Patches V Champix etc etc

[nsd_user663_25698]

I'm posting this thread as a bit of help for anyone thinking of quitting but not sure which method to use. :confused:

Patches, pills, inhaler, cold turkey or pitch fork though the foot?

Personally, I just jumped straight in, bought patches and got on with it and am only now comparing peoples threads thinking it seems easier using champix.

I am on day 22 but to be honest it really hasn't been the easiest smoothest journey. I have gained 8lb in weight :o, spent lots of money on patches from the shops (aparantley the doctors can give them to you for free) only for them to fall off half way through the day and then needing a second.

I am loving all the benefits of not smoking but thats not what this post is intended for.

What are your views?

What are you using?

and is that method working for you?

I don't think i can go cold turkey now for a good few weeks. The other day my patch fell off down my trouser leg. I didn't know but my poor children were walking on egg shells. There is obviously something in those see through stickers!

[nsd_user663_25209]

Hi Karen, iv been using patches for over 3 weeks now. I got mine through the docs, so its much cheaper paying for a prscription than buying them straight from the pharmacy. Im using 24hr ones but in reality i only have them on for about 12hrs. Iv only ever had one patch come off and that was because i was sweaty from exercising. For me they have been great, no real issues and effective. You certainly need the will power but i was totally prepared, got the paul mckenna book which i read in the first few days and have been coming on here daily.

I tried the champix for 2 days but for me the side effects were horrible so thats why im on patches.

My mum has been on champix for 5 weeks and she's doing great. Personally i think what works for one person may not work for another etc. But you certainly have done well on the patches, maybe try a different brand. Im on nicotinell but iv read that the clear ones(dont know the brand) dont stick very well. xx

[nsd_user663_13466]

Hi Karen,

It's 16 weeks today for me not smoking.

I went cold turkey because i had made the decision to stop smoking and I didn't want to use patches because after 12 weeks I didn't want to have to be weaned off patches as in a previous quit I used patches and started smoking as soon as I didnt have to wear the patch.

I still carried a patch in my purse from day one just in case it got too much for me and im was very lucky becasue I didn't need it.

Each person is different in their quit. What works for one doesn't work for another.

I found cold turkey very hard in the beginning but feel great now.

[nsd_user663_25698]

iv read that the clear ones(dont know the brand) dont stick very well. xx

That would be the ones i'm using then. Nicquitin.

It says on the box that they will stay on when swimming and showering.

Fat chance. I can't even get them to stay when i go downstairs!

For the first few days i held them on with surgical tape but thanks to my 8lb weight gain they are held on by my tight clothes

Thats another problem. When i don't have a patch on properly i get really grumpy. I left a post on here once saying i had the grumps. Little did i know at the time, that was the day it fell off down my trouser leg so i know it's not a case of 'placebo drugs' there really is something my head needs, in those little squares.

I'm now worried about getting reliant on the nicotine in the patches.

'My name is Karen and i'm addicted to being addicted to things'

Is there no end to this?

[nsd_user663_26598]

HI ,

well I am a strong advocate on not using NRT's ... and this is due to endless failures myself , and as well friends that have failed. Now did you read Alan Carr ... I actually found it explained very well why this does not really work ... actually you are feeding your body Nicotine all the time , so you are not really getting off your drug ... Well I have to look at it like that if you are an Alcoholic ... well eating Truffles filled with brandy doesn't really help does it ... even you are not drinking the bottle you still get your fix ... or if you are doing Crack switching to cocaine sniffing does not really kill the need for your drug ....( Pardon if I am harsh here ... but if you think a bout it thats what we are ... in a nutshell .... Drug addicts .... Lets be realistic here ...)

I mean that is the principle of an addiction ... I believe if you can't quit like with CT or a program like Alan , you should try Champix or Zyban ... as they will help ... I am sure ...

But feed the body Nicotine in any way shape or form ... I don't know ... :confused: I am sure here are a lot of Pro Advocates of the Patch ... I am not saying I am right ... just passing on my thoughts on the subject ... It is your Quit at the end of the day ... Just want to lay it all out to you ... I just ask myself always the same question ... Do I want to be free of my drug ... or do I take it in at small doses or in another form ... ??? :rolleyes:

All the best with your quit ...

[nsd_user663_7235]

I personally went CT and it worked for me but that' s me.

I don't wholely agree with NRT because it's what it says you are still giving your body nicotine and then after 12 weeks you think great I've stopped now I don't need the nicotine any more. Well unfortunately you have been giving your body nicotine for the last 12 weeks. So unless you have been progressively lowering the amount you have been taking it can be difficult to stop taking it suddenly and it's a bit like CT.

With Champix I believe you are replacing the nicotine with something else therefore you are not taking nicotine so technically you are taking away the nicotine so after a certain time you can go without it.

CT well that's probably the hardest way to stop but in my opinion the quickest. Because after a certain lenth of time you find you can go without the nicotine so therefore you have stopped, well almost it can still be hard.

