have killed me. Literally.”
It has been a long road “back,” even though I’m not sure I’ll ever be exactly the same again. Nothing feels like it did before. Nothing. And since I’ve gone months and months without a cigarette, and there’s no nicotine left in my body, I’d appreciate all you do-gooders out there who want to tell me how “awful” nicotine withdrawal is to keep that nugget of wisdom to yourselves. Food still doesn’t taste right. My body doesn’t work like it used to. I have aged 5 or 10 years since all this started. I used to look “young” for my age. Now I look my age and then some.
Right down to my sex drive, I’m simply not the same person I was “pre-Chantix.” I’ve tried changing scenery, I’ve tried changing lots of things, but I am yet to find the old “me.” I’m sometimes curious if that is a function of what I *saw* while on Chantix. After you see and feel what I did, and what so many others have, how can you ever really feel normal again?
I don’t expect anyone who didn’t have bad side effects from it to understand. I don’t expect anyone who has never smoked to understand. But I’ve met enough people and doctors who *do* understand that I know it isn’t all in my head.
It has taken a really patient psychiatrist who believed what I told him–only because he had seen and heard it from too many other people before me–and a lot of medications, to get my mind functioning again. I had what can only be described as “ADD” for many months while on Chantix and after I went off it. I still haven’t regained my full concentration or focus, but I don’t known if that’s permanent hard-wire damage or if maybe I’ve just lost interest in things that don’t seem too important in the grand spectrum of “life.” Either way, the result is the same.
Some days are better than others. Some days I just struggle to feel something–anything–that resembles joy, or happiness, or excitement. Other days I get a vague recollection of what it’s like to be happy. I have decided that given how some people have ended up on this drug, I have to make myself be at least a little bit happy about the fact that I am still alive. I’m grateful for every day “above ground” and I do my part to warn other people about what I went through. Thanks for hosting this site.
I am a 51 year old female from Texas. I have smoked on and off for 30 years. I quit once for 3 1/2 years and then started up again. I decided after a year of smoking to try Chantix and quit again (along with my husband). That was a month ago.
First let me say, I thought I would have to divorce my husband. He became so defensive and defiant about everything. I couldn’t believe this usually mild mannered fellow could change so drastically. I know I had some extreme irritability also but nothing like his. He said he felt like putting a gun to his head. I didn’t have this type of depression. He quit the Chantix after 3 weeks and is now occasionally cheating with a smoke. I know the signs and feel certain he will start smoking again. He may not be willing to go through the “pain” and let go of the cigarettes. I feel that I am and have let go. His side effects seem to have all gone away.
When I made the decision to quit smoking I decided to go on a low calorie diet first as I needed to lose about 10 pounds. I figured if I started the diet maybe I would be able to keep my eating under control as I went through withdrawal. My symptoms in the beginning were limited to strange and vivid dreams; none of which were frightening or nightmarish. Then, after about a week of taking the Chantix and going on to the larger dosage, I began gaining weight, sweating profusely at night and experiencing extreme pain in all of my joints; even down to my fingers and feet.
I stopped taking the Chantix after the third week. I have quit smoking and it certainly did take away my desire to smoke but my joints still ache terribly and I have “restless leg syndrome” at night. I am fearful that these symptoms will not go away. I can’t stay asleep for the pain.
I’m sure the weight gain had something to do with my metabolism slowing down during the quit, but I know too that on days that I was watching my caloric intake closely I would still gain weight. I think this is very odd.
I have a feeling that even if I tell my doctor about the extreme arthralgia I am experiencing that she will tell me it has nothing to do with the Chantix. I don’t want to take pain pills I just want my terrific aches and pains to go away. Like one of the other persons mentioned, I also have a chronic crick in my neck.
I’m upset about all of this. But mostly, I am concerned; really concerned for those who take Chantix and kill themselves or develop diabetes.
Perhaps Chantix works for some and doesn’t cause these terrible side effects, but there should be a way to test people first to see who it will work for and who it will not! I’m glad I quit smoking but if I had known for certain that the Chantix would cause this pain, and if I had known that it is uncertain that the pain will go away, then I’m sure I would have NOT taken it.
Hello there, My name is Helen and I am a single mum of two very amazing children. I nearly lost my life and leaving them without a mum thanks to Chantix or as it is known in Australia Champix. At this very moment I am fighting to keep myself together for them. On Thursday night, after being on Champix for only three weeks and having quit the medication for a week I suffered the most horrible moment in my life. I couldn’t cope with anything anymore I rang my ex-husband to come and pick up the kids { he lives at the top of Australia I’m at the bottom}. I rang my current partner who was several hundred kilometres away and told them both and my kids that I didn’t want to live anymore. What the hell? Even in some of my darkest moments I have always been able to find a positive. Not only did I frighten everybody I scared the living hell out of myself.
If that is hard enough to cope with I have all the other symptoms as well. Dry mouth, sleep disturbances, paranoia, tingling in my face and right hand, tremors in my hands, gastric problems and I’m certain menstruation was due over a week ago. Last night whilst I was trying to sleep again…..I ruptured a blood vessel in my leg so my knee is black. I’m also losing weight which I don’t need as I am only 48 kilos as it is. I am a nurse by trade and cannot get how It can be that a very slim woman and a man of double the size can be given the same dose! What amazes me even more is there is nothing you can do to help with the symptoms except just ride it out. I’d rather be towed out the back of a huge wave with a boogie board and know that I don’t swim very well than go through this crap.
