CRH says that Chantix is an effective drug — but its commercials never mention its name. Why not? Well, no one knows — but what we do know is that if you mention the drug you have to mention the side effects — and the side effects of Chantix are pretty serious.
Last year, the drug's label was updated to include a warning about potential psychiatric effects of the drug which include "changes in behavior, agitation, depressed mood, suicidal ideation and attempted and completed suicide"— and CRH says that the FAA has actually banned pilots from taking the drug because of the severity of these potential side effects.
So if you see an advertisement that looks like a PSA, stop and think.
CRH says:
When you see an ad or Web site with that PSA-like tone, listen or look to see who's sponsoring it. If it's a drug company, and you decide to visit the site, realize that the information, however useful, is there to help promote a drug. And be wary of the interactive options that these sites offer. For example, a Share Your Story section on the FibroCenter site requires you to sign a release basically allowing Pfizer to change your whole story to make it more "commercially viable." So much for an authentic online community.
As far as Chantix goes, about a year ago, New York Magazine had an interesting first person account from someone who had a bad experience with the drug.
The most unsettling thing about sleeping on Chantix is that I never felt like I was truly asleep. Some part of me remained on guard. It was more like lucid dreaming, what I thought it might feel like to be hypnotized. And it didn't entirely go away come morning. As I showered, shaved, and scrambled into clothes, I tried to shake a weird, paranoid sense that I'd just been psychically raped by a household appliance.
Mental air conditioner rape aside... it did help him quit smoking, before he started hallucinating and smashed up his entire apartment. Chantix isn't for everyone, it seems.
Pfizer and Chantix: Stealth advertising at its finest [Consumer Reports Health]
]]>I just have to reply to this. I very seldom log on. Quiting smoking was a big deal to me and this stuff helped. No Shill here ComcastRedwoodFlyer, I just don't post that much. I have one other post that I said I liked a certain brand of paint, I'm I shilling for them too? If I was a Chantix shill I would have posted to take it for 3 months, and not the three WEEKS I had to take. Have a nice day, week, year chasing shillers.
]]>You're the exception to the rule of Chantix praisers only having one post...looks like you shilled for in on Jez. as well..
]]>Why is it that all the people who're praising Chantix only have 1 post??
]]>Fuck you shill, go to hell. I hope your invisismoke shorts out and catches your lair on fire.
]]>Protip: the next time you want to shill...try making random comments on some other post first. It just looks odd when your only comment is one praising 4Chantix. I find it hard to believe that an ordinary intertuber would sign up for a commenting account just to make the lame post you did.
]]>This is a drug that has a raft of nasty side effects including suicides, diabetic onset, linkages with car accidents, Chantix is actually an Anti Depressant class drug in pretty much all respects hence its increased suicidality and other common AD side effects.
]]>@Landru:
More accurately- it's psych speak for a suicidal plan... an actual complete concievement of the thought.
]]>This drug we're allowed to take, but marijuana is against the law!!!!
Friends, we are doomed.
]]>@themicah: Prozatene
@invisiblenemies: Days..not weeks. Sorry.
]]>@facted: Short term use? The recommended dosing is essentially 2 pills a day for 84 weeks.
]]>@se7a7n7: Local taco place here has an ad that makes fun of this phenomenon:
"Placeba"
'ask your doctor if he likes movies about gladiators...ask your doctor to loan you twenty bucks...'
]]>@Corporate_guy: No, not really. My driving was just as erratic and aggressive as usual.
Sorry, that made me chuckle.
No.
]]>For me, the scope of the Chantix side-effects were pretty damn close to delusional. I'm 40 years old and, before taking this awful medication, I never had panic attacks in my entire life. Within days of taking the drug, I experienced debilitating panic attacks and went through clinically diagnosed major depression. Within days of going off the drug, the panic attacks evaporated and I managed to climb out of my depression.
So... for some, Chantix does work well with limited or no side effects. For others, it is an incredibly nasty drug. Taking it is like medical Russian Roulette. Have fun with that.
]]>@facted: Admittedly, the anonymous anecdotal evidence one reads on the internet should be taken for what it's worth, but I'd sure like to consider any and all sources of information and weigh them myself.
Or are you suggesting that Big Pharma (or any huge industry, or the government) would certainly never lie/manipulate results/be wrong about anything?
]]>Good for you, however everyone has different hormones and receptors. Quitting smoking can be more difficult for some than others.
The drugs help to get through the initial withdrawal period until the hormones in a smoker return to that of a non-smoker. They aren't meant to be forever or mask the problem.
While I guess some people have fairly serious side effects, I never experienced any. I say don't believe the hype.
