Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
General health

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Original poster

Giving up Smoking with ChampiX!!

23 replies

LeanneBax · 30/09/2013 10:26

Hi Everyone... ive never started a thread before but thought id give it a go seeing as i may be needing the support for this one...
So.. Ive decided to give up smoking using Champix. Ive read and heard soooo many horror stories on these, im scared to go to sleep at night!! Id be grateful for some advice from anyone whos tried them whether they were successful or not. Im on day 2 at the moment, and cigarettes are already starting to taste crap.

I think my main concern is the nightmare side of it. I live in an old victorian house and already get the heeby jeebies at night sometimes lol. Please help :)

OP posts:
somethingawfulonit · 30/09/2013 22:05

I did it last year. Still not smoking now.

The first two weeks were the worst - I felt a bit unhinged really - but that levelled out and although the first tablet each day made me feel a bit nauseous, the second one was ok.

For me, it really worked. I'd tried patches before but always cheated by taking them off and having a fag anyway, but with Champix, I didn't really want to smoke after the first two weeks at all. The not wanting to smoke annoyed me because I'd loved my fags, so at first I felt a bit as though someone had taken away my favourite toy, but you get used to it. The times when I most strongly wanted a cigarette were when I was stressed, but that fades too.

It's almost a year since I last had a cigarette, and I do still think about it occasionally, but the thought is fleeting. There's no craving.

I can smell a cigarette a mile off though - I had to take dd to the out of hours doctor the other night, and I can assure you that that doctor had had a fag just before we got there! I'm like the secret smoking police.....

somethingawfulonit · 30/09/2013 22:07

Meant to say - best of luck. Stick with it. It's really clever, the way it works. Oh, and also, I didn't put on any weight, in case you're worried about that, because it takes the cravings away, you're not trying to ease the cravings by stuffing your face with cream cakes!

Original poster
LeanneBax · 01/10/2013 09:54

Hi, Thanks for the response. I read lots of positive but some very negative too. Im on day 3 now and for the first time today, got really sicky when i had a cigarette. Scared to have one now, which can only be a good thing right...? lol.

Lots of people say they feel quite "low" on them.....did you have anything like that? And also the dreams? I had a strange one last night, but nothing freaky as yet.

Im also dieting at the moment, so the stuffing the face was something i was concerned about as well. Bought myself a cross stitch to keep me busy and not looking for things for my hands to do. Fingers crossed it all works out for me cos the money i save on fags is going straight on botox!! haha :)

OP posts:
somethingawfulonit · 01/10/2013 14:38

Yes, I did feel a little 'low' at first, but that definitely levelled out after the first two or three weeks. And yes, I did have one or two fairly vivid dreams - can't remember what they were now, but not bad dreams or freaky at all - fun dreams, but just more vivid than normal.

Stick with it though, because I never could have given up without using Champix, and I didn't want to smoke myself into an early grave.

Glad it's starting to kick in and you're not enjoying the cigarettes now. In a few days you'll find that when you think about having one, the other part of you says "yes, but I won't like it so what's the point?!". And slowly over the 12 week course, your brain stops reminding you to have one so often, because it forgets about them, because you're not having them, if you see what I mean. So that once the 12 weeks is over, you're able to carry on not smoking.

Really best of luck. It's worth the nausea in the end!

cranberryorange · 01/10/2013 14:44

It sent me absolutely loopy to the point that even my own children begged me to stop taking it, so after 9 weeks i stopped.

I really didnt realise how bad i felt until that stuff got out of my system.

I was on the big champix thread on MN and a lot of us suffered the same but stuck with it.

However i didnt touch a fag for the entire time i was on it because i really didnt want one when i felt so sick constantly!

9 months down the line i'm still not smoking but use an E cig. Champix really does work but make sure your nearest and dearest are monitoring your behaviour and moods.

Goodluck

Clairenic · 01/10/2013 20:28

I quit 3 weeks ago using an e cig and already starting to feel so much healthier. Hope it works for you. Try and be strong

PrivatePollyPerks · 01/10/2013 20:36

I used champix at the beginning of the year, and made it to nearly 10 weeks without a ciggy, but I suffered , major anxiety problems while on the tablets which , meant I couldnt finish the 12 weeks. The tablets definitely made giving up easier. unfortunately I started smoking again, and I'm still not over my anxiety problems even now.

Original poster
LeanneBax · 02/10/2013 11:12

wow! This is really interesting....i wonder why some people are unaffected yet others get it bad. The thing that bothers me the most, is i dont know how im going to be until im on the full dose and not smoking at all. Will just have to keep it up until i know. Hoping ill be fine. Will keep updated :)

OP posts:
onefewernow · 02/10/2013 11:25

I started it on Monday too.

I used it before, a couple of years ago.

For me it was great last time- a bit sick in the morning, but easily controlled with toast or banana first.

I did get the funny dreams but I didn't mind them. I think I went to the loo in the night more too- they are something of a dieretic .

Stick with it- you get used to it after a couple of weeks.

I'll check in again, if you want.

