This guy is about to make a great decision and is nervous about the withdrawal:

When I quit drinking (praise the Lord) I had been given campral. This helped alot. But it does not work with smoking, according to the research I have done.

I am not looking forward to the withdrawal. I am not wanting to become a screaming manic to my family. I do not want to go through the withdrawal only to fail and start smoking again. (Happened too many times with the drinking over the course of 20+ years). Can not afford on line support groups that I have seen.
Can not afford the doctor. I am unable to make it to AA meetings so a stop smoking meeting will not work for me. I am hoping to find something along the line of pill form. Does any one have suggestions? Oh candies and gums are out also, due to teeth issues.

I emailed him back and told him that an affordable option might be the stop smoking medication Chantix.  His insurance will probably cover it, and if not, it’s still pretty affordable considering how much cigarettes cost!

Do you think you need the help of a stop smoking medication to kick the habit?  Read the below and think about why you actually smoke.

Cigarettes are not just loaded with nicotine.  They’re also full of 50+ other chemicals, some of which might be addictive (and harmful to your body.)  The main problem with quitting, though, is just breaking the habit.

We train ourselves to think of our body as ‘needing something,’, a sensation we try to alleviate by smoking a cigarette.

When we try to stop smoking, we still get these ‘my body needs something’ sensations, and we still feel that we want a cigarette. We have to train our body to be more selective. When we feel we need something, we have to work out what it is that we actually need.

A glass of water is an excellent substitute if nothing else comes to mind, as it helps with the clearance of the toxic substances in our body. Another good substitute is a bag of salted peanuts, used in combination with the water.

Another thing to do is to find an activity which occupies the mind or body. Go swimming – nobody wants to smoke while they are swimming. Slowly, as our body adjusts and translates the ‘want something’ feelings into something other than cigarettes, then the feelings begin to go away. We know its not a cigarette that the body really needs, because as soon as we’ve had one we still have the feeling, and want another!

A neighbor has been prescribed Lexapro and Ativan for a depression/anxiety issue.  So far she’s thinking that it’s working (and I think she seems much happier, to be honest.)  She smokes about a pack a day and has decided that it’s time to quit.  Has anyone else had experience quitting while on these medications?  I’ve heard that Ativan may help reduce nicotine cravings because of the way it works in the brain.  Her doctor said the only stop smoking medication he knows of is Chantix.

Smokers wanting to quit have more resources than ever at their disposal, from a patch to a nicotine gum to hypnotherapy.  There’s pills, and then more natural approaches like accupuncture.  Unfortunately, we all know there is no miracle quit smoking aid.  Somtimes cold turkey is still the best approach.  It all depends on your own body chemistry and your level of addiction.  Check with your doctor, who will guide you down the right path to being smoke free!

I read this story by an ex-smoker who quit without using a stop smoking medication:

I began smoking at the age of 15 and finally quit for good at the age of 57 (a year ago), when I was at a pack a day. Even though all the experts say you have to go cold turkey, I think that just increases the craving. This is how I did it. Every time I wanted a cigarette, I only smoked half of it. So, I immediately cut my intake in half. After a few weeks of doing that (gives your body time to adjust to less nicotine), I would only take about 4 puffs, put it out and save it for the next craving. After a few weeks of that, I went to 2 puffs, then one puff (where one cigarette could last me a day or two). My body gradually got used to doing without the nicotine and I got to a point where I said, “when this pack is done, I’m not buying anymore”. That was a year ago. Recently, I stayed with my son, who smokes, and took a drag off his cigarette. I didn’t like the taste and it hurt my throat. If I can do it, you can do it, because I loved smoking!!!

A friend wanted to share this gem of an idea to stop smoking cigarettes:

There is one very helpful way to quit smoking, and that is to become absolutely DISGUSTED by the mere idea of having another cigarette. When you can feel thoroughly repulsed by the thought of lighting-up, you’re ready to replace the smoking habit with something better for you.

So how does one DO that, you ask? “how do I get THAT grossed out by my cigarette habit?” It’s actually quite easy. Don’t cut down on cigarettes at all, in fact, you have to increase your ‘dosage’ all of a sudden, all in one sitting.

Do this in an enclosed room so there is hardly not much air circulation, have as many cigarettes on hand that you normally would smoke over the course of a whole day, and begin smoking them one after another. You cannot allow yourself to take a break from them, you must smoke them ALL – one after the other. The smoke should be allowed to infiltrate EVERYthing – your hair, your clothes, your bedsheets. Don’t take a shower before you go to bed, don’t change the sheets either – allow yourself to smell exactly what all non-smokers smell when smokers are puffing away on the vile stuff around them. You must give yourself the full impact of the disgusting odor – it is especially important that you can smell the stink of cigarettes in your bed pillow and your hair as you are falling asleep later.

That really ought to do it. Every time you think about having a cigarette after this experience, you should feel a strong repulsive YUCK! come over you. This may seem rather extreme – and it is – but if you want to quit …

I thought this was a good read about someone using stop smoking medication:

Today is 2 months of not smoking for me thanks to Chantix. These people saying wanting to quit is enough and cold turkey is the only way are full of it. I had wanted to quit many times and have bought countless boxes of nicorette and had never made it a day before. I made up my mind one day at work I was going to try Chantix and stopped by my doctor on the way home. The visit to get the prescription was $80 and the first months supply from the Pharmacy was $120 with the $10 rebate that comes with it now. After the first week I didn’t quit completely like you are supposed to but I cut down to a couple a day. At the end of the second week I quit completely and haven’t had a cigarette since. I filled my second month supply since you are supposed to take the medicine for 3 months, which was another $120, but a week or so into the second month I cut the prescription in half down to 1 pill a day. After a week or so I quit taking the pills. I never stopped drinking coffee or going to bars and drinking and didn’t change my life at all except for the smoking. Chantix really works. As far as insurance covering it, find out what insurance provider you will have and find out if they cover it, but there aren’t many that do cover it. I smoked for 15 yrs a pack plus a day.

Everyone has a different story.  The goal is to quit, so do whatever you find works!

I have a friend who refuses to take any kind of stop smoking medication because her neighbor gained 25 pounds quitting with an aid, and then had a mini-stroke that sent her to the hospital.  She’s going cold turkey because of the horror stories.  I told her that everyone reacts differently, and that she should talk to her doctor about side effects if she’s concerned.

Bruce, the most effective (unfortunately) is based on medication, other than that there are numerous support groups

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I read this today and thought people might have some thoughts:

I’ve just recently quit taking anti-anxiety medication, after slowing it down for a couple of weeks.  I’m getting a little weepy and anxious, but feel it’s good to get the drug out of my system.  I also take a med for nausea, which is caused by the anxiety, and so my nausea is getting worse now, though not too bad.

I’ve been wanting to quit smoking for a few months now, and I think a stop smoking medication would be really helpful for me, something that blocks the effects of the nicotine or whatever.  However, I’m worried about the effects of having stopped my anxiety medication combined with the anti-nausea meds effects and a new quitting smoking drug.  I’m trying to find stories about drug interactions.  I also occasionally smoke marijuana but want to quit that too.

My Doctor is on vacation until next week so I’ll see him then, but I’m eager to get as much info as possible.