I was recently on several different medications. I was prescribed Welbutrin seven months ago for smoking cessation and depression. I also took Benedryl nightly for congestion. Then, last month I was prescribed Chantix to quit smoking, as the Welbutrin obviously wasn’t doing the trick. The Chantix was amazing. I stopped smoking on October 26th and it’s been great, but then on Sunday, November 4th I took Mucinex DM for a cough I had. I wasn’t too worried about it because my husband called the Kaiser pharmacist prior to me taking all of this just to make sure there wouldn’t be any interactions. I also crosschecked the labels before I took the medications. On the next morning of Monday, November 5th at 2:30am I woke up to go to the bathroom. When I tried to make my way back to bed my heart started pounding, my ears started ringing and my eyes had trouble adjusting. I was dizzy and panicking. I woke my husband up to call the advice nurse. Half asleep and confused, he picked up the phone and dialed. It seemed like it was taking forever. My heart rate sped to the point that I couldn’t differentiate between beats. I begged my husband to hang up and call 911. By the time fire had arrived at our house my heart rate was still very rapid, but had slowed a little in the assurance that medics would be there soon. I don’t remember much of the ride, but in the ER my heart rate was fluctuating between 120-160 BPM. My blood pressure which was normal to most, was high for me at 130/90-something (I’m usually about 90/60.) Then I started to have convulsions during which my heart rate would sky rocket. The doctor thought it was some sort of drug interaction, as did my husband and I, even though we had checked ahead of time and the ER doctor found nothing in the computer system about it. I was given Ativan (lorazepam) for the convulsions and sent home. The convulsions would come back every time the Ativan whore off. My doctor told me to stop the Welbutrin and I did, but the convulsions continued. Then I stopped the Chantix, which I was afraid to do because I’ve been so successful in not smoking on it. I would rather tough it out than convulse, though. My convulsions stopped after that and I’m feeling much better now. During this ordeal my husband was trying to figure out what was wrong with me based on my symptoms and since drug interactions do not continue to effect you days after the medication is out of your system he discovered something on the internet called serotonin syndrome.

I was taken off of everything and then eventually put back on Chantix. That was a few weeks ago. I became gradually more and more depressed and it was as though I was watching myself go through this. By Sunday evening on 12/2/07, after my diabetic 8 year old gave us a big scare with a very low blood sugar, I completely withdrew. All I could feel was this sadness and I couldn't understand why. That night in bed while my husband was showering I began crying and I felt like my chest was physically in pain. I felt like "giving up" and said I didn't want to "be" anymore. I started falling asleep and then suddenly lept out of bed at the thought that I would sleep walk and kill myself. I told my husband and he stayed awake with me until I fell asleep.

The next day I went to a psychiatrist and he advised me to ease back off of the Chantix and he prescribed me Celexa and then Lorazepam to ease my anxiety until I got on the Celexa. I hope it works. I'm so scared of medication now.

And with over a million users of the medication... you have to take into account the amount of users when saying there's roughly 205 people that have had issues, possibly, with the drug. Don't forget to throw in the possibility of just plain old mental health problems!

im taking chapix now , and never in my whole life have i had depression or any suicidal thoughts until yesterday , and a wave of depression came over me , didnt want to go home , just wanted to take my dogs lead and go hang myself , i talked it through with my very understanding wife , and she got on various sites , and said yes their was maybe a link to the stop smoking pills. so im stopping them and just see how it goes from there

just started campix and feeling really low. i just feel nothingness which is a strange feeling

Punched up this site because I too have been feeling terribly the past three weeks while on Champix and wondered if it might be the cause. As a life long sufferer I am very familiar with the signs of depresssion but these recent thoughts, emotions and lethargy started worrying me today. I quit 8 weeks ago and have two sets of prescription left but don't want to quit taking it in case I start smoking again which will just make me feel far worse than I do already! I'll get through this.
To everyone else, please hang in there and get help if you are seriously thinking of suicide ---if you were motivated/strong/thought enough of yourself to start the drug to stop smoking, you will get there again. Remember to tell yourself you were rid of smokes for however long and that if you can do that once, you can do it again - and probably stay off for good - once you are feeling stronger.
Good luck!

I used champix and quit 9 months ago. I had to quit the meds early as the depression and paranoia was more than I could handle. My husband has been on the drug for 11 months! He is very irratable and distant but I cannot convince him to quit the drug. He still has not quit smoking although he has slowed down. I believe it does help to quit smoking but at what price? Where will we end up? Terribly Worried

Sharon, you hubby can't have been on Champix for 11 months - it's a 12 week programme with a possible 12 week tapering extension. As such your post is utter crap. Champix has not been proved to either cause or aggravate depression - go check the facts. Your low mood is probably due to your desperate need to be noticed.