Okay maybe I don't know what the hell I'm talking about but these are my thoughts and not the thoughts of everyone. I must stress it does not matter what method you use to stop smoking If your method will stop you smoking. Like hanging from a tree upside down for 3 month so you can't smoke then the main thing is you stop.

Please do not read into this that I'm saying you should this and not that because that way is not right and this way is wrong.

Whatever you choose will be the correct way for you.

Jack

[nsd_user663_25997]

Hi, you posed a good question and interesting to read everyones replies. I myself have just quit for the first time, never wanted to quit before. I went to the stop smoking clinic and talked with a counselor whom I meet once a week.

My method of choice was champix, unlike patches and other NRT's it does not give you nicotene. You can smoke on it for the first 12/13 days, smoking less and less as you go. What it does it kind of blocks all the areas that the nicotene goes. So when you are smoking the nicotene is not sticking anywhere as it normally would, and you are not getting the same type of hit as when you smoked before. As the days go on the champix is working and the cigarettes start to not taste so good. Of course as in anything you have to want to quit and you set your quit date. In my case I ended up stopping on the 5th day to the surprise of everyone I just got mad at the smokes, yes the smokes, and yelled at them that they are not the ruler of me and threw them out. I am now starting my 3rd week.

Some people don't react so well to it, but I do wonder if those are people who are not meeting with someone regularly whether gp or stop smoking counselor who can advise you what to expect and help you with different experiences.

However, it has been said by others on this site that if champix agrees with you it is a Godsend. Like Jack I don't agree by trying to quit with feeding your body more Nicotene :rolleyes:

Good luck in your quit, if you really want to do it, you will do it whatever method you choose!

[nsd_user663_25209]

Both methods are the same it's just they are done different ways round.

There are enough people on the forum who took NRT and are successful long term quitters. The proof is there that it works.

Regardless of method you still need willpower. A patch is not a miracle quit tool and you still need to work hard to stay off cigarettes.

I say congratulations to anyone who quits and sticks with it regardless of how they get there

Karri, i couldnt agree more. For me, i had to really want to quit. Id had many half hearted attempts but in reality i still wanted to smoke, the fear of not smoking was too much. But this time round, i educated myself and prepared myself. I have a long way to go using patches but i will not go back to smoking. Determination is key to my quit. I will not waste all my hard work by smoking again. It doesnt matter what method you use as long as you quit and stay a non-smoker. xx

[nsd_user663_25209]

lol Karri, you just brought a smile to my face:D. You know a big fat smug cheesy one hahaha. Yes indeed 2moro is the 4 weeks mark for me and it feels good. My mum is also approaching the 4 weeks using champix, im sooo proud of her after smoking for 40 years thats a big achievement.

Doesnt matter how you do it just as long as you do quit. And if at first you dont succeed try, try again xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx:D:D

[nsd_user663_25997]

Hi, you posed a good question and interesting to read everyones replies. I myself have just quit for the first time, never wanted to quit before. I went to the stop smoking clinic and talked with a counselor whom I meet once a week.

My method of choice was champix, unlike patches and other NRT's it does not give you nicotene. You can smoke on it for the first 12/13 days, smoking less and less as you go. What it does it kind of blocks all the areas that the nicotene goes. So when you are smoking the nicotene is not sticking anywhere as it normally would, and you are not getting the same type of hit as when you smoked before. As the days go on the champix is working and the cigarettes start to not taste so good. Of course as in anything you have to want to quit and you set your quit date. In my case I ended up stopping on the 5th day to the surprise of everyone I just got mad at the smokes, yes the smokes, and yelled at them that they are not the ruler of me and threw them out. I am now starting my 3rd week.

Some people don't react so well to it, but I do wonder if those are people who are not meeting with someone regularly whether gp or stop smoking counselor who can advise you what to expect and help you with different experiences.

However, it has been said by others on this site that if champix agrees with you it is a Godsend. Like Jack I don't agree by trying to quit with feeding your body more Nicotene :rolleyes:

Good luck in your quit, if you really want to do it, you will do it whatever method you choose!

Forgot to mention a very important thing about Champix, what it does is block the receptors in the brain that would be creating the cravings. After about 90 days they kind of go back to sleep and stop asking for the nicotene as they have been blocked from it for so long. Makes the cravings very minimal if any. In over 2 weeks I only had two cravings.

[nsd_user663_13614]

Patches V Champix

I need help, I intend to try to stop smoking in just over 5 weeks time but regarding Champix I've read and heard some horror stories of people using it who suffered terrible side effects and that scares me. Has anyone tried to stop using Zyban? I've heard it's not as violent as Champix with regards to side effects and what about this new spray what's come on the market, has anyone tried that, I've been smoking 10 cigs a day for 50 years so I know it's going to take a hell of a lot will power to stop but I must stop as it's now effecting my health and my wallet. I really would appreciate any help and advice regarding which method to use especially Zyban:confused:

Thanks in advance, Dicker.