If it wasn’t for the support of my ex{who is here looking after the kids} and my current partner is doing is best to look after me even though I sometimes have another melt down over nothing I don’t know if I’d still be here now. Thank you so much for providing this site to vent my feelings and for providing so much info on Chantix. Up until I read it I really thought I was a nut case who needed to head for the nearest Psychiatric hospital
I was coming to end of my tobacco i had bought from holiday months before and said that would be the end of my smoking. A friend of mine offered me the last packet of champix he had left when he was on them. I hadnt heard of champix ever before and as i could smoke whilst on them it seemed like a good idea to try them and not have to give up immediately.
I was on them for 3/4 days and took 2 cans of lager when everything started to change…i started texting unusual aggresive texts to my girlfriend and her mother, i was having complete blanks in my day, my concentration vanished, i was in some sort of bubble state…completely unaware of stuff i was doing, memory losses were unreal, i couldnt seem to remember the smallest things… i would start crying uncontrollably in the middle of doing something…i drove into town to buy some things and when i got towards town i just couldnt remember where i was going and what for…thankfully my mother was with me and reminded me…it was my mother who finally sussed out what was going on with me…one night i went to meet some friends for a couple of hours…i had one beer and 2 vodkas…my mother picked me up and she describes me as completely wasted and talking absolute nonsense…changing what i said every minute and being in a manic state…i recall very little of this incident and any others which include nearly crashing my van twice, smashing cups, plates, bowls…my co-ordination was terrible…the scary thing was i was completely detached from what was going on…i seemed to have no feelings left for anything either…i had slipped very quickly into a depressive mode and as the days went by and my long distance relationship ended through my behaviour i slid even faster into a whirlwind depression…my dreams were absolutely nuts…i was either killing someone or being killed or committing suicide…in the mornings my first thoughts were how to kill myself and how many tablets i would need to do the job properly!
I am very normal person, pleasant, well mannered, brought up well kinda guy…i am not aggresive and live life with that extra smile…this drug in my opinion should be removed from market immediately!!!
I friend of mines brother has just been on champix, vallium and is a heavy drinker with a history of depression…his doctor prescribed this combination! can you believe that…? he has been acting extremely weird and i fear for him bigtime…what are doctors doing? this is a bloody disgrace and i think before not too long there will be an uncovering of the truth of this awful drug and its potential dangers…the death toll will be rising as we speak and god only knows how many suicides and deaths there have been that havent yet been traced back to champix.
DO NOT TAKE THIS DRUG WHATSOEVER!
I started taking Champix 6 weeks ago. I haven’t smoked for 5 weeks BUT I have never experienced such feelings of anger, rage, paranoia and depression before. In addition, My joints, particularly in my lower body, are screaming. Getting up out of a chair one would think I was a 90yr old when in fact I’m just 48yrs old. I decided to stop taking the tablets 3 days ago and am hoping that my mood will improve and the aches and pains will ease off. If all that wasn’t bad enough, I have gained weight very rapidly, I feel bloated all of the time and have had to use laxatives on several occasions! I would like to pull the duvet over my head most mornings as that seems much more appealing than facing the world! I have stopped going out and meeting with friends, I have no desire to socialise and my relationship with my husband has become very strained. I am full of hate but mostly toward myself for being so weak willed that I couldn’t give up smoking without having to resort to so called easy option pill taking. The irony is this, I think I might feel a whole lot better if I had a cigarette!!!!
My advice to anyone even considering this convenience drug should think again, the punishment it deals out in adverse side effects doesn’t fit the crime of being a smoker.
Christine from Ireland
This was the first article I read that made me think maybe the problem was the drug, and not ME. A lot of what he describes in here happened to me, especially the anger and aggression.
http://nymag.com/news/features/43892/
Folks, I apologize for not staying on top of this. That’s all I can say. I have just found out how to operate Word Press (or I’m learning) and I didn’t realize i had all these pending comments that required my approval! I wasn’t ignoring you kind people who posted comments… I just didn’t realize I had them pending in the first place! And, I lost my site I.D. because I’ve been through 2 hard drive crashes in 5 months… but that’s just whining at this point.
Until next time, peace, and happy holidays. Keep those posts coming in …. let me know how you all are! –BPW
I started Chantix on 8/29/07. On 9/4/07 I woke with every muscle and joint in my body hurting. I could barely walk. I had recently started exercising and just thought I over did it, but when it did not go away I started thinking it was the drug.
I started researching and found there were many more like me. It felt good not to be alone.
I stopped Chantix on 9/16/07 and I did quit smoking. I went to my doctor, who did believe me, but did not know what to treat me for. All my blood work was good. He finally sent me to the Mayo Clinic in FL. where I saw a rheumatologist and a neurologist.
Many tests were performed and I was told they were all normal. I got diagnosed with… you guessed it, FIBROMYALGIA. I say bulls..t! I was given Lyrica, also I found out a nasty drug by Pfizer, which did not help and I am off that now. My feet and knees burn like hell. My knees feel like they will break when I sit or get up from sitting. I have limited use of my left arm because of shoulder pain. My hands hurt horribly and I can barely open anything. My fingers will not close all the way to grasp something, too much pain. My neck is like the worst crick you can imagine. All this, by the way, is 24/7.
My vision is much worse. My gums bleed. The left side of my face goes numb. It is hard sometimes to finish sentences as I forget what things are called. I get startled VERY easily. Other than smoking, before Chantix, I was a healthy, active, not overweight 52 year old female. Now I move like a 90 year old woman. I want my life back!! I would gladly take my chances at a death from ciggarettes rather than live like I am now, if you can call it that.
Please do NOT take this drug. All these things I have mentioned are listed as Chantix side effects and it seems they will never go away. I never had a reaction to a drug before.
This drug should be removed from the market immediately but I am afraid many more will have to die before that happens. There have been many suicides so far. A good site to hear more stories is www.whyquit.com.