I too used Champix for the 12 week program and was quite sucessful at quiting however, 3 weeks after stopping the drug I was hospitalized for 2 weeks for overdosing myself and severe depression. I have suffered from depression but never had suicidal thoughts or tendencies prior to taking Champix. I am now wondering if this was what caused my suicide attempt. P.S. Unfortunately I am back to smoking and taking anti-depressants now.

Oh really FFS. You obviously have some sort of vested interest in this drug or you would not proffess your disbelief in it's side effects.
I know first hand, since my beautiful wife has gone from sweet and thoughtful to full fledged drill seargent. Don't tell me there are no side effects. DON'T TAKE CHAMPIX, GET HYPNOSIS.

i have been on champix for 8 weeks now and have been successful in quiting smoking...i have a long history of depression and anxiety...i have found that the only side affect i have had is probably agitation and short temperedness...remember, a person has to wieght the pros and cons of this drug...do the benefits outway the risks? Not everyone will react to Champix the same way as another...i guess you have to take your chances.

MY BROTHER-IN-LAW STARTED TAKING CHATIX JULY 19, 2008 AND THAT EVENING HE HAD TERRIBLE JAW PAIN BUT FINALLY WENT TO SLEEP. JULY 20, 2008 HE TOOK HIS LAST PILL AND 2 HOURS LATER DROPPED DEAD ON THE SIDEWALK OUTSIDE HIS HOUSE. 47 YEARS OLD - LEAVING HIS WIFE, 4 DAUGHTERS, AND AN AUTISTIC SON WHO ADORED HIM AND ASKS EVERYDAY "WHERE'S DADDY?" HE IS GREATLY MISSED BY HIS ENTIRE FAMILY!!! WE WOULD RATHER HAVE HIM STILL SMOKING THEN DEAD.

I have been on Champix for a little over 3 weeks now, and have not experienced much for side effects, except that it gives me heart burn. I truley believe that any one who experiences depression, was already close too, or depressed already but didn't know it. I have been smoke free for 2 weeks now , and loving it!!

I went on Champix at the end of March of this year and stayed on it for the full 12 week program. I finished just at the end of June-1rst of July sometime. While I am not totally convinced that the drug is responsible, something certainly has me in a state that I have never experienced in my life before. About a week off the Champix I started to experience anxiety. Terrible, run to the Dr., "I can't function!!" Help Meeee!! Anxiety. I am also menopausal but up until now had not been suffering much aside from a bit of hot flashes that sometimes disturbed sleep. There are other life situations in affect at this time for me that could possibly cause such symptoms, but hey, life has always been stressfull and as stated before I have never experienced this kind of long lasting anxiety or feelings of sadness before. Life!,or Champix?! Guess I will not likely ever know. Glad to be a non smoker now but now my prayers are that I'll make through this!!!

I've been smoke free for nearly 16 weeks. Hardest thing i've ever done. Stopped taking Champix 4 weeks ago and I'm depressed and anxious and still very tired. My smoking nurse suggested i took a starter pack in reverse to limit the effects of stopping. No matter how bad i feel, having to tell my son i have cancer would be far worse. Think that some of the depression is 'cos i still want to smoke.

Ah! I'm so glad there's a site like this. I have been taking Champix was taking Champix for 4 weeks to stop smoking. I had to quit 3 days ago because I could not take it. I was having feelings of rage and dispare that I have never felt before. I have been smoking for 10 years now and I have quit more then once. I know it is not withdrawl from nicotine that I am experiencing. I sereiously thought I was going to go crazy. I went to my doctor and he said to stop taking it. Apparently he has gotten many compliants simular to mine. This drug is now being ivestigated by the FDA. personally I recommend waiting to begin your own trail with this drug until thier results are in.

Ps I decided to post on this web site because I still am experienceing side effects. My doctor also told me that this could be due to stopping this medication without weening myself off of it. Like almost all mind altering medications, you should reduce your use gradually. So anyone thinking about stopping this so called miricle drug should talk to thier doctors as soon as they notice something is off.

