I Want to Quit Smoking

Michael Bloomberg and Bill Gates Join to Combat Global Tobacco Epidemic

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 22:17:00 +0000

July 23, 2008
Bloomberg and Gates Commit $500 Million and Call on Governments to Implement Proven Interventions to Reduce Tobacco Use, Save Lives

[New York - July 23, 2008] Michael Bloomberg and Bill Gates today announced joint efforts to combat the global tobacco epidemic. A combined investment of $500 million will help governments in developing countries implement proven policies and increase funding for tobacco control. Unless urgent action is taken, as many as one billion people this century - more than two-thirds in the developing world - could die from tobacco-caused illnesses. Paula Johns, executive director of Brazil's Alliance for the Control of Tobacco Use, and broadcast journalist Charlie Rose joined Bloomberg and Gates for the announcement.

Bloomberg's Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use, which was established in 2005 and includes a $125 million commitment, will be extended with a new $250 million, four-year commitment. This brings Bloomberg's total commitment to date to more than $375 million.

Read the full story here

www.mikebloomberg.com

Bush administration opposes tobacco regulation

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:18:00 +0000

By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Bush administration strongly opposes legislation to give federal health authorities the power to regulate tobacco products, a top official said in a letter to Congress obtained by The Associated Press on Tuesday.

The letter is the strongest indication yet that the administration will try to block the broadly popular legislation, which is supported by majorities in both chambers, and lists both presidential contenders among its co-sponsors. Although a floor vote is expected in the House this summer, a protracted battle with the White House could doom chances for passing the bill this year.

"The administration would strongly oppose this legislation," Health and Human Services Sec. Michael Leavitt said in a July 21 letter to Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas. Barton is the senior Republican on the Energy and Commerce Committee, which approved the bill on a lopsided 38-12 vote in April. At the time, 11 Republicans on the panel voted in favor of the legislation.

Read full story here:

Anti-smoking drug study investigated

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 13:42:00 +0000

Anti-smoking drug study investigated
Audrey Hudson (Contact)
Sunday, July 20, 2008

Officials with the Department of Veterans Affairs are preparing to determine who was at fault for failing to quickly notify participants in a smoking-cessation study about the potentially dangerous side effects of a drug they were prescribed and whether the study will be ended.

Dr. Tom Puglisi, chief officer of the VA's Office of Research Oversight, says he has several concerns that veterans suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were prescribed the smoking-cessation drug Chantix without receiving timely written information or warnings about its possible side effects, which can include psychosis and suicidal behavior.

Read full story here:

www.washingtontimes.com

Navajo Council to consider commercial smoking ban

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 18:20:00 +0000

Navajo Council to consider commercial smoking ban
By FELICIA FONSECA Associated Press Writer
Article Launched: 07/18/2008 05:06:46 PM MDT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.—The Navajo Nation Council is to consider a measure next week during its summer session that would prohibit the use of commercial tobacco in public buildings and shared public air spaces, such as fairs and rodeos.
The measure would prohibit cigarettes and chewing tobacco, but not tobacco used in ceremonies for traditional or religious purposes.

The Southwest Navajo Tobacco Education Prevention Project is pushing the passage of the law, backed by the tribe's Division of Health and the Hataalii Association Inc., a group of medicine men.

"It's a healthy decision," said David Begay, a medicine man from Ganado, Ariz. "I would say the majority of Navajo people probably support it. What people do at the home as far as smoking is concerned ... that's their decision. We're talking about public places."

The Navajo Nation Gaming Enterprise opposes the measure, saying it would put the tribe's first casino at a disadvantage against others in the area.

Read the full story here

www.lcsun-news.com

Do we like McCain being McCain?

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:37:00 +0000

Published: 7/19/2008 12:06

McCain is an expert on world affairs (or so says McCain).

Why then does he not know that Czechoslovakia was dissolved 15 years ago?

Why does he have still have trouble distinguishing between Shia and Sunnis?

Why does he think Iran is training Sunnis?

Why does he mock Obama for not going to Iraq and Afghanistan and then trivialize him when he does?