Original poster
LeanneBax · 02/10/2013 12:06

Yes onefewernow....please do. Bit of moral support wouldnt hurt as i dont actually know anyone around me whos had them before so.... Good luck, lets do it :)

OP posts:
onefewernow · 04/10/2013 09:41

How's it going? I'm dreading stopping on Monday for good, but determined.

Original poster
LeanneBax · 04/10/2013 10:32

Hi....Im kinda dreading it too lol. I have an appointment later today to get the next step pills, the stronger ones that you start taking in week 2. Im not craving fags as much but im finding the habit of actually going for a cigarette hard to break. For example, when i get in the car in the morning, i light a fag....and it feels weird that i wont be doing it if that makes sense. The psychological part of not smoking is going to be hard i think. The cravings will be controlled but the pattern of when you smoke is going to be something to think about. Still, not had to deal with it properly as yet, i will do next week. I think im going to give up on Tuesday.

Have you had any side effects as yet?

OP posts:
onefewernow · 04/10/2013 10:50

I'm on the stronger ones already. Feeling a bit icky with the morning one, so I'm having breakfast with it.

You are right about the psychology - last time I DREADED that bit, but it was a lot easier than expected. I just told myself- that was then, and anyway it will pass in a minute. I'd stopped noticing after a few days.

FunnysInLaJardin · 04/10/2013 10:55

I have been on and off Champix and am now on a quarter of a mg a day and using ecigs. I found the full dose far too strong and so over the years had adjusted and cut down and cut down. It has really helped me get control over my smoking rather than vice versa. I am on 2 a day now and expect to be on 1 a day by next week and then none. I have to say that is more down to the ecig though although Champix really helped break the reaction of 'I'm cross, I need a fag'!

Original poster
LeanneBax · 04/10/2013 11:16

I really am dreading the psychology part! Lol. Ive told myself, that when i would usually go for a cigarette, ill run up and down the stairs instead and get fitter instead of poisoning myself haha. Just hope it works.

I tried the e-cigarette about 8 months ago. I kept forgetting to charge it and the disposable ones wernt so readily available in all the shops as they are now. When my chargable one ran had i had to go and buy fags instead, hence breaking the cycle then i just gave up.

I had one really bad morning of nausea when i first started taking the Champix but nothing else as yet. Just hope it all stays level when i go onto the higher dosage. Will keep you updated, stay strong guys and have a great weekend x

OP posts:
amicusapple · 04/10/2013 11:26

I stopped using champix. Yes they might make you feel a bit rubbish (sick, constipated etc) but I just kept reminding myself that it's short lived and better to feel a little off colour for a few weeks than to spend the rest of my life as a smoker.

They really do work and it wasn't even that difficult and I was a 20 a day kind of smoker.

Good luck and stick with it. The grass is definitely greener Smile

FunnysInLaJardin · 04/10/2013 11:29

I think it can take years to really get out of the habit of smoking. I know it has for me. I'm 42 and I would say that only now am I anywhere near giving up for good. I have always been a light smoker but I have never been able to imagine day to day life without a few fags. I have given up when pregnant etc and also at various other times but always with half an eye on starting again at some point. Good luck and keep at it!

Original poster
LeanneBax · 04/10/2013 14:24

Thanks for the feedback guys.... the real work starts next week when i actually give up i think x

OP posts:
Original poster
LeanneBax · 07/10/2013 10:43

Hi guys. So I started taking the stronger dose on Saturday morning and within an hour I was so sick. Continued to take them all over the weekend and literally couldn't keep any food down whatsoever . I had no energy, I didnt get dressed for 2 days!! I had a constant headache and just wanted to cry all the time. Been advised this morning to stop taking them completely by my doctor. Still smoking as well so looks like im going to have to try an alternative.

OP posts:
cranberryorange · 07/10/2013 16:00

You sound as though you are having the same reaction as meSad

I would listen to your Dr and stop. It took weeks for me to get back to normal but i got there in the end.

Have you thought of looking over on the 'evangelical about E cigs' thread.

I know its not as satisfying as quitting the habit if you use an E cig but its worth a try and you can cut down the dosage of nicotine as fast as you can handle.

Its disappointing but dont give up quitting, just find a method that suits you and your body.

I'm 9 months free nowSmile

onefewernow · 07/10/2013 21:54

Oh what a pity Leanne.

Did the dr suggest an alternative?

Still struggling through here- day one of not smoking at all.

peardrop372 · 02/01/2020 04:33

Hi I have had champix in my draw for 2 weeks I do want to give up smoking as I have been doing this horrible habit for 49 years but I have been reading over and over different things about them I don't think I can give up with out them but am afraid of all the side effects what I am wondering how will they effect me at work I work in retail so afraid of losing my concentration and the moods with customers so wondering if anybody had this problem and how they coped at work thank you for any advise welcome

aNonnyMouse1511 · 06/01/2020 11:01

@peardrop372 I gave up with champix 8 years ago.

I had to take them with food as they made me feel incredibly sick. But that only lasted a couple of hours (I’d break the tablet in half because I couldn’t handle a full dose). That was my only side effect and it was well worth it to quit smoking. I came off the champix after a couple of months and never smoked again. Good luck.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page