Thank you

I have read through these comments and can't help feeling that a lot of the things people are ascribing to Champix are just due to giving up smoking. I was a heavy smoker for 20 years until I finally found a good enough reason to stop 10 years ago: I had my first child. She was almost one at the time, I just looked at her one day and thought to myself that I wanted to be around when she got older, and just went cold turkey. That was in the days before all these smoking cessation drugs were around, so I just stopped, as using nicotine replacement hadn't worked for me before. Boy, it was hard - for weeks after quitting, life seemed bleak and empty and pointless. I didn't sleep well even though I felt tired to the point of exhaustion all the time. I didn't think of killing myself as I know I would never ever do such a thing, but day after day I wondered what the point of life was, everything just felt bleak and meaningless with nothing to look forward to. I gained weight, which made me feel even worse, like a big, ugly, useless blob. (I have to add that I am not normally prone to depression.) The only thing that saw me through was the love for my beautiful child, I wanted to do it for her. Looking back now, and understanding a lot more about the mechanism of nicotine addiction, I can understand much better why I felt the way I did. Nicotine binds very strongly to pleasure receptors in your brain, so you get repeated hits of pleasure day after day after day. Your brain gets used to this, and finds it very hard to live without these highs. But it can be done. It took me a about 2 months to get over the worst of the empty, pointless feeling, but perhaps a year to feel completely 'normal' again. I have been a non-smoker now for nearly 10 years and have never ever looked back - it was hard but worth the agony. I think Champix is a very useful drug. Yes, it can have serious side effects, but the same can be said for any other drug that has a measurable effect. Penicillin and aspirin have killed many people, but that hasn't stopped medical professionals from prescribing them daily, they just have to monitor the use and stop the drug when signs of trouble appear.

Deleuil of Dunedin Street put me onto this dangerous and potentialy fatal drug. He then denied that it could have caused the symptoms, many of which are documented above, that it DID cause me.

His locum service refused to send out a locum to visit me and the phone-answerer said she would not tell me why.

I have been smoking for approxamitely 15 years. I have always thought of myself as mentally and emotionally fortified. Even my wife says she relies sometimes on my ability to get through really tough times without even a wince. I started on Chantix for the first time about 6 months ago. It worked exactly as advertised with no side effects. I completely quit smoking winthin a week. After about 2 weeks of being smoke free, against the prescriptions advice I stopped taking the Chantix, and within 3 days I was smoking again.
My wife started taking Chantix the same time I did. She had been battling some post partum depression that had been with her since the birth of my daughter almost 2 years ago. She hadn't been taking any meds for the depression mostly in part that she didn't want to be dependant on anti-depressants to make her normal. She also experienced the same effects of Chantix that I did, however it made her depression worse. Finally she stopped taking Chantix and ended up smoking again. Now she takes Celexa for her post partum depression because the depression never eased up. Im fact it graduallly got worse until she started on the Celexa.
I think the Chantix only works while your taking it, and if you have mental issues or mild depression symptoms, then the Chantix can make it worse.

Took Champix for four weeks, and stopped smoking after ten days\. Still not smoking after six weeks and no cravings, either...Sounds good but.... here is the bad news..After 5 weeks off champix , still feeling episodes of angry and irritable feelings about nothing, with increasingly frequent periods of inexplicable anxiety., Episodes of suicide ideation are growing longer and also more frequent and now are scaring me. Going to the psyche ward of the hospital tomorrow, if it continues. I am not a wimp,..but this is truly scary stuff.

oh my god i'm sat heere reading all this and i'm shaking with worry, i too have teen taking champix for sometime stopped smoking for a little ovwer 11 weeks now they only sort of depression i ever suffered was baby blues 10 years ago, i feel i'm loosing my grip on sanity and my marriage i also still want a fag,

I have always been a strong person not bodywise but mentally until I started taking champix.They worked a treat but I now suffer from anxiety attacks that last from two to three days.I have not had a smoke for over four months and I was two weeks short of finishing the 12 week course.I hope I dont have to suffer like this for the rest of my life because I felt healthier when I was smoking 30 a day and I have been smoking for at least 40 years

I took Champix for four weeks and stopped smoking 5 weeks ago. It worked and I have no long-lasting effects. Not a very exciting post but I thought it was about time somebody posted the rather prosaic truth that for most people, it works.

Hi, I started taking Champix 2 weeks ago, and stayed smoke free for just over a week now. It's so hard because I still wannna smoke especially when i just finished work. I get anxiete now and again, strange but quite funny dreams too, irritability also , less enthusiam but I think it's worth the struggle. The frustration when giving up smoking can be depressing anyhow as i tried giving up smoking before and felt the same way as i did then by going cold turquey for 5 weeks. So BE POSITIF THINKING and don't let the bad thoughts take place for too long.

I Just started this stuff and am still smoking into my 14th day. Am quite irratable and feel sick after I take the pill. However, I think that it is working. I should have read up on this before taking it. Too late now. Hope it works. Might have to look for a new girlfriend if I keep up the crap I'm giving her.
I had a friend tell me about it and he said"You just take this pill and after 2 weeks, you will quit without even knowing". I am prretty sure that guy was a non smoker. Damn Sir Walter Realigh!!

