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Scared to Quit Smoking
Sat, 09/13/2008 - 19:13Here's the deal.
I'm a 22 year old male. I had my first seizure last year when I was 21. I smoked around 7-10 cigarettes a day during college. I went on the patch to quit and completely ceased cigarettes...3-4 days later I had a tonic clonic seizure, and subsequently lost my license for 6 months. After that I was put on topamax. Doctors said that the patch couldn't have caused it but I'm not so sure. After that I (stupidly) started smoking again.
After around 11 months, I decided that topamax was driving me crazy. Went to my specialist, who said that I should switch to Keppra. I did and it was okay, although I had a crazy heart beat (rushing feeling). After a few weeks, I quit smoking again..this time cold turkey. A few days later I had another rushing feeling in my heart and ended up in the ER. They switched me off Keppra and put me back on Topamax (didn't gradually do it). 2 days later I had 2 seizures in a row, and lost my license for 6 more months. I was put on depakote. The depakote made me gain large amounts of weight (25 lbs in 5 months). I stupidly started smoking again after this time too...what with college graduation, finals, and moving to a new city.
I know I need to quit smoking, but as we can see the common factor here is smoking. I know I need to deal with stress and sleep (as those are probably big factors), but I use cigarettes as a crutch.
*note- please don't lecture me about smoking-I went to a very prestigous university, have never smoked anything illegal, and am gainfully employed- ie...I'm not stupid)
I really dont know what I'm reaching for here, except I'm scared it's going to happen again if I quit. I can't afford to lose my license for another 6 months, as I am now alone (not even a roommate) in a big city that basically requires a car. It has poor public transportation and is very spread out.
What should I do? Between the weight gain (quitting will make me gain even more wait and I can barely fit into my clothes now), and fear of everything that comes with having a seizure I'm not sure if it's worth it...but then again, I know later down the road it will be worse for me to have been smoking.
Suggestions?
Comments
Re: Scared to Quit Smoking
Submitted by phylisfjohnson on Wed, 2010-03-03 - 09:31
You probably know this already but nicotine is both a stimulant and a depressant to the central nervous system. The nicotine in cigarettes acts on receptors for the excitatory neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the brain, which increases neuronal firing.
But if you want to STOP smoking, here’s a piece of scary information: some nicotine preparations used to help people stop smoking can have a side effect of convulsions. If you’re thinking of quitting, check out your smoking cessation program with your doc first.
Phylis Feiner Johnson www.epilepsytalk.com
You probably know this already but nicotine is both a stimulant and a depressant to the central nervous system. The nicotine in cigarettes acts on receptors for the excitatory neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the brain, which increases neuronal firing.
But if you want to STOP smoking, here’s a piece of scary information: some nicotine preparations used to help people stop smoking can have a side effect of convulsions. If you’re thinking of quitting, check out your smoking cessation program with your doc first.
Phylis Feiner Johnson www.epilepsytalk.com
Re: Scared to Quit Smoking
Submitted by Running Free on Sun, 2009-06-28 - 19:58
I'm sorry to hear that you guys have to go through so much difficulty with quitting smoking. Smoking is a stimulant and should be causing you seizures while continuing the habit. I am a smoker myself - not proud of it, but whenever I quit, I notice how much my full seizures go down.
When you guys quit, do the seizures stop after a period of time? I would say it's worth quitting, but at the same time, I know it's hard to let the driver's license go. I was allowed to drive for about 6 years before I lost mine - and I lived in a rural area at the time where there was no public transportation available to me - I had to depend on friends and my husband who worked many hours and was not always available to help me.
I'm sorry to hear that you guys have to go through so much difficulty with quitting smoking. Smoking is a stimulant and should be causing you seizures while continuing the habit. I am a smoker myself - not proud of it, but whenever I quit, I notice how much my full seizures go down.
When you guys quit, do the seizures stop after a period of time? I would say it's worth quitting, but at the same time, I know it's hard to let the driver's license go. I was allowed to drive for about 6 years before I lost mine - and I lived in a rural area at the time where there was no public transportation available to me - I had to depend on friends and my husband who worked many hours and was not always available to help me.