Why does he reject the demand of the Maliki government for a timetable for leaving Iraqi? I guess that sovereign government of Iraq really isn't so sovereign after all.

McCain is the veteran of all veterans (or so says McCain). Why did he not support the new GI Bill for the those who have born the brunt of Bush's folly?

Why did he object to increased funding for the VA?

McCain is a champion of children (or so says McCain). Then, why did he vote against expanding health insurance for children and uphold the Bush veto of the bill?

McCain is a champion of women (or so says McCain). Why then does he not support equal health care treatment for women and men?

Why does he not believe a woman has the right to choose what she does with her own body?

Why does he vote against every women's issue when given the chance?

McCain apologists offer that telling jokes about rape and killing Iranians by sending them more cigarettes
is just McCain being McCain instead of referring to it as scandalous and inane (respectively).

It strikes me that McCain being McCain reveals the exact flawed character that this country doesn't need another four years of.

James Prescott

Schaumburg

Do we like McCain being McCain?

www.dailyherald.com

And now a lesson from Forrest Gump:

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 14:33:00 +0000

My favorite movie is Forrest Gump. Here's a guy who didn't know he wasn't supposed to achieve greatly. He just did it. He ran across the country, played ping pong at a world championship level, saved his friends from certain death in a jungle of Vietnam, and disassembled his rifle in record time just to name a few of his achievements. He was not 'smart' enough to know that normal humans 'can't' achieve these things.

We are all programmed in our youth to know our general direction in life and our limits. Nobody says to us "You will be a lawyer and make $100,000 per year." Or "You will be a carpenter and make 50,000 per year." Through a series of experiences and information we receive from parents and others, we form a subconscious image of what we should 'be,' how much money we are worthy of earning, how attractive we are (and therefore how attractive our mate should be), etc. If at any time we are 'threatened' with achieving beyond our subconscious boundaries in any of these areas, sabotage kicks in to bring us back in line. This happens so that we don't get hurt. So that we don't feel the pain of being uncomfortable, of being in the unknown, of violating our programming.

Sabotage is designed to protect us. To keep us safe. It's also designed to punish us when we violate the programming of our parents, etc. It sends us to our rooms because we were 'bad,' it takes away our playmates because we were 'bad,' it doesn't give us our allowance because we were 'bad.' We are living as children and thinking we are in control of everything, yet we are still being punished. So we have the aspect of sabotage that punishes us and the aspect that protects us by keeping us in the 'safe' zone.

Read full article here

www.synergyinstituteonline.com

Board backs ban on smoking

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 16:43:00 +0000

By Ruth Ingram

The city of Clinton's new smoking ban ordinance goes into effect in 30 days.

Aldermen on Tuesday approved the new law that prohibits smoking in public buildings, city-owned vehicles, schools, restaurants, bars, indoor and outdoor athletic facilities as well as day-care and health care facilities, theaters and at least 80 percent of hotel rooms.

The unanimous vote by the 7-member board comes after a July 1 public hearing to allow residents, business owners and others to voice comments about the proposed ordinance.

Clinton joins more than two dozen Mississippi cities with smoking bans in place.

Smoking is defined in the Clinton ordinance as "inhaling, exhaling, burning or carrying any lighted cigar, cigarette, pipe or other lighted tobacco product in any manner or in any form."

Aldermen on Tuesday approved one change to the ordinance in its proposed form - a change that would strengthen it.

The new language prohibits smoking within 30 feet of a main entrance of any building governed by the ordinance.

"We've continued to receive comments" following the July 1 hearing, city attorney Ken Dreher said at the Tuesday meeting.

The new language was added, he said, "so you didn't have to fight your way through a number of smokers at the entrance" to a smoke-free building.

The law will carry a fine of $500 for violators and fines up to $500 for the facility owner or manager.

Alderman At-Large Jehu Brabham said the ongoing debate by those on both sides of the smoking issue "could go on from now until eternity, and probably no one would change their minds."

But in his mind, Brabham said, a deciding factor is what is said in the preamble to the nation's constitution.

"It says, 'We the people.' It doesn't say, 'I the people,' " Brabham said.

The nation's founders "realized you'd never have a perfect union if it was just based on individual rights," Brabham said.