I stopped smoking 4 months ago. I used Champix for 6 weeks and then had to stop using it as I became a nervous wreck. Anxiety, insomnia and depression. I felt better and stonger again after coming of champix but in the last few weeks I started feeling depressed again. Whats the point of living is all I can come up with. I cry alot too. This is so out of character for me because I am strong, social and a confident person. I have it all; good job, good looks, good friends, good family. I have begun loosing my self asteem and self confidence. Cigs are the least of my problems. Still don't want to smoke though:o). I refuse to use anti-depressants so I am seeking alternative therapies. found a natural product called stabillium. This has helped the anxiety. Going to try hypnotherapy to overcome the sadness and depression. I KNOW I can get through this, just don't know when. To all of you! KEEP THE FAITH THAT YOU'LL MAKE IT THROUGH. having a cry now.......

What I want to know:

If a non-smoker takes Champix, do they experience depression and suicidal tendencies too?

Or asked another way: Is it REALLY the Champix, or is it the fact that youre not getting the nicotine any more, that is making you depressed? Nicotine is a stimulant, not getting it has horrendous withdrawal symptoms, irritability, listlessness, apathy etc etc.. Everyone here is blaming Champix, but would they get the same symptoms if they made a concerted effort to go cold turkey and stop smoking?

Easy to blame the drug but it strikes me that most the people complainjing here don't actually unerstand how it works, arent obeying instructions on how to use it and generally give an impression that they regard it as a magic wonder drug that you simply take and you never need to stop smoking again. Ignorance no longer bliss eh?

Having smoked for about 20 years I have just finished a month on champix. I will admit the drug does work (for me) in that i am not smoking - maybe a sneaky one here and there but nothing like what I used to be like.
The problem is i am also suffering from unpleasent mood swings. I have decided that I need to stop champix as i am acting out of character and experiencing manic phases and also depressive dark thoughts. This is affecting my relationships and close friends have noticed the change in my behavior. I think this drug needs to be monitored CLOSELY...

I'd love to hear from anyone who stopped taking champix before they stopped smoking and continued to smoke. Did you still feel the depression, anger, anxiety etc? I'm due to stop smoking in 2 days, but have decided to stop the champix instead. I'm constantly on the verge of anger and the tiniest thing puts me over the edge. I want a smoke while I'm still smoking one and as soon as I finish, but they just make me feel sick. Something tells me that quit day will not be so easy I hardly notice it.

My husband gave up smoking with the aid of Champix just over 1 year ago he stopped taking the pills 13 months ago. He has always been a moody type, but only yesterday after an irrational outburst witnessed by my daughter, she later commented, "it's almost like he is bi-polar". I am very concerned and frankly scared of talking it over with him. Has anyone else experienced long term effects, which include mood swings, frequently loosing their train of thought, intolerance, irrational outburst of temper, to the, as I privately call it "we're all doomed mood". I really want to if there is light at the end of the tunnel or is this it now? Frankly I would rather have 20 happy years than 30/40 miserable ones.

I have just stopped CHAMPIX after being on it for 10 days. I quit smoking after only 5 days and was not to worried about the mild side-effects but on day 8 i thought that i would be o.k. to have a few beers, only to be hit with multible fits of uncontrolable rage toward anyone around me. I put this down to mixing the drug with alcohol and decided not to drink while on it. Only 2 days later i was at work and out of no where i was hit with another fit of rage. I went to the doctor and decide that it wasnt worth going to jail to quit. I think cold turkey is a lot safer or even smoking.

I stopped smoking 2 weeks ago with the aid of Champix, however I stopped taking it 2 days ago because of the side effects, I was crying all the time, had mood swings, even went at my husband with a knife. Im normally a very laid back quiet person but these drugs just made me pure evil. My husband has also been taking champix and he is absolutely fine. I think these tablets work initially but after a couple of weeks on the higher dose then the problems start...

Hi, I started (and finished) my course of Champix just over 1 year ago, and after smoking for forty years - I managed to stop! which was something I really never thought I could or would do, and I can honestly say ~I haven't smoked a cigarette since. BUT - if you were to ask me if I feel better because of stopping - I would have to say yes in as much as I no longer have a "Smokers Cough" etc. but overall I feel mentally 100% worse than I have ever felt in my life. I am so depressed, so quick tempered - I even argue with myself in the mirror!! I am just so happy to know I am not alone, at least I'm not going off my head and I'm not the freak I thought I was. Can anyone tell me - is there a site that people like me with Champix side effects can really get together and talk.

Two weeks ago today my brother committed suicide. He has been taking Chantix but stopped because he said it was "messing him up". What can I do to get someone to call attention to the potentially catastrophic effects of this medication? Someone help!