Re: Scared to Quit Smoking
Submitted by Colina on Sun, 2008-09-14 - 16:08
Hi watup. I'm a smoker too and have had experience quitting.
Yup I'm not stupid either, I enjoy it certain times of the day, socialy and most importantly when stressed. Ok bring it on non smokers, but first read about your own bad habits.I just won't read ya.
Now that that's out of my system lol, here's my experience on quitting. All 3 times lasting up to 3 months I ended up back at it due to stress...3 guesses and the first two don't count as to what stress can do to us. When I asked my Epileptologist about quitting smoking he said, don't quote me, while we know the dangers of smoking during this time of trying to gain control of seizures it's not a good idea. Get them under control first and then we can look into some ideas. My pharmacist said over the counter nor prescription meds for quitting are an option and could be dangerous. Quitting cold turkey I know won't work...deffinet seizures, heart races/palps and perhaps injured family members. lol.
I found that I had many episodes of racing heart when I had quit and believe that is part of the withdrawl and anxiety. I take Keppra and a large amount at that, it has never had any effect on my heart and it is not listed as a side effect anywhere. I don't understand why they would change you back to "dopamax" without looking into it alot more. Nor do I understand why they would change it so quickly....Keppra's touchy, if I miss a dose I'm gauranteed a seizure. "Depabloat" messed me up bad for years and one of those ways was immediate weight gain. At the time it was a new med and nothing was working for me so the Nuero asked if I'd like to try it, warning me that a side effect is gaining weight, anything to stop the seizures. Keppra gets a bad rap by many but everyone is different and after years of uncontroled seizures along with 14 med trials my quality of live is better than ever. Able to get my drivers back and the least side effects ever. Most importantly best seizure control I've ever had.
Now Epi and I can talk quitting. I'm thinking a loan for a trip to a very relaxing tropical resort which I can pay off with the money I save on smokes. Now that's a motivator!
Suggestion? Get the seizures sorted out first, perhaps an Epileptologist if you haven't one can help.
Good luck and Smiles to ya!
Hi watup. I'm a smoker too and have had experience quitting.
Yup I'm not stupid either, I enjoy it certain times of the day, socialy and most importantly when stressed. Ok bring it on non smokers, but first read about your own bad habits.I just won't read ya.
Now that that's out of my system lol, here's my experience on quitting. All 3 times lasting up to 3 months I ended up back at it due to stress...3 guesses and the first two don't count as to what stress can do to us. When I asked my Epileptologist about quitting smoking he said, don't quote me, while we know the dangers of smoking during this time of trying to gain control of seizures it's not a good idea. Get them under control first and then we can look into some ideas. My pharmacist said over the counter nor prescription meds for quitting are an option and could be dangerous. Quitting cold turkey I know won't work...deffinet seizures, heart races/palps and perhaps injured family members. lol.
I found that I had many episodes of racing heart when I had quit and believe that is part of the withdrawl and anxiety. I take Keppra and a large amount at that, it has never had any effect on my heart and it is not listed as a side effect anywhere. I don't understand why they would change you back to "dopamax" without looking into it alot more. Nor do I understand why they would change it so quickly....Keppra's touchy, if I miss a dose I'm gauranteed a seizure. "Depabloat" messed me up bad for years and one of those ways was immediate weight gain. At the time it was a new med and nothing was working for me so the Nuero asked if I'd like to try it, warning me that a side effect is gaining weight, anything to stop the seizures. Keppra gets a bad rap by many but everyone is different and after years of uncontroled seizures along with 14 med trials my quality of live is better than ever. Able to get my drivers back and the least side effects ever. Most importantly best seizure control I've ever had.
Now Epi and I can talk quitting. I'm thinking a loan for a trip to a very relaxing tropical resort which I can pay off with the money I save on smokes. Now that's a motivator!
Suggestion? Get the seizures sorted out first, perhaps an Epileptologist if you haven't one can help.
Good luck and Smiles to ya!