]]>I miss the dreams, I thought they were fun. Talk about some strange stuff, but it made great conversation too.@AmbroseP:
]]>I am a huge advocate for Chantix. It helped me quit in a months time. I just stopped having urges. Sure i had side effects of being thirsty all the time, but drink plenty of water and thats all taken care of. The only other side affect I had was some really crazy and vivid dreams for the first 2 weeks. After that period lapsed I kind of missed the dreams. Anyway, I recommended this product to a half dozen co-workers/friends and all had successes just as mine with only similar side affects.
]]>No, but I wonder if it works in reverse for non-smokers. ie: You'll end up CRAVING for a smoke like members of the fairer sex for chocolate at that time of the month. :D
]]>I also am taking chantix, and am on week one. I can report that I feel a little more sleepy than normal, but it's fine.....my desire to smoke is lessened drastically......thank god!
]]>A local TV station did a story about a guy who - after taking Chantix for a few weeks - freaked out and committed suicide. According to a doctor interviewed in the story, alcohol (even just one beer or glass of wine) consumed within a few hours either way of taking Chantix greatly increases the chance of mental side effects.
I tried Chantix over a year ago. It only worked because it's hard to smoke when you feel like you're gonna recreate Linda Blair's vomiting scene in The Exorcist for hours at a time.
]]>If it were up to me the makers of Chantix would get the freakin' Nobel prize. After years of struggling, I am completely smoke free, and it is because of Chantix.
Former 2 pack/day x 25 years smoker. I was captain of the smoking team. I got out of bed in the middle of the night to smoke. My previous attempts to quit were more unbearable than my divorce. But Chantix flipped a switch and enabled me to stop.
I had some side effects on Chantix, but they were a cakewalk compared to the anger/irritability/despondeny/hopelessness/mental confusion/weight gain I went through in previous attempts to quit without it.
Yeah, the Chantix dreams were horrible. As horrible as lung cancer? Not even close.
Chantix saved my life. Literally. If I am alive 30 years from now, it will be because of Chantix. I wish I could find out what marketing person was responsible for getting the information about Chantix into my awareness, so I could wash their car and take them out for milkshakes. The drug was expensive. But sometimes I feel like sending them more money and telling them they didn't charge me enough for how much it helped me.
Unfortunately it doesn't work for all smokers. If it doesn't work for you or someone you care about, well, I'm sorry about that. But from my experience the drug is a bona fide miracle.
]]>Keep in mind, even if one person has a bad reaction to a drug - they have to put it in their ads.
Just about every single drug out there has "freaky" side effects.
BTW - I took Chantix for about three weeks and stopped(I forgot to take the pill and realized I was OK - I didn't need it anymore). It was 1000x better than cold turkey or the patch (which gave me wild nightmares and soreness where I had it).
]]>So here, I'm starting it again. 5 days in right now, and the dreams are getting wilder by the night! Woo-hoo!
When my doctor examined me and started to go through the side effects, he turned off his game face for a moment, stepped back and said: "You know, I know you're one of those that had a pretty wild youth. Be honest with me, have you ever tried hallucinogenic drugs?"
Me: "Uhh..well...uhh... *sheepish* yeah..."
Dr: "Ok - did you handle it well?"
Me: "Well if you mean did I do anything exceptionally stupid while on it, no I was quite responsible outside of taking the drugs themselves and knew the difference between the high and reality."
Dr: "Good. This stuff (Chantix) is going to bring you back to those days a bit. Enjoy the buzz and don't be a dumbass."
]]>I took Chantix and was able to quit. I found it very effective. I would not however want to use it again due to the side effects I experienced such as changes in behavior,agitation, losing the ability to focus for more then a few seconds and upset stomach (minor). I didn't have the lucid dreams or suicidal stuff going on.
Funny thing is the doctor told me there were no side effects but I had already researched it and knew better so I was prepared for them.
Another reason I'm so grateful for my children. I quit cold turkey the minute I found out I was pregnant. Wouldn't have been able to do it otherwise.
Aside from a few Tylenol a year, I don't take ANY drugs. I've had bad experiences with nearly everything I've ever taken, which hasn't been much anyway (BC pills, Demerol for an outpatient procedure, novocaine). I'd have to be DYING with a guarantee of success before I'd take a newly-released drug. It's not a personal judgment against anyone who does, but I don't trust the FDA anymore. The whole pharma industry and the government agency that "regulates" it is corrupt and criminal.
]]>All in all, I have to admit that without the drug (at least psychologically) I could not have quit...I tried several time cold turkey and I always relapsed.
Nowadays I never feel the urge to smoke, though it does pop into my head every now and then...it helps to stay a non-smoker when you find the smell of smokers to be vile and you have a 2.5 year old kid to impress/keep form asking awkward questions.
]]>hahahaha. im quite 'curious' as well
]]>@courtarro: Well I'm sure thats the legaly prefered method of acquireing Chantix
]]>@invisiblenemies: I'm getting the feeling that the drug sometimes blocks an area of your brain from resting during sleep that actually needs the rest. Sort of like a super specific type of sleep deprivation, which can also cause psychotic episodes.