I am a 43 year old woman who for no apparent reason picked up a knife out of the sink and cut both wrists. I will admit that I too have suffered anxiety and depression over the last six years, but never, not once did I want to die. I just wanted to feel better. Now, after being hospitalized and coming home I suffer from a more severe case of anxiety. I am so scared that I might do something like that again, though like I said I very much want to live. I was taken off Champix immediately. There seems to be a common thread here. The people who have tried, or entertained thoughts of suicide all seemed to have suffered from anxiety or depression at one time or another.

Philip Dawdy responds: i'm sorry to learn of your experience. as a note to readers, this commenter left her comment with what i believed to be her real name, but before approving the comment i changed her identity to 'chantix user' in order to protect her identity and to prevent against someone finding her comment at a later date by doing an internet search under her name.

Just to say I am on champix now 8 weeks, 7 weeks off cigs. Would like a smoke now and again but dont want to start the unhealthy, smelly and expensive habbit again! Have started taking 1 tablet a day now for the last 4 days because side effects were getting too much for me, I had alot!!! of gas building up in my stomach and my ribs felt like they were all broke, also had very sore chest. But what is all this to chemo therapy and radiation treatment. I watched my Father go through all this with no outcome at the end only DEATH!

Wow.. This is quite morbid. I've into my 13th day of Champix now and have been smoking almost the same as usual with the exception of today, I've only had 2 smokes so far and its almost 5:30pm. Tomorrow is my set 'quit day'. But I'm starting to feel really depressed. Couple that with some issues with my girlfriend of 3.5 years who has decided to move out for a few days while we decide the state of our relationship is making things a lot worse. I've been crying uncontrollably and feeling really messed up, I'm not usually like this but I've been having suicidal thoughts and through a hysterical fit I had last night even wrapped a belt around my neck. WTF. I would never normally do a thing like that but these feelings were uncontrollable. I feel ok right now and in fact even talking about it makes it feel a little better, I just wish my girlfriend was around to support me... I feel so alone.

Anonymous,
PLEASE seek help immediately, preferably someone other than the doctor who prescribed you Chantix, although, you should tell your doctor about this too. Take some information with you regarding what’s being reported.

It is the medication causing you to feel the way you do. If troubles with your girlfriend started after you went on the Rx, it might be the cause as well. Also know, withdrawal can cause mental problems too. You need help ASAP. Your girlfriend probably can’t be helpful right now since this is so hard to comprehend.

I’ll try to find helpful resources online and post again. If anyone else knows of any, please post.

Reported to FDA between April-June 2008:
Re: Chantix
231 possible cases of hostility or aggression, 186 cases of suicidality and 153 cases of possible psychosis. The total included 12 new cases of completed suicide and 26 suicide attempts.
http://www.ismp.org/QuarterWatch/200901.pdf

I'm off the Champix now, it was just way too hard trying to go through with them and deal with a break up at the same time. I look back on what I wrote and feel a little bit weird about it, almost embarrassed and ashamed that I could actually do that. But you know what, I'm glad I got it out there and recorded the way I felt. I would not recommend Champix for anyone that is going through other/external mental stress. You gotta take baby steps with things like this. You need support from those around you and those who love you. I'm quite sure that Champix can work and help you quite. By the 14th day, I did not smoke at all, but I didnt take my nighttime pill and ended up having 2 cigarettes that day after 7:30pm. This was due to what I was personally going through at the time and I just gave up (on giving up the smokes). Ironic, yes. I then stopped Champix altogether because I could not endure all the mental stress it was causing me. If you're predisposed to any kind of depression, feeling down, or you are going through a mentally tough time then Champix is going to multiply that feeling. Well it did for me anyway. I'm not a good test case due to these collision of events but nevertheless I feel it's important to get this out there so that anyone else who happens to go through something like this will know they're not alone. Taking Champix is not like eating a lolly. You need strict supervision and you need to tell people what you experience, everyday. Stay around your support group and educate people on what may happen to them. Unfortuantely my doctor did not warn me about anything like this that could happen to me, and it took an internet search and finding this website before I started realising some of the hard truths. Luckily for me it was not too late. Education is KEY. I think my doctor was negligent.

I took Champix back in May 2008. One of the worst things I ever did. I'm 49 year old woman, recovering alcoholic - hadn't had a drink in 18 years. It's difficult to say what the Champix "effect" was, apart from that I just felt "mad" "psycho" and other people noticed that I was acting strangely. Stopped smoking for a few weeks, then had to stop the Champix because it was worrying me. By August 2008, I was suicidal and had drunk alcohol for the first time in 18 years. Who knows whether it was the champix or other things going on in my life? Seeing a therapist now and going to AA meetings - terrified of drinking alcohol again. given up my job, still just trying to get well again. the contribution of champix to all of this? i don't know, but i really don't feel that drugs that alter brain chemistry are a good idea - particularly in people (addicts/ alcoholics)...
anyway, given up smoking three weeks ago - cold turkey this time - and concentrating on getting well again.

