I’m a quitter, and proud of it! ~ Nicoderm CQ
Written: May 10 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Nicotine Replacement Therapy works
Cons: the itch, the horrible itch!
The Bottom Line: Is there a bottom line patch?
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| MumMumMum's Full Review: Nicoderm CQ Patch |
January 14th, 2003. I walked into my home office, pulled a package of Habitrol out of my desk drawer, stuck a nicotine replacement therapy patch on my arm, and said hello to the rest of my life. I was sick of smelling like smoke, sick of my bad breath, sick of being sick all the time. I was sick of feeling unwelcome in restaurants, at sporting events, sick of avoiding movies and indoor events because of my need to smoke. I was sick of standing outside smoking at 5 am when I got up in the morning; I was tired of freezing my butt off to have a butt. And most of all, I wanted to show my children that I could do this, I could quit, and I could give them the one gift they’d been repeatedly asking for. All they wanted was a smoke-free mom. And I just wanted to be able to take a deep breath again.
I was a smoker for 28 years. Sure, I’d quit for a month, two months, once for a year (well, with the exception of the cigarettes I’d smoke when I went out, which was a lot in those days!). I’d vary from being a “social smoker” to a “chain smoker”, and by the time January 2003 rolled around I was a heavy smoker with an almost two pack a day habit. I’d used patches to attempt quitting smoking once before, but the dreams, the horrific nightmares, made it impossible to continue on that road. That was back in the days when the patch was required to be worn 24/7. I was hoping that now things would be different.
So I began with Habitrol, which I had a ten-dollar off coupon for. Beginning at the 21mg strength, I was actually surprised by how well I did the first few days. I found replacements for my cigarettes; Dentyne Ice Intense worked really well! I kept busy, stayed away from my usual triggers (computer time was severely cut down!) and continued on my road to good health. Then I switched to Shopper’s Drug Mart’s Life Brand Quit! Patches. Less expensive than Habitrol and Nicoderm, the Quit! Patches work just as well as either of those other brands. Not only that, but they’re made by the same company that makes the Habitrol patches. Slowly I made my way down to the 7mg patch.
Then I received a coupon for ten dollars off Nicoderm CQ (actually called Nicoderm Clear here in Canada) as well as an offer for bonus loyalty points when I purchased them at Shopper’s Drug Mart. Well, I love a bargain, so of course I purchased them Nicoderm CQ in the 7mg strength. (Finally she’s reviewing Nicoderm you’re saying! LOL)
About Nicoderm CQ and Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) Patches
When you quit smoking you shut off the supply of nicotine to your system. That may sound well and good, but your brain and your body are still screaming for that nicotine, and that’s what gets a smoker smoking again. That craving, that overwhelming desire and need for that hit of nicotine. Using NRT Patches makes that craving much more manageable because it releases a constant level of nicotine to the system. This in turn makes the withdrawal and the cravings more manageable and makes it easier to deal with the psychological aspect of quitting, which is quite often the most difficult part of the whole process. Using the NRT patches is a way of weaning yourself off cigarettes in a gentler way than going cold turkey. You slowly decrease the dosage until its low enough that you can quit using the patch altogether.
Nicoderm comes in three strengths, or steps. Heavy smokers (more than ten cigarettes a day) start at Step One, which is 21mg. If you smoke ten cigarettes or less a day, Nicoderm recommends starting at Step Two, which is 14 mg. Step Three is 7mg. The process according to Nicoderm should take 8 to 10 weeks. Six weeks on the first step you take and then two weeks on each subsequent step. You wear these patches for 16 to 24 hours a day. If your cravings are very strong first thing in the morning its recommended that you wear the patch overnight.
My Experience
I actually found using NRT to be quite helpful this time around. At first I used them 24 hours a day, but I found that I was waking up a lot at night, not able to get a good nights sleep. The doctor told me it was probably due to the nicotine in my system overnight. So I tried going 16 hours a day with the patch, and although sometimes the mornings were a little rough, all in all it worked quite well that way. My sleep improved, and I still wasn’t smoking.
I didn’t feel that any of the manufacturers of these NRT patches could set a schedule on my quitting smoking, so I decided to take the process week by week, gauging how my cravings were diminishing, and then adjusting the level of nicotine accordingly. After about six weeks on Step One I moved to Step Two. Although I did have some difficulty with the change, my cravings increased and my irritability did as well, I adjusted fairly quickly and the change in dosage worked well for me with no “slips”.
Moving from Step Two to Step Three was the easiest step. I didn’t feel any noticeable difference in the dosage; I was ready to step down. I believe that had to do with the fact that I was working very hard on dealing with the psychological aspects of my addiction. If I hadn’t looked at smoking triggers, at the excuses and scenarios that might make me start smoking again, I would not have been successful in my endeavour. This is a critical aspect of quitting smoking. Having support and really looking at how and why you smoke is crucial to successfully quitting.
I used Habitrol and Quit! interchangeably, never noticing any change in how I felt when switching from one brand to another. The Habitrol and Quit! patches are small tan coloured circular patches, looking similar to bandaids. The patches decrease in size as the dosage gets lower. You just pop the patch on your arm (switching arms each day to avoid skin irritation) and forget about it. Although I do have very sensitive skin, after the first few times I used these patches my skin seemed to get used to them. They stuck on well and stayed on in the shower.
The Nicoderm CQ patch is much much different. It’s a clear rectangular patch. I really liked the transparent aspect of this patch. It wasn’t so noticeable and didn’t draw attention to the fact that I was attempting to quit smoking if it was spotted through a shirt or on my bare arm. It does the job of sending the nicotine into the bloodstream, and that keeps one from wanting a cigarette. But that’s where my likes of this product ends.
I found this patch to be extremely irritating to my skin. It was itchy, itchy, and itchy! So itchy that I wanted to rip it off, my arm off, or both, in an effort to stop the incredible itching! And then there was the shooting pain that went through my arm whenever I wore these patches. Oh, did I mention the rash I got that just did not want to go away? I found that the week that I wore these patches was the closest I got to starting smoking again. I just wanted my arm to stop itching, to stop hurting, and I didn’t care if it meant smoking again! But I managed to get through that week, went back to one more week on Quit! and then went patch-free.
I do recommend NRT patches if you are attempting to quit smoking. I just don’t really recommend Nicoderm CQ patches. I will give them a Recommended rating, but only because any NRT system is better than not trying to quit at all. I found Habitrol and Quit! to be excellent products, but if those aren’t available where you live, then give Nicoderm CQ a try. My sensitive skin may have been the problem when it came to these patches, even though the other brands didn’t bother me anywhere near as much. Whatever the case, no matter which product you try, I do urge the smokers out there to do their best to quit smoking, whichever method you use. Make sure you have a good support system, make sure you prepare yourself, and make sure you deal with all the aspects of quitting, psychological and physical! And good luck!!!
I’ve now been smoke-free for almost four months. I feel better, and my children are so proud of me. Honestly, I couldn’t have done it without them! Whenever the craving got really really bad (and sometimes it still does!) I just let them know and they’re there for me, hugging me, giving me huge smiles, and telling me how much they love me and how proud they are of me. Now that’s a support system!
Recommended:
Yes
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Member: Beverley
Location: Canada
Reviews written: 290
Trusted by: 421 members
About Me:
Heading into chemo again...then a stem cell transplant. Keep my family in your prayers please!
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