]]>I took Chantix for three weeks and the only side effect I had was being really tired. I quit smoking after the first week and quit the Chantix after the third week. I've been smoke free for 1 year , 3 months, 2 weeks, 1 day and 20 hours and have saved 1895 dollars according to my silkquit meter. I tired to quit many times in the past and Chantix really helped me.
]]>@bohemian: Not to mention the anti-depression drugs that can make depression worse.
]]>I'm thinking along the lines of "Antisnotin", "Notofungus", or "Getitup Tunite"
]]>I did have crazy dreams for the first few weeks but then I started taking it earlier in the evening and they went away for the most part. The worst is the stomach upset but if you eat a meal right after you take it it's not so bad.
I too read a lot of crazy things online before I took it which scared me but the patch, gum, and anti-depressants did nothing. This worked for me and I'm glad it did.
]]>Why the abbreviated regimen? I had no anxiety attacks or sleeplessness. Yes, it was the dreams. I don't ever want to have another one of those insanely fucked-up dreams, like, ever again. Alejandro Jodorowsky movies seem like Mister Rogers Neighborhood in comparison.
]]>It's been two years for me. I quit by using Chantix. I'd tried the patch, nicotine gum, cold turkey, youi name it. Nothing worked. But Chantix did. I didn't experience any side effects. My husband quit at the same time, using Chantix. He didn't experience any side effects either. For us, it was positive and successful.
The editor over at the Consumer Reports blog is spot on with their short blurb:
"Help-seeking ads can come in handy for drugs that have a particularly nasty list of side effects, since not mentioning the drug by name means you don't have to list the side effects either, according to the U.S Food and Drug Administration."
Aside from not having to mention side effects, pharmaceutical companies almost always strategically leave out their drug names when they are the market leader/innovator (i.e. the patent is still alive and kicking).
Remember the "ask about the purple pill" ads? This is no different.
]]>I had none of these side effects. Just nausea for the first three days, and a weird feeling for the next two that I was aware of the receptors in my brain. Then that went away and I felt perfectly normal. No weird dreams even. (Well, my dreams are pretty weird anyway.)
It's been almost a year and I haven't smoked. That's not to say I still don't WANT to, but I haven't done it.
]]>Yes, suicidal thoughts... which can cause people to attempt or complete suicide.
]]>Only side effects I've had are upset stomach (be sure to take with milk or food) and intense dreams. No nightmares though.
If you're looking for a way to quit, check it out.
]]>I don't believe the purpose of posting this is to deter people from taking Chantix to quit smoking (although some stories here would definitely make me think twice), but to highlight how drug companies get away with marketing their product without full disclosure of what it can do to your body. They know that people desperately try to quit smoking all the time - many unsuccessfully - and showing them the good without the creepy bad stuff will make them more likely to go for it.
"changes in behavior, agitation, depressed mood, suicidal ideation and attempted and completed suicide"
These are very, very serious side effects - even in numbers less than 10%.
]]>ideation??? doublespeak for "thoughts"
"To form an idea of; imagine or conceive"
]]>10 years later, Beck finally reveals how he conceived the idea for his 1999 video, "Sexx Laws":
So you think it's ok for drug companies to advertise only the positive effects, but wrong for the consumerist to point out the negative side effects? Why?
]]>I do not propose that Chantix is such an amazing drug, but among the side effects mentioned, abnormal dreaming = 10% of patients and insomnia 18%. The drug does not cause delusions or paranoia.
Now considering how effective the drug is in terms of stopping people from smoking, and it's relatively short term use, it's side effects profile is quiet tolerable compared to years of cigarette use (heart attacks, strokes, cancers, etc...)
]]>Jamie Hirsh has rather endearing midwestern accent, and she sounds like she has braces for some reason. I think its totally cute!
]]>I just stopped taking Chantix after completing 2 weeks of the treatment. Very strange side effects. The first few days weren't too bad - crazy dreams though. After the first week, you start to take the full dose of the medication - that's when the weirdness starts.
Days 8-15: I found myself becoming increasingly apathetic. I was never fully awake - constant Zombie mode. Did nothing but work and sleep. I generally slept 12+ hours a day.
It took 5 days after I stopped taking the meds to be completely void of side effects.
Fun times.
]]>Plus, I imagine they don't mention it's a drug b/c of how friggin difficult it is to actually quit smoking for good. I'd like to see some true relapse numbers after 1 year of using Chantix.
]]>The faux fibromyalgia website is promoting a drug that has a high incidence of causing suicidal behavior. Of course they don't mention this to people when handing it out like candy.
]]>I like lucid dreaming. Maybe I should start smoking so I can get some of this.
I'm not big into appliance rape though, so maybe not.
]]>