I have today been presribed this drug by my doctor and plan on taking my first pill tomorrow. But just reading all this is making me very worried. I had post natal depression 3 years ago and have suffered with bouts of depression from a young age, including one suicide attemp 13 years ago. Im really not sure what to do now!! I feel like i could take this ONE pill in the morning and never be able to turn back????

I'm curious: Did your doctor tell you any of the warnings on the label?
I would like to know who the statement "Advise patients and caregivers..." is directed to. Doctor's/pharmacist’s/the FDA?

From the label at Drugs@FDA.com
"WARNINGS
Serious neuropsychiatric symptoms have occurred… All patients being treated should be observed for symptoms including changes in behavior, agitation, depressed mood, suicidal ideation and suicidal behavior. These symptoms…have been reported in post-marketing experience.
Advise patients and caregivers that the patient should stop taking CHANTIX and contact a healthcare provider immediately if agitation, depressed mood, changes in behavior … or if the patient develops suicidal ideation or suicidal behavior."

Here are SOME of the adverse events reported DURING the clinical trials (from the Label, meaning your doc should know about it, right?)

Frequent = 1/100, Infrequent = Anywhere between 1/100 to 1/1000

FREQUENT: Liver function test abnormal, Chest pain, Influenza like illness, Edema, Thirst, , Weight increased, Arthralgia, Back pain, Muscle cramp, Musculoskeletal pain, Myalgia, Diarrhea, Gingivitis, Disturbance in attention, Dizziness, Sensory disturbance.

INFREQUENT: Angina pectoris, Arrhythmia, Bradycardia, Ventricular extrasystoles, Myocardial infarction, Palpitations, Tachycardia, Arthritis, Osteoporosis, Conjunctivitis, Dry eye, Eye irritation, Vision blurred, Visual disturbance, Eye pain, Dysphagia, Enterocolitis, Eructation, Gastritis, Gastrointestinal hemorrhage, Mouth ulceration, Esophagitis, Gall bladder disorder, Hypersensitivity, Thyroid gland disorders, Tinnitus, Vertigo, Anemia, Lymphadenopathy, Chest discomfort, Chills, Pyrexia, Diabetes mellitus, Hyperlipidemia, Hypokalemia, Electrocardiogram abnormal, Muscle enzyme increased, Urine analysis abnormal, Amnesia, Migraine, Parosmia, Psychomotor hyperactivity, Restless legs syndrome, Syncope, Tremor.

RARE: Acquired night blindness, Blindness transient, Cataract subcapsular, Ocular vascular disorder, Photophobia, Vitreous floaters, Atrial fibrillation, Cardiac flutter, Coronary artery disease, Cor pulmonale, Acute coronary syndrome, Drug hypersensitivity, Gastric ulcer, Intestinal obstruction, Pancreatitis acute, Leukocytosis, Thrombocytopenia, Splenomegaly, Myositis, Deafness, Meniere’s disease, Hyperkalemia, Hypoglycemia, Balance disorder, Cerebrovascular accident, Convulsion, Dysarthria, Facial palsy, Mental impairment, Multiple sclerosis, Nystagmus, Psychomotor skills impaired, Transient ischemic attack, Visual field defect.

I'm pretty much in the same boat. I'm 36 years old. I went to have my annual physical last Friday. The doctor told me everything was perfect but asked if I smoked. Then told me about Chantix. I had no intention of quitting on that day but he said that I wouldn't have to quit. Just take the pills and in a week or two I wouldn't want to smoke anymore. The pills would make me feel nothing from the cigarettes.

Sounded simple enough for me so I took the prescription and started taking the pills on Tuesday. So far nothing spectacular has happened. I am still smoking just as much and seem to be tired most of the time and woke up very early for no apparent reason the last 2 days. Today was the first day taking 2 pills so hopefully I can still sleep tonight.

Of course, if I had read all these bad reports before accepting the chantix I never would have taken it.

It really does seem that doctors are completely oblivious to what this stuff really does and have no idea what kind of questions they should be asking. I wasn't asked anything at all and who would think that there would be life threatening side effects to something to help you quit smoking? I didn't even consider it.

If the doctor had asked some questions he'd have found out that I am currently being treated for PTSD and have been off and on depressed for the past 10-15 years. I've never taken any medication for any of this though because I always put on a good game face when seeing the doctors. Well, other than self treatment with alcohol until I pass out a couple times a week.

I have seriously cut down on the drinking the past few weeks though. Last night after drinking 3-4 I felt more tired and drunk than usual at that point and felt irritated at everything for no reason so I went to bed.

