Chantix Day 29 - Quit Day 22

3 WEEKS SMOKE-FREE!!! OMG, this is waaay too easy!!!

I've made it to this point before, but it was not this easy! This is sooo easy, it's scary! To recap this past week on Chantix:

• No cravings
• No nausea
• Some bloating/gas almost daily, usually gone within 15-20 minutes after getting up. But there was one day when it was VERY bad...I felt like smoking or even death would be better than what I was feeling!!! Ok, I can be a DQ (drama queen) at times! It lasted most of that day, but eventually it went away and I decided I was ok and it was better to live! :-)
  
• Had trouble getting to sleep one night
• Had trouble staying asleep one night
• Chantix dreams every night, but nothing bad or scary...mostly just everyday crap with everyday people in my life. Usually I wake up laughing or shaking my head, like WTF did I dream about so-n-so for?! LOL! What makes these dreams stand out is their vividness! I remember lots of little details! Note: I dream a lot on a normal basis, even when I'm not on Chantix so I've always had crazy, weird dreams... only now they are waaay more vivid and I remember more details, some more than I care to remember! LOL! When they list vivid dreams as a Chantix side-effect, they aren't lying! I've heard some people have psychotic, scary dreams! I am so sorry for them! Thank goodness I don't! Mine are usually amusing and even entertaining, sometimes I don't want to get up until the "movie" is over!
  
• Felt a little rage/anger earlier in the week...long story short, I was expecting hubby to bring me food from a particular restaurant, but apparently there was some miscommunication and at 10pm I called inquiring about my food. He had forgotten about me and my food! OMG!! No food AND no cigarettes!!! Well, I kind of went off...knocked all the stuff of the bedroom dresser! I was HUNGRY!!! And when I don't smoke, I eat! Luckily for me, I'm a "tiny little thing" so I can afford to put on some extra pounds...substituting food for cigarettes is not a problem for me....at least not yet! Anyway, I cleaned up my mess and I got over it. Now, I just make sure I stock up on any snacks that I might even remotely crave...I learned from that experience that I can NOT run out of food, so it's best to be over-prepared than to NOT be prepared at all. The results can be ugly!!!
  
• Went to the doctor today and I have allergic rhino sinusitis! Basically a fancy phrase for a VERY bad case of sinusitis that's causing allergic reactions in my body. Wow! No wonder I've felt like crap for so long! Anyway, got a bag of new meds (antibiotics, antihistamines, nasal spray...) Just what I want, MORE meds, but it's cool, at least now I KNOW what's wrong and I can treat it. I was beginning to think I was crazy! Ok, folks that know me will say, um well, you ARE crazy, what's your point?! LOL!!! Whatever! At least now I know all these physical ailments aren't just in my mind! I start on my meds tomorrow, so hopefully by the start of the new work week I'll feel closer to "normal"! Yaaay!!!
  

Thanks to everyone for your concern, support, and encouragement! I've never been much on blogging because I figured, what do I have to talk about that folks would care about? Keeping up with technology trends is a part of my job, but blogging was never high on my list of personal "must haves". Well, I have since changed my mind and I've learned that blogging has its place for me! It is the best type of support when you're trying to quit smoking...you can log on at any time to vent,rant, cry, complain, whatever! Awesome! Thanks to all of you! I really appreciate all my blogger buddies! Good luck and continued success to everybody!!!

Chantix Day 22 - Quit Day 15

The good news: I've been smoke-free for two weeks! Yaaay!!!

The bad news: I feel like shit today! I've had allergy/sinus problems, on and off, since moving south 10 years ago. I usually take some meds and I feel better and I go on with my life. Not today! Today, I have been knocked on my azz! I woke up with a throbbing headache and I've gone through a box of tissue. My nose is raw from all the blowing and sneezing. I feel drained, like someone let all the air out of me. Ugh!

From what I've read on other blogs, it's pretty "normal" to get sick in the first few weeks after quitting. I don't remember getting sick during my previous quits, but of course, I was younger back then and younger bodies adapt and bounce back quicker :-) I'll just consider this another side-effect and, it too, shall pass. Oh, well, back to the couch...it's been a few hours since my last nap! lol

Hope everyone is doing well with their quit!

