S1997

I'm glad you are getting better, Mike. It is good that you found out the cause in time. I had similar experiences with antidepressants after a bad accident a few years ago. I had serious PTSD with severe symptoms that I think were partially related to the drugs I was taking. But I found that some of my Drs were not at all helpful. And the antidepressants were part of the cause,

dlq04

Smoking could kill you, but trying to stop could be worse! Sorry for your experience and all the best on your recovery.

paS2K

Good luck with the rebound, Mike....incredible story

S2KRAY

Kudos to your president. She did the right thing. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

raymo19

Thanks for the kind words and well wishes. You folks are the best!

Deb and Patty - you don't reduce the dosage. You simply stop taking it when you've quit smoking. No personal or family history of anxiety/panic disorder so that plus the hundreds of other people who've had the same or similar experience leads me to believe the medication is responsible. Or it's one hell of a coincidence.

Jerry(boltonblue) - yes I am extremely fortunate to have access to the resources to get help.

Everyone else - thanks again for the encouragement - it means a lot to me.

ralper

Mike,

I don't know too much about Chantix. I don't even really know what it is, but I'm glad you're getting better. Hopefully every day will be better than the one that came before.

Welcome back.

boltonblue

Chet, good to have you back. .....

raymo19

Thanks Rob. Chantix is a drug Pfizer developed to aid smoking cessation. What the literature doesn't mention is how it goes about it. The drug works on the dopamine receptors in your brain that were created for nicotine. It shuts them down and then gives you a little dopamine to make up the difference. It also affects the serotonin levels in your brain and that's where the trouble can/can/t start. As a second time user my chances for a bad reaction are somewhere around 1 in 10. I was unlucky.

Are you still playing your guitar? I dusted off my old acoustic and restrung it. I try to get in 20-30 minutes every evening. Strangely enough my left hand is well ahead of my right (strumming hand) at this point. If you're still having problems with the basic chords PM me and I may be able to help. It's mostly thumb position for leverage.

ralper

Mike,

I didn't have much time for the guitar during tax season, I was getting home after 11:00 every night. I picked it back up about two weeks ago, bought a new book with CDs, and started from the beginning.

My problem is that my hands are very small so my fingers have trouble reaching the strings on the chords. I am starting to figure out the thumb position and I'm starting to get it. Right now I'm on the fourth string and the C and G7 chords. I'll get there.

This weekend we had beautiful weather so I took my guitar out onto the deck and practiced a few hours each day. It's as relaxing as I'd hoped it would be. I'm glad you're rediscovering it. It really is a fun thing to do.

Ryuu

music is the best medicine.. mental and physical... just cleanses.