I took 1/4 the reccommended dose of Champix to help me quit as it was turning me into a psycho. I went off of the pills after 2 weeks and have now been 4 weeks smoke free with no desire to smoke. Since I started the Champix, I have been very depressed. I thought it was nicotine withdrawl and waited a few weeks to realize that withdrawl can only last a short time. I used to be on antidepressants but went off of them years ago while smoking with no side effects. I am usually a happy person but find myself 6 weeks later irritable, crying for no reason and feeling hopeless. I wonder if this will ever go away? I'm sure a doc would tell me to go back on to antidepressants but I'm wondering if my body will return to normal with just will power?

I have stopped CHAMPIX after taking it for 3 1/2weeks that was enough the side affects started pretty much in the first week when i was still smoking,( so i know it wasnt nicotene withdrawal),being so tired, insomonia,cranky and irritable, than out of the blue very teary,the most bizzare dreams,racing thoughts,toward the 3rd week,i felt nothing, an empty feeling, I at times wishing i didnt have a husband and kids, felt spaced out....I wish i had done alot more reading on this drug.. yes it works for some but after reading many others expirences there really needs to be more research into CHAMPIX, im glad that i have a nursing background and very supportive family and friends around at that time because really i dont Know what i would have done to myself..Yes i got reviewed after 2 weeks by a doctor who suggested to 1/2 my dose tried that but the side affects continued,Im not smoking at present, though after 3 days of drinking copeous amounts of water trying to flush CHAMPIX out of my system,I could easily have one...PS the CHAMPIX myquitime was helpful in the begining, though lost all motivation to do anything towards the end of the 3 weeks. It just wasnt me at all.

I started a course of Champix 2 weeks ago. Have been a smoker for over 40 years, about 25 - 30 a day. I have not had a cigarette for 4 days and am experiencing no side effects from the Champix. My problem is....that I am OBSESSED about having a cigarette. I seem to be thinking about it 24/7. I just hope that I do not end up giving in. Question.....has anyone 'given up' while on Champix and then had a sneaky one? I honestly feel that I'd just love to have one. I probably am not helped by he fact that I live with a smoker and am now really enjoying the smell of the smoke!!!!

A friend of mine started to take champix a week ago and recommended that i try it to give up smoking. I filled out the prescription today but i haven't started it yet.... and after reading this and numerous other sites with posts similar to this, i'm not going to. I've suffered from sever anxiety for the last 3 years, and i am only just now learning how to control it. I want to give up smoking badly, but i can't go back to how I was. There are just too many similar issues for me to take this. I know how tough it can be living with a mental problem, and i could not possibly have any more sympathy for people suffering from it. I was looking for a quick fix to stop smoking but i guess that i will just have to do it the hard way. Good luck to anyone that is seriously struggling. Also, if you're feeling like you can't take it anymore find someone you can confide in or go and see a doctor. It's ridiculous how much just talking about a problem can make it seem less of a burden.

I'm on day 9. The 2nd day of the full dose.

For the first 2 days of the first week, the only way I could tell my brain was attached to my body was because I was constantly fighting the urge the throw up. On the 3rd day, the body settled down a bit, but I had a hard time keeping my brain on task. It seemed like the reason I smoked less was because I was too sick to light one, or I truly just forgot I smoked at all. But, by day 4 the bod and the brain were coming together, day 5-7 each day was gradually better.

On day 7, I actually almost felt normal, I was also smoking more, because I wasn't as nauseated and my brain was functioning on all cylinders.

Then I started the full dose on day 8 and was back to square one, with the nausea, and sketchiness. Last night, I was a zombie. Normally I play video games or computer games, or work in my garden, but I couldn't even function well enough to watch T.V., and had to go to bed.

This site is scaring the hell out of me.

My quit date is June 1 and I will be sticking to that. What's scaring me are the long term problems that folks are having.

Tonight, and until my quit date I am only going to take 1/2 dose, then once I quit, I'll wean myself with less each day until I feel "normal".

I've smoked for 40 years, and have tried everything out there. I've made up my mind that this HAS to be the time I make it.....and that's probably the reason it will work this time.

I'm not a grouchy person, never have been, still aren't although I am a little more aggressive/assertive these days.

I feel I'd better get off while I’m still okay.

Been taking champix now for 8 weeks.
These pills seem to be working very well for me. Very few cravings now but have slightly let myself down on a couple of occasions.
Only side effects for me are:
1) Had a couple of days where my mood was really foul. Wanted to jack in the rat race and live like a hermit. Mood has gone now. But it may still be a good idea
2) Mild tinnitus especially in the evening.
3) More chilled out than normal.
4) Low sex drive.
5) Have recently had a couple of major cravings that I had to satisfy. Kept me awake until the early hours of the morning. I say cravings but they didn’t seem to be physical more of a nagging idea that would not go away. Had to have a couple off draws so that I could get some sleep.

