Chantix - a New Kind of Anti-Smoking Aid

My Daughter has been smoking about 1 to 2 packs of cigarettes a day for the past 13 years. She also has asthma and chronic bronchitis and been in the Intensive Care Unit of our local Hospital for 3 days with pneumonia so bad she was almost put on life support. After all this time she has not had a desire to quit smoking. However, I'm her Dad and really been pushing for her to give quitting a try. After serious negotiations I finally pushed hard enough for her to see our Doctor about this dangerous habit. To my surprise there is a new prescription medicine that has worked so well so far, I think of it as a miracle.

The drug is prescription only and comes complete with a smoker's support plan. It is made by Pfizer and marketed as Chantix (verenicline). It was approved in early May 2007 as an aid for smokers who wanted to quit. It is not a nicotine replacement drug. In fact if this is taken as prescribed it makes smoking actually distasteful to the patient. It should not be used with any other cigarette replacement drug such as the patch, nicotine gum, or other nicotine delivery system unless approved by your Doctor.

The first week or two my Daughter continued to smoke. The first effect she noticed was that the medication made cigarettes seem like ultra lights, which she got little pleasure from. The second week it actually made the act of smoking distasteful to her and she was able to give up cigarettes while driving. The next week she gave up smoking altogether. She said she didn't miss the nicotine at all. That is because Chantix binds with the same dopamine receptors in the brain as does inhaled nicotine from cigarette smoke. The drug also slows the release of dopamine in the body. This reduces the cravings for cigarettes.

She is now well into the second week of non-smoking. Each day seems to get easier and easier for her to get through. We are both amazed that this is working so well. Her major problems seem to be the mechanical act of smoking. This so far has been taken care of by her using Werther's sucking candy, a very scrumptious little caramel flavored snake available in supermarkets and drug stores.

Chantix is new and of course quitting smoking is a difficult proposition. It seems to me that nicotine replacement therapy has the inherent problem that you never are really giving up nicotine. You are still addicted to the substance. Whenever you do give up nicotine entirely you have to cope with the withdrawal from nicotine addiction. This seems to me to be nearly equivalent of going "cold turkey". I am not a Doctor so if the nicotine replacement patches, gum or any other nicotine delivery system works for you then by all means congratulations and good luck. I would think this is very hard to do. Therefore, from my own personal experience, I can not recommend this method of quitting. I quit 23 years ago cold turkey and it was not easy.

I do strongly recommend Chantix in conjunction with a Doctor's visit and the following of the plan that comes with the medication. You may want to think of how to replace the mechanical habits of smoking. These may include not having the morning cup of coffee, or using lollipops or hard candy to put in you mouth. Talk this over with your Doctor, who may have some ideas as well.

Some people have used a combination of Chantix and nicotine replacement therapy if their first attempt on Chantix alone does not work. Do not try this without your Doctor's blessing. Remember how important it is to you and to your loved ones that you are healthy and not poisoning yourself with cigarette smoke.

Most of all I wish you good luck and advocate retrying methods of quitting no matter how long it takes. It is the best thing you can do for yourself.