"People have the right to go to a common area of space and not be subjected to smoke.

"Sometimes, I have to give up some of my 'I' to make a better 'we,' " he said. "I can defend that from a constitutional point as well as a health point."

Read the full article here.

www.clintonnews.com

Smoking violations are reported to Iowa Deptartment of Health

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 20:05:00 +0000

By BOB LINK,

MASON CITY — In the first 10 days of Iowa’s Smokefree Air Act, the state Department of Public Health received 237 complaints of possible violations of the public smoking
ban.

To date, authorities have not busted into any smoke-filled bars. They have not handcuffed or shackled any smokers, and they haven’t closed any establishments.

And, according to the Iowa Department of Public Health, no one will be handcuffed and no businesses will be closed.

“It’s an educational process,” said Brent Saron, a community health consultant with the Iowa Department of Public Health. “Education is a key to compliance.”

The Iowa law, which went into effect July 1, applies to restaurant, bars, food service establishments, outdoor sports arenas and amphitheaters.

It also covers places of employment such as office buildings, health care facilities and child care facilities.

Assistant Cerro Gordo County Attorney Carlyle Dalen said the county attorney’s office has started to get calls with people questioning what establishments are included in the law.

“Right now there just seems to be a lot of questions with not a lot of clear answers,” said Dalen.

Smoking violations are reported

www.globegazette.com

Ridiculous Suppositions About Weight Loss With Hypnotherapy

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 02:28:00 +0000

Posthypnotic suggestion, thanks to movies and TV shows, the very word conjures up the impression of a beady-eyed hypno-technician swinging a watch and droning the words, “You are getting sleepy.”

Do a Google search, and you will find millions of web pages focused on the subject, especially weight loss hypnosis. Unfortunately, many websites that sell recorded hypnosis programs for weight loss make wild, unsubstantiated affirmations. I’ve been in professional practice since 1978. So I think that I’m more than competent to set the record straight on weight loss hypnosis.

First of all, hypnotic suggestion is a tool, just like a scalpel is a tool. Just as assorted surgeons have diversified skill levels in the use of a scalpel, varying hypnotists have assorted there are many remarkable forms of hypnosis.

Here are just a couple of the wild suppositions about weight loss hypnosis that I’ve seen on websites, along with the truth of the matter:

“Hypnosis for weight loss will speed up your metabolism.” If you want to know the total truth, the fact of the matter is that weight loss hypnosis can’t directly speed up your metabolism. But it can be very functional at helping to program your subconscious with increased motivation to exercise, and exercise can increase your metabolism. Similarly, hypnotherapy to speed up the metabolism for quick weight loss can be effected by programming the subconscious to motivate the intake of increased amounts of protein, because that intake will step up your metabolic rate.

Posthypnotic suggestion will make you shed some weight. This is false. But weight loss hypnosis can be used to help delete your appetite, so that you eat less, and eating less can help you to drop a few pounds.

The average person’s appetite and urges are caused by two subconscious programs:
A. When you pair eating with any other behavior, the other behavior will trigger cravings for food and a compulsion to eat. This is called a conditioned response. For example, if you eat while you drive, you will automatically get an urge to eat each time you drive your car.

B. When you feel tense, you feel a strong urge to put food into your mouth for relaxation. This is the result of training that you received as an infant. When you got crabby, your mom or dad put a bottle in your mouth. You got distracted, relaxed, and probably fell asleep. Now when you get cranky (anxious or tense), you feel compelled to put something into your mouth for relaxation and pleasure.

C. There is a third unconscious program that is present for some people. It’s called emotional eating. Emotional eating takes place when an individual is motivated to make him or herself fat, because by being fat they will protect themselves in some way.

For example, if a subject got their heart broken in a relationship, their unconscious will usually force them into a behavior that would prevent them from getting their heart broken again. Example: They are motivated to become overweight to keep them out of new relationships, because that will clear out the possibility of another broken heart.

D. I have written several articles on hypnosis for weight loss and compulsive overeating that are available on my website. There are some very effective ways to use hypnotic suggestion to reduce or overcome emotional eating.