Chantix Day 20 - Quit Day 13

Haven't posted in a few days, nothing new to report. I'm still smoke-free and feeling grrreat! One night I had trouble falling asleep and another night I had trouble staying asleep, woke up at 3:30AM!! Tried to make myself go back to sleep, but no luck, so I got up and cleaned. Good for my house, bad for me! I was exhausted at the end of that work day, which just happened to be one of the busiest days I've had at work in a long time. Oh, and I wanted to smoke that day! Once again it was not a craving or an urge, just a thought...like, if I had a cigarette I wouldn't be so tired and this day would go by much faster, maybe I can have just one...all thoughts of a recovering nicotine addict. But I was strong!! I pushed the thoughts out of my head and at the end of the day, a very stressful day, I was, and am, still smoke-free!!!

Chantix Day 16 - Quit Day 9

Another great smoke-free day!!! Went out to dinner this evening. The restaurant we went to is smoke-free, but it has an outdoor patio where smoking is allowed. Of course, we sat inside. Our table was next to the window with a clear view of the patio AND the smokers. For a hot second, I wanted to smoke... it was not a craving to smoke, I simply WANTED to, not because I had a desire to do so, but, well, I don't know why...just BECAUSE, I guess. Anyway, I watched this one woman smoke two cigarettes before her meal and two cigarettes after her meal...4 cigarettes in about an hour!! A little over a week ago, that might have been me, but I'm a non-smoker now! Just as quick as I wanted a cigarette, I no longer wanted one. I ate my delicious seafood dinner and washed it down with my p.m. Chantix and a big glass of water :-)

Chantix Day 15 - Quit Day 8

I had my last cigarette one week ago today. Yaaay!!! Feeling grrreat! Had a little nausea this morning, but that was entirely my fault - I was rushing to get to my hair appointment and I didn't eat (a big no-no when taking Chantix). I sucked on some peppermints (they really DO work!) and the nausea went away in about 20 minutes. Other than that, it was a perfect day! No cravings and no thoughts of smoking! Awesome!

Chantix Day 14 - Quit Day 7

Had my first Chantix dream last night! OMG!!! Not only was it vivid, it was truly bizarre! Not scary bizarre, just weird and crazy bizarre. Actually, parts of it were kind of funny, just thinking about it now and I'm laughing my azz off! For the most part it was about normal everyday stuff... what made it so weird was who was in it. Of course this being a public forum, I can't name names, so I won't go there.

I will mention the doggy doo...yes, doggy doo, and I'm not even a pet owner. Anyway, long story short, there was this big pile of perfectly symmetrical doggy doo on the ground and huge crowds had gathered to look at it! Somebody grabbed my hand and pulled me to the front of the crowd to get a closer look...ok, I can't even type this with a straight face, so I'm going to stop. Wonder what the heck THAT means? My first Chantix dream and it's about doggy doo? LOL!!! And get this...that wasn't even the most bizarre part of the dream!!! Too crazy!

Chantix Day 13 - Quit Day 6

Too tired to type tonight, so I've copied & pasted most of my comments that I posted earlier today on Stan's blog:

As for blanking...yes, I'm going through that too! Until I read this, I wasn't aware that I was doing it (didn't even know the term blanking until now). But yes, I have noticed that I'm forgetting stuff, now granted I've always been forgetful my whole life, so I didn't pick up on it...but, sitting here now and thinking about it, it DID suddenly get worse in the last couple of weeks - since I've been on Chantix.

On that same note, I'm also having trouble focusing...nothing serious, because again, I've always been like that...a Type A personality, so much going on in my brain that it's hard to do just one thing. For example, I'll start one task and in the middle of doing it, I'll think of something else I need to do, so I drop the first task and start on the second one! Then I'll think to myself, hey, you're supposed to be doing so-and-so(whatever the first task was)! Again, now that I think about it, that behavior has gotten worse too (in the two weeks I've been on Chantix). It's like my brain is always "ON" at top speed! And while that is normal for me, it is more extreme now...like my brain is not just On, but on overdrive!!!

I guess this would qualify as my first "negative" comment about Chantix. Those that follow my other blog know how much i love my little blue pill and its magical powers! And, really imho, this side-effect is not a negative...it hasn't changed my personality, it's only made it more "out there" and, while exhausting at times, I can handle it...what's the worst that can happen? My brain might overheat and explode!! :-) At the end of the day when I'm still a NON-SMOKER, it's all worth it!