Chantix: Complaints Keep Coming In

Freemont, NCWith every day that passes, more and more people are writing to LawyersandSettlements with their complaints about Chantix. Most of the complaints involve serious side effects, including suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts.

Some have said that the Chantix caused them to become angry and violent when they normally were not, while others said that Chantix exaggerated certain aspects of their personality.

Kelly S. says that she took Chantix in October 2007 and within a week she noticed changes in her personality. "I became really moody and I would cry. I wanted to take a knife to my chest and plunge it in. It went on and on and kept getting worse for about three weeks. My husband said, 'No more,' and I quit taking it. I actually got the knife a few times, but my husband found me and took it away.

"I was also quick to anger. I would yell at my father-in-law—stuff I would never say to an older person. I was just going off on him every day."

After a month of taking Chantix, Kelly quit. She says it took just over a week to feel better. The drug did not help her quit smoking.

A common theme among patients who say they had suicidal thoughts while they took Chantix is that 'I felt like I had no control over my thoughts'. This is echoed time and again by interview subjects and patients who write to LawyersandSettlements. Many say they felt like they were losing their mind.

A few people report feeling incredibly paranoid and anxious while they were taking Chantix. Although some note that they were anxious prior to starting their Chantix prescription, they believe that taking Chantix exaggerated their anxiety or paranoia.

Other patients report a feeling of hopelessness or uselessness while they take Chantix. They say that they lost interest in activities that once brought them joy, and they wind up staying home all the time, often sleeping because they are so tired. Some report that they even lose interest in work, losing pay because they no longer have the energy to work full shifts.

And there are also patients who attempt to commit suicide or who struggle with suicidal thoughts. They say their life is not worth living any more, or they simply have a sudden, overwhelming urge to take their life. This urge can, reportedly, happen at any time. In one case, it happened while the patient, Angela W., was trying to go to sleep—she says she fought for seven hours not to go upstairs and get a knife. In another case, the patient, Joni C., says she was driving and had the urge to crash her car into a tree. Luckily, both patients resisted their urges. Other people have tried to commit suicide and some had loved ones nearby to stop them. Sadly, not all have been so fortunate. Family members are now coming forward after their loved ones committed suicide while taking Chantix.

These patients took Chantix because they wanted to quit smoking. That is all. They certainly did not expect that a drug designed to help them quit smoking—to help them live healthier lives—could possibly cause them to want to commit suicide. They did not expect that an anti-smoking drug could ruin their lives, as so many have said.

Many are now investigating the possibility of a lawsuit against the maker of Chantix, alleging that they were not properly informed of all the serious side effects associated with Chantix.