So just how can weight loss hypnotherapy fix the above problems? Let’s cover them one at a time.

In paragraph “A” above: Conditioned responses can be “wiped out” easily using a course that I call the “Flash.” The flash trains the unconscious mind to setup a new set of triggers. In the above example, the subject had unconsciously banded together the depiction of food in the hand, with the TV. Each time he / she sat down to watch the TV, the unconscious mind filled in the missing part of the depiction: It “Flashed” the image of the food in the hand, and the subject felt an urge, and a craving to eat.

The Flash is a mode of operation we use to program the subconscious to use the visualization of the TV as a trigger for an impression of yourself watching TV without eating. When we lose the depiction of the food, we lose the cravings.

When we momentarily disassociate (see ourselves from the point of view that another person would), we are not able to sense our feelings (cravings and urges).

When we see ourselves in an activity (watching TV without eating), we feel a strong compulsion to generate that behavior. So the subject loses the cravings, and actually gets a compulsion to reject food.

In paragraph “B” above: The subject is eating and drinking for relaxation and pleasure. We teach the subject self-hypnosis for weight loss, because the very essence of the hypnotic state is deep relaxation.

And we utilize the “Flash” to program the unconscious to use the mental pictures that are triggering feelings of annoyance and aggravation, as triggers for secondary mental images and thoughts that will trigger feelings of relaxation. When the subject feels more relaxed overall, oral urges are greatly diminished.

In paragraph “C” above: We discussed emotional eating which makes the person overweight. The “behavior” of being overweight then provides some sort of emotional protection. So we use a mode of operation called an NLP Six-Step Reframe for weight loss, which programs the unconscious to be responsible for making the subject automatically substitute some other larger acceptable behavior that will provide the same emotional protection, in place of being overweight. And that reframe will delete the craving to eat for emotional purposes.

Self-hypnosis for weight loss can be a very powerful method. I can only uncover the tip of the iceberg in this short characterization. Please see my website for larger comprehensive articles and information

Ridiculous Suppositions About Weight Loss

www.medinfo2004.org

If the drugs don’t work...

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 15:58:00 +0000

If the drugs don’t work...

Jul 12 2008 by Abbie Wightwick, Western Mail

From past life regression and faith healing to stopping smoking and learning to eat more slowly, hypnotherapy is fast becoming the buzzword in alternative therapy – you can even do a degree in it in Wales now. Abbie Wightwick looks into the eyes (not around the eyes) of the believers

IMAGINE you have half a fresh, juicy lemon in your hand. Squeeze it and breathe in the tangy, citrus smell. Bring it up to your mouth and bite into the crunchy, cool flesh. Feel the fresh, sour juice hit your tongue. By now your mouth may be watering.

The lemon test, an example favoured by Cardiff-based hypnotherapist Richard Haggerty, is recognisable to anyone who has experienced the drooling sensation sparked by picturing favourite or sour foods.

It is one example of how the mind can affect the body, he says.

If eating isn’t your thing then invoking a beautiful place may do the trick in transporting you elsewhere.

It is this ability to put the mind in a more relaxed state to aid physical health that is at the heart of the booming industry in healing and complementary therapy.

A survey last year showed that more than half of people asked in Wales would turn to alternative therapists rather than endure long NHS waiting lists. Research has been carried out into complementary treatments for cancer patients at Velindre Hospital, Cardiff and many people book visits to therapists as regularly as the hairdresser.

Every year Britons spend £130m on alternative treatments, from hypnotherapy to reflexology, and predictions are that this will swell to £200m in the next few years.

The NHS spends around £50m a year on alternative treatments working from a recommended list of practitioners offering everything from acupuncture to yoga.

Christian churches also report an increase in religious healing, if not the numbers of people worshipping.

The Reverend Beatrice Brandon, the Adviser for the Healing Ministry to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York whose mother was Welsh, believes Wales is “a healing place” and that pilgrimages to a holy well here helped cure her crippling rheumatoid arthritis.

“I was in an awful lot of pain at the time. I came across the holy wells in Wales and found them peaceful places,” she says.

