I decided to give Zyban a try even though it was my first attempt to stop smoking. It felt like a serious choice and with a friend coming to stay who had stopped too, it seemed also a good chance to gain some excellent support. The doctor agreed the case was good to use Zyban and prescribed ... Read review
Advantages: I stopped smoking Disadvantages: Side effects to be aware of
I decided to give Zyban a try even though it was my first attempt to stop smoking. It felt like a serious choice and with a friend coming to stay who had stopped too, it seemed also a good chance to gain some excellent support. The doctor agreed the case was good to use Zyban and prescribed me a month's worth with the advice to:
- Set a stop date about 10 days after beginning the prescription
- Start a week on one 150mg tablet and if ... ...two tablets, 8 hours apart
- Combine the medication with the Glaxo support website
So before I describe my experience I will just give some background info on Zyban. It is prescribed in the US as an anti-depressant (Wellbutrin) though it is not licensed to prescribe it here for anything other than as a smoking cessation aid. It works similarly to an SSRI like Prozac but it is classified differently. At the prescribed dosage ... more
I decided to give Zyban a try even though it was my first attempt to stop smoking. It felt like a serious choice and with a friend coming to stay who had stopped too, it seemed also a good chance to gain some excellent support. The doctor agreed the case was good to use Zyban and prescribed me a month's worth with the advice to: - Set a stop date about 10 days after beginning the prescription - Start a week on one 150mg tablet and if the compunction to stop wasn't strong enough, raise this to two tablets, 8 hours apart - Combine the medication with the Glaxo support website
So before I describe my experience I will just give some background info on Zyban. It is prescribed in the US as an anti-depressant (Wellbutrin) though it is not licensed to prescribe it here for anything other than as a smoking cessation aid. It works similarly to an SSRI like Prozac but it is classified differently. At the prescribed dosage for smoking cessation, one of the side effects of it as an anti-depressant is a weird wish not to smoke. This is guessed at being caused by the brain synapses related to cravings operating differently. As such, any decision to take Zyban at 300mg should be considered carefully. It's not prescribed unless heavily consulted on if you have had an eating disorder, as the side effect of nausea can mean a wish not to eat and a relapse. You should also be cautioned that, like any anti-depressant, if you have any depressive symptoms, these can often be heightened when beginning a course of Zyban; these go away but are generally due to the raised brain activity can often 'awake' and mobilise feelings of following through on suicidal thoughts.
So after all of that you might think, blimey, why would anyone take this stuff? Well, how much do you want to give up smoking? Is a month or so of weird discomfort actually worth it to stop smoking for life? The answer is hopefully yes but you should go into any decision to take a drug with your eyes wide open.
My experience was mixed. I began taking the one tablet dosage but it wasn't until I raised it to two tablets - and they really should be 8 hours apart though not too close to bedtime - that when I lit a cigarette - and this was probably 3 days before the stop date - I would take three drags and wonder 'why on earth an I smoking this, I don't actually want it'. It got to the point where naturally, I was smoking no more than 3 a day by the stop day and those felt dutiful rather than wanted. That's not to say that the first week having stopped wasn't difficult, it was. The psychological need to smoke was still there and for the first 48 hours, the physical need for nicotine. I cried, felt very sad, but I got over it. They say it takes 28 days to break a habit, well then I understand why treatment is two months as it gets you well clear.
I did experience severe suicidal thoughts which I managed to ignore, realising it was the drug. These went after the first two weeks. Other side effects were nausea, sleeplessness - waking up about 4am and having trouble getting back to sleep, brain zaps, dizziness, disassociation etc. All went apart from the sleep issues and this improved once the two month course was up.
But the big, huge, positive is that I did give up smoking and it's been three months smoke free. I still occasionally get a pang for one but thanks to Alan Carr which I read once stopped, I just think 'I am not an addict' (in a non-sanctimonious way) and get on with things. Enough time has passed to think that, it really isn't worth the hassle of giving up to ever smoke again. Bit of a big positive isn't it?
If you want to give up smoking, speak to your GP, Zyban is a serious drug and something to choose when you have the conviction to really become a non smoker. With doctor monitoring and an understanding of what to expect, it's worth giving Zyban a go.
Advantages: has help people to stop Disadvantages: severely aggrevates skin conditions, sleeplessness, nightmares
I recently was taking Zyban to give up smoking. I've been smoking for about 10 years now and average 10 to 15 a day. As part of the package with my health authority you also have to go for 'counselling' or 'cessation sessions' with a group of other Zyban takers. This part was really helpful as anyone who has taken this drug knows that there are side effects. They vary between individuals, although there do seem to be some common ones, and the ferocity ... ...week or so a rash began to appear and not long after my psorasis was the worst it has been in the 25 years I have had it. It spread so quickly it was hard to keep up with it and became dry, itchy and incredibly sore within another week. I was forced to stop taking the Zyban after about 2 1/2 weeks as I could no longer stand the sleeplessness, nightmares, mood swings and my skin as I couldn't function and was having to take time off work it was so ...
corman 04.04.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Glaxowellcome Zyban
Advantages: Very effective Disadvantages: Many bad side-effects
"It won't work for me," I thought. "It's different for other people, they smoke because they're addicted. I just smoke because I'm bored. And no quit-smoking drug can cure that".
Zyban, also marketed as Wellbutrin, is a drug manufactured by company GlaxoSmithKline. It was originally intended as an anti-depressant, but in its trials it was discovered that Zyban significantly reduced the subjects' cravings for cigarettes.
I first heard of Zyban when ... ..."30% of trial subjects using Zyban were still non-smokers a year later," it boasted. It sounded a bit too good to be true. But what really attracted me to Zyban was the fact that it was completely nicotine free. Therefore, unlike patches and chewing gum which I had tried countless times before, this time I could try quitting smoking and ridding my body of nicotine at the same time.
My fiancee was as anxious as me to quit smoking so we set a date ...
krabople 28.03.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Glaxowellcome Zyban
Advantages: This has to be the best anti-smoking drug available Disadvantages: It didn't work for me.
I'm gladdened by some of the reviews of this product. There are clearly many people for whom this drug has worked. Mine, however, is not a success story.
OK - so I smoke. It's not clever and I find it difficult to stop. I've tried patches, I've tried gum, and I've tried "Zyban". I have the added incentive that, at 37 years old, I am rapidly approaching the age at which my father (who had a similar smoking habit to me) died. He was 43, and I was ... ...up now. Weak-willed person that I clearly am, I find it too difficult. The problem is that I just enjoy smoking too much for my own good.
That said, this is not a sob-story; it's a review of "Zyban", so let's cut straight to it. Giving up smoking with "Zyban" involves several stages.
First - and most important - is to decide that you want to quit. Most anti-smoking treatments can be bought over-the-counter at your local pharmacy or supermarket. ...
andymcf 10.11.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Glaxowellcome Zyban
Advantages: You may pack in smoking Disadvantages: some possible side effects
Update 9th June 2004.
It's my 40th birthday today and one year down the line I'm still not smoking, so believe me it can be done. -------------------------------------------------------------------
First a serious word of warning
SMOKING KILLS ….. SLOWLY
Had that been on the packet many moons ago when I was stupid enough to buy cigarettes I still don’t think it would have stopped me; but when I started getting worse health-wise maybe I wouldn’t ... ...I needed something else to blame so that I could continue sticking that stupid poisonous tube in my mouth 20 –40 times a day for the best part of 26 years (two-thirds of my life to be exact). Why? That’s simple, because I am a weak person. Maybe that is a bit harsh because I am an addict. But unless I am honest with myself and those who are around to help me, then I am never truly going to beat my addiction problem.
I have made numerous attempts ...
SparkyDeighton 20.11.2003 (09.06.2004)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Glaxowellcome Zyban
Advantages: It could help you quit smoking Disadvantages: It didn't help me! There are side effects too.
I've been smoking for 20 years. And now I want to give up. But it's not easy. I went to see a Stop Smoking Advisor and she went through a list of options on helping me to give up smoking. One of the options was to take Bupropion HCL (Zyban), which is in tablet form. She gave me a letter which I had to take to my Doctor to get the prescription.
The Advisor told me to keep smoking in the first week and to make a stop smoking date in the second week ... ...inside the box with loads of information on it about the drug. This drug, I was told, was originally prescribed for depression. People were returning still depressed but had given up smoking! It says on the packet that Zyban is a non-nicotine treatment that along with motivational support helps you to give up smoking. It also says that Zyban is NOT a nicotine-replacement therapy. When you inhale nicotine it sends a signal to your brain. And what ...
Louise90 26.03.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Glaxowellcome Zyban