Otherwise all is cool
Hope this helps

Just starting my fourth week of champix. I have not smoked for two weeks. Felt fine apart from nausea, heartburn and being consumed by tiredness. Which doesnt help when you work nights. But the last 2 days I have had this really vile temper. Its that bad my husband and daughter have gone to the beach without me. I am fed up with everything job, hubby, house, life and wouldnt care if I dropped down this minute. Think I may do what others do and decrease my tablet intake and see if that works.

i had been taking it for 2 moths and had to stop as i was not sleeping and having anxioty attacks here and there. although i stopped taking them over 3 months ago ,i am still having attacks and not sleeping well. and smoking again. i would not recomend them to anyone.

Been on them for three weeks and the remainder were just flushed down the toilet an hour ago. I am still smoking. They do not take cravings away.
I am a strong, fit, healthy guy normally and am going to give up the cigs cold turkey, as I did a few years ago. 5 days of hell and then just a little bit of strength. The point is, I have become aggressive and sad, cocooning myself in my house and not wanting to be with anyone.
STOP THEM NOW, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE.

My friend had NO history of depression. He took chantix for 4 weeks and one night he hung himself. This drug is EVIL and please stop taking it. We lost an amazingly person due to trying to better his life this way. Spread the word!

On Day 6. No noticeable side effects apart from slight nausea after taking the tablet. Better to take them just after food. My dreams are vivid, but not particularly bad. Decided tomorrow is my quit day. Hopefully I can stay off the cigs for 3 weeks so that I don't need to extend the champix for another 2 months.

I took Champix for a total of about 3 weeks and have never felt worse in my life. Granted, the pill works for giving up smoking but the bouts of depression, rage and near psychosis are unbearable. I haven't taken Champix for over 3 weeks now but am still suffering from the depression and severe attacks of anxiety. I am driving my boyfriend and mother round the bend. How long does this drug take to get out of your system? If you are thinking about giving up smoking, good for you. If you are thinking about even touching Champix it will probably be the worst decision you ever make. This drug should be banned

My wife started taking champix, after a couple weeks she had stopped smoking. Her moods had changed and she was getting sever gas pains to the point 911 was called. after a hour the pain and vomiting had stopped. Her friend had also been taking champix about the sametime and developed the same problems, and as it stands right now both are going under the knife to have gallbladder operations. So here is another side effect for everyone to consider

My daughter killed herself Oct th 2009. She was on champix

One of my closest friends with no history of sadness, let alone depression, committed suicide. A young man in the prime of his life with everything going for him, married with beautiful children, loving family and the most enormous amount of friends. Please don't even consider going near this drug!!!

I'm on day 16 quit, day 30 of taking Champix. I find a slight increase in periodic anxiety, but that seems to be associated more with cravings, which are quite infrequent. As with many people on this site, I have a history of depression, and am currently on meds for it. I found Champix definitely does the job it claims, with several side effects, fortunately mild ones. I believe any amount of suffering for a few weeks is better than going through what I watched my friend with lung cancer go through - Hell for a year, then a horrible death. As with any drug, it can affect many people differently. To get ahead of the game, do your research, talk to the experts, and when you do quit, USE THE SUPPORT GROUPS!

Started Champix a week ago, due to start 2 week higher dose, but not sure if i want to. During this first week I seem to have a constant headache, always tired, sleeping a lot but waking during the night, becoming forgetful, a little low, no motivation, weird taste in my mouth, loss of appetite and really hate the way I am feeling. Although I haven't quit smoking yet I am down to 5 cigarettes a day due to Champix which is a plus but I don't know which is worse, less cigarettes or the side effects of Champix. Now my concerns are what if the side effects get worse the longer I take them, or the higher the dose? I'm already not feeling my normal self and that's only after 1 week on this medication. I don't take any other medication nor do I drink alcohol at all. I have concerns after reading so many posts about this medication, not only on this website but other websites as well.

I have been on chamix for 3 months now and I quit smoking on day 10! I have never felt better!! Eg....Breathing and full of energy. But.....I am having a huge issue and this brings me to this Champix Forum....
I can't sleep, only in about 3 hours intervals, I have such bad back painwhen I sleep that it makes its way to my stomache area and I feel like my chest is caving in? I am an over weight woman who is 37 years old. I started to blaim this on my weight problem, but them I started thinking, this never happened before? Has anyone else had this problem???
PS/ It's 3 am where I'm from and I just took asprin for the pain, and I have a heating pad on my back.......