“I went to St Cybi’s Well on the Llyn Peninsula. The time in Wales visiting these places sustained me. That had a strong healing dimension and helped the healing process.

“It was not a case of going into the water and being healed. The whole culture and spirit of Wales is one of healing and peace. There are parts of Wales where I feel very close to God.

“My mother left Wales as a child but she talked to us about it and I feel Welsh. My aunt had a farm near Lampeter and we spent a lot of time there.”

As an elected lay member of the General Synod of the Church of England, Rev Brandon was instrumental in reviving the healing ministry in the Church of England.

Her groundbreaking report to the House of Bishops, A Time to Heal, was published in 2000 and the associated handbook was sent to clergy in the Church in Wales.

She has since been ordained and trains lay people, priests and ministers in the Church’s healing ministry.

“We don’t call ourselves healers. That’s one of the factors which distinguishes us from faith healers,” she explains.

“The healing comes from God. We intercede and ask God for help.”

She says people don’t have to believe in God to be healed by him but it “helps to have a good relationship with him”.

Her own experience baffled her doctors.

“After the report on healing was published, I had to think about whether I would ever be well enough to function as a priest if I was ordained. I had had rheumatoid arthritis for seven years,

“I prayed to God that if it was his will for me to be ordained, he would have to heal me, for his sake, not mine.

“Within three weeks I had recovered. It has been eight years and it’s not come back.

“I think the significant increase in awareness and in the availability of the healing ministry is partly because mainstream medicine can be very effective but it does not have all the answers and is limited.”

Reverend Mike Endicott from the Church in Wales healing centre in Cwmbran agrees.

The Well Centre is run by the Order of Jacob’s Well which was set up by the then Bishop Rowan Williams, who also ordained Rev Endicott.

The centre has 120 lay and religious healers from a range of denominations. Rev Endicott is a vibrant figure not shy to declare that it is only God who heals.

“It’s to do with God, not us,” he says with unflinching conviction.

“There is a growing interest in healing because there are a lot more sick people. People live longer and doctors are making symptoms easier, but not stopping illness.

“I can heal anybody but they don’t all get healed. If you proclaim the good news but people don’t want to receive anything from God and pull up the portcullis, he can’t get in.

“If you are ill and you come to me I would pray with you. A lot of people are very sceptical. I preach the Bible – nothing else.

“People are becoming more open though. There’s a general increase in interest in things spiritual, but not religious.

“I don’t believe in Wales’ healing wells but it may be some people feel nearer to God in these places.”

Rev Endicott, 63, who went blind through inherited illness as a teenager, does not want his sight restored.

“Being blind is part of me,” he declares.

“ It would be too scary. Sight brings with it things like responsibilities.”

He has a zeal which is tricky to argue with. It is this unshakeable belief that links both church and faith healers.

The National Federation of Spiritual Healers charity is the only body that most doctors will use when seeking faith healers.

Members are listed on the NHS Trust Associations list of approved healers and therapists.

NFSH chief executive Tereena Davies, who was born and grew up in Swansea, cuts an establishment figure in many ways.

A former city high flier, she is a Freeman of the City of London and a Liveryman. Duties include voting in the Lord Mayor of London.

But Tereena says people are increasingly open to the benefits of healing.

“In my 30s I trained as a healer with the NFSH whilst still being involved in my career. I became chief executive last November.

“Most people know I’m also a healer and it’s respected and accepted. A lot of people are hungry for an understanding of spirituality. You would be surprised at the people who ask questions or come for healing or train with the NFSH.

“The range of people who are healing include everything from doctors, solicitors, osteopaths, managers mothers and retired people.”

Her interest in healing grew during her career as head of a medical department for a pharmaceutical company and a City consultancy firm.

She is keen that healing is not seen as something weird or fraudulent and believes that’s why the NFSH two-year training programme is important.

“My concern is that there are a lot of vulnerable people who have cancer or other illnesses who go to people and pay a lot of money and get unrealistic expectations.

“As NFSH healers we never say we can cure. We leave it to the patient to gauge benefit. Whilst there are no guarantees many of our patients report positive results. We are the largest healers’ member organisation and the main one used in the NHS.”

She is passionate about the benefits healing can bring to both patient and practitioner.

“We have 14 regions around the UK where healers represent us at voluntary centres where people can get healing. If they are able to give a donation they do, but that is not required.”

But many people are more than willing to pay for the chance of healing.

Hypnotherapists in Wales, who charge from around £45 to £90 a session, report an almost doubling in trade in the past few years, partly sparked by the new anti-smoking law.

Richard Haggerty says hypnotherapy can complement mainstream medicine by tackling everything from irritable bowel syndrome to phobia and anxiety.

Some dentists also use it for pain relief. Although research is not conclusive, hypnotherapy has been shown to be so effective for some patients that they have had teeth removed with no other painkiller.

The British Medical Association acknowledges there is “immense interest” in alternative medicine among doctors in Wales and elsewhere.

Some regularly suggest patients try complementary therapy. The NHS Trusts Association includes a database of alternative practitioners that doctors can use, although patients must usually pay themselves.

A new regulatory body called The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council is also due to launch later this year. The organisation is aimed at protecting the public by vetting complementary health practitioners, and only giving their seal of approval to well-qualified, responsible professionals.

But BMA Wales spokesman John Jenkins says more research and safeguards are needed.

“With up to five million people a year consulting a therapist in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), and many more asking their doctor for advice, the BMA wants to see stricter regulation of the CAM therapies.

“Patients and doctors show an immense interest in CAM therapies but there is a great need for adequate regulation. Only osteopathy and chiropractic are currently regulated by law and we want to see this extended. Acupuncture and herbal medicine are obvious candidates and we would want other areas to follow.

“The BMA has called for more and better scientific research into the efficacy of CAM therapies. People want to know what works and what doesn’t. It is sensible if the NHS is going to share treatment and management of patients with CAM that there should be good information about therapies available for health care workers and patients.

“The BMA believes only those therapies that are adequately regulated should be available on the NHS.”

The Hypnotherapists’ professional body, the National Council for Hypnotherapists, hopes its register will be officially recognised by Parliament within the next 18 months giving it more credence in mainstream healthcare and assuring people prices are fair.

Spokesman Paul Howard fears stage hypnotists have led people to believe their minds will be controlled by someone waving a watch in front of them.

“It has nothing to do with ‘looking into your eyes’ and more to do with looking into your behaviour,” he insists.

“Hypnotherapy is commonly used to help with weight loss and stress, and it has also been proven to be beneficial in smoking cessation and irritable bowel syndrome, but surprisingly it is probably most often used for psychological problems like anxiety and low self esteem.

“With smoking cessation, hypnotherapy in general has shown to be two and a half times more effective than nicotine replacement like nicotine gum or patches, and is five times more likely to succeed than will power alone.

“Hypnotherapy, rather than submerging the mind, is a way of helping people access it for themselves, according to those who use it.”

Aleks Fowler, 32, a natural bodybuilder from Nantgarw, has regular hypnotherapy to boost her confidence before the World Championships in Belfast in August.

“I’ve been going for two months to get focused to win,” she says.

“I’ve been competing for years and always get into the first three, but I want to win. The hypnotherapy makes me happy and confident. If you are stressed you can calm yourself down in just a few minutes. It’s a whole approach to life.

“When I am in a trance I am aware what’s happening but am so relaxed. It’s like sleeping while you’re awake.

“I’m a personal trainer as well and this has a great place in sport. Your brain is like a computer. If you put in only positive messages your life can change.”

Kerry Macdonald, 28, from Cardiff finally kicked her 12-year smoking habit after one one-hour session with hypnotherapist Richard Haggerty.

“I gave up exactly a year ago,” she says with a smile, as if she cannot quite believe it herself.

“He put the idea into my mind that the smell would make me feel sick.

“When I finished I got into my car and drove off. At the traffic lights a man in a car beside me was smoking and the smell made me feel sick.

“I’m so glad I went for hypnotherapy. It’s been the best thing. I had good reason to give up because I’m trying for a baby.

“I was told to picture myself at home with my new baby and people visiting. Then I had to picture myself coughing and going to the doctor and then having tests and being told I had three months to live and wouldn’t see my baby grow up.

“It put things in perspective. I don’t think I would have been able to stop smoking without hypnosis, even though I wanted to. I had tried before and had lasted three months but always went back to it. I really just don’t want to smoke now.”

After years of dieting Helen Caudle who lives near Llantrisant finally tried hypnotherapy which she credits with helping her lose several stone.

Helen, 52, a customer services manager for Barratt Homes, says: “I’d never done anything like this before. The first time I felt self conscious. You see these stupid television programmes where people run around and do things under hypnosis.

“At the end of the first session I came out feeling totally relaxed. You are conscious throughout and totally aware of everything that’s going on. You aren’t totally out of it.

“I was told to put my fork down between each mouthful. I’m a fast eater but in the third week of hypnotherapy I realised I had started putting my knife and fork down and going slower, but not deliberately.

“I’m not a gullible person. Normally my will power would have gone by now but I’m in my fourth week, I don’t feel like I’m on a diet and I’ve lost 10lb without any effort.

“He suggested I’d refuse junk food and eat healthier. My weakness is cakes but I found I didn’t want them.

“You need motivation but the hypnotherapy helps you keep it.”

Her hypnotherapist, Richard Haggerty, believes the treatment has an important role in healthcare.

“Many studies have consistently shown a subject will not do anything against their core values when in trance. Since you are aware at all times, it is your choice to follow the suggestions,” he says.

“We can reach parts of the subconscious under trance.”

Andy Garland, who practises at You Be The Best You Can in Penarth, does past life regression and hypnotherapy and is on the NHS Trusts Association list.

He says: “It’s becoming more and more accepted by the general medical profession. People on the data base are insured and it is a list that’s accredited by the NHS to give security to GPs and the medical profession.

“In past life regression we use clinical hypnosis techniques to access past life.

“Sometimes people are curious and want to find out who they were in lives before. Others believe problems they have stem from events in a past life.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s true or not. If they believe their issues stem from another life then we can work with that and bring that into the present and bring a positive outcome.

“I believe in what my clients believe in.

“You put them into a trance where they are in a state of deep relaxation and within that we are able to access thoughts and memories.

“I have never taken someone back and found they were someone famous. Most people were farmers or in a war.

“People may come to you stating they have a lot of anxiety but can’t think of anything in their current life causing it. They think maybe it’s something from a previous life.

“You can go back and bring the issue forward and deal with it in the present time.”

Psychic Diane Lazarus from Crosshands, Carmarthenshire, stresses that she is not a healer but says many who come to see her report “feeling better” afterwards.

The 42-year-old mother of two, winner of Channel Five’s Psychic Challenge in 2006, is on a database of approved psychics police can contact. She has helped in a number of cases including the murders of television presenter Jill Dando and West Midlands college lecturer Mark Green.

Those who have come to her for readings include nurses, a Nasa scientist, a Catholic priest and singer Bonnie Tyler.

Police, like doctors, are not often keen to publicise their belief in systems beyond the mainstream, but the National Crime and Operations Centre Faculty in Hampshire holds the database of officially approved mediums and Diane believes society is becoming more open to the paranormal.

“There are parts of the brain people don’t understand. I believe everyone has the ability I do, but not everyone can use it,” she says.

“It was not accepted a few years ago but I feel it’s more accepted now.”

Diane, who is married to solicitor Peter Lazarus, warns “there are charlatans” and supports new consumer laws protecting people from those deliberately aiming to dupe them.

One of her clients is Newmarket racehorse trainer Steve James who visits for business forecasts.

“People can believe what they want. I’ve been going for 18 months and it worked for me,” he announces confidently.

“I’m analytical in life and wouldn’t consider myself ‘away with the fairies’. I’ve got both feet on the ground.”

Steve says he “didn’t want saving” but Diane’s forecast helped give him the determination and confidence that he was heading in the right direction.

Some psychologists believe it is this reassurance that many are searching for in complementary treatments.

Whatever it is the growing acceptance and demand for alternative and complementary therapies and healing means there is an urgent need for more research.

Uwic, which runs the only complementary therapy degree course in Wales, has seen demand for places on its Cardiff-based course double.

Principal lecturer Philip Harris, who runs the course, explains: “Our BSc (Hons) Complementary Therapies programme had its first intake of 12 part-time students in September 2003.

“In the following year the programme ran full-time as well as part-time with an intake of 24 students.

“Subsequently we have taken about 24 new students per year. It is the only undergraduate programme of this type in Wales.

“It was started because of a need for professionally qualified complementary therapy practitioners who are able to understand the research process. Most of our graduates will go on to be full time practitioners in complementary therapies. Some, we hope, will undertake further training and become researchers themselves.

“There is currently a shortage of researchers who both provide complementary therapy and research skills.

“Last year we had our first graduation, one of our graduates won an award for the best undergraduate dissertation on the programme with a cash prize of £500, sponsored by the Welsh Assembly Government.”

The course covers aromatherapy, reflexology, massage, physiology and anatomy and, crucially, business skills.

Alternative therapies, like much medicine, make money. Practitioners have to make a living.

Tereena Davies of the NFSH is keen to point out that many healers offer their skills free and the churches do not charge for healing services or visits to the sick.

But money does not seem to be an obstacle for the growing numbers of people trusting their health to alternative practitioners.

If the drugs don’t work

Pain relief that’s all in the mind

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 20:46:00 +0000

Pain relief that’s all in the mind

MARISA DUFFY July 07 2008

REST AND BE THANKFUL: Dr David Spiegel believes that focused concentration can provide an alternative to treating chronic pain
When Dr David Spiegel's wife Helen gave birth to the couple's two children, she dealt with the pain by imagining she was floating on Lake Tahoe. Her first labour lasted for 12 hours, but she required no pain relief medication and gave birth to a strapping 10lb baby.

"Women go through fairly substantial pain when they give birth, but it's a wonderful happy experience and you know that the pain doesn't signal lasting damage to your body," says Dr Spiegel. "It's a matter of just learning to focus your attention on other things."

All very well for him to say, you might think, but when it comes to matters of mind over body, Dr Spiegel, a former President of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis who is based at Stanford University medical school, knows what he is talking about.

While hypnosis still suffers from its unfortunate association with gimmicky stage shows, more is being discovered about its power and that of the human brain. "Our brain is this very complex computer that tells us what to pay attention to and what to ignore," says Spiegel, who is also director of the Centre on Stress and Health at the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford. "If we were aware at any one time of 1% of everything, we would be totally immobilised."

advertisementSpiegel believes focused concentration can offer a real alternative to pain relief drugs. "The brain is really good at filtering in and out information: you have to pay attention to pain in order for it to hurt. Brain imaging studies show that during hypnosis you don't just feel the same pain but report that it's okay, you actually reduce your perception of pain. We have more control over our bodies than we give ourselves credit for."

Dr Spiegel is interested in using hypnosis in a clinical setting and estimates that two thirds of the population can be hypnotised, often in one 45-minute session. "Studies show that during stressful medical procedures, ranging from invasive radiological imaging studies and needle biopsies through to actual lumpectomies, you can teach patients to do self-hypnosis to release their pain and anxieties, decrease the amount of pain meds they use and shorten procedure time." Hypnosis can also be useful for the treatment of chronic illness. "We teach patients in support groups to learn to filter out the pain, focus on something else, imagine the part of their body that hurts is warmer or cooler. We get a 50% reduction in pain over a year or so."

A former president of the American College of Psychiatrists, Spiegel has been in Scotland assessing the Maggie's cancer care centres as part of an external review. Much of his own research has been used to improve the experience of cancer patients. As he walks round the Glasgow centre he talks about how social support is a major stress buffer. "We are social creatures. We think of ourselves as splendid individuals but we are more like ants than eagles. We don't survive without social connection and yet what happens to people when they get cancer is that they get socially isolated. If you stress people alone you get a much higher psychophysiological stress response that if you gave them the same stressor but when there are other people with them."

The previous day Spiegel was speaking with patients at the Maggie's centre in Edinburgh who told him that the centre had made them feel part of a community for the first time since their diagnosis. One of the defining features of the centres is that they allow people to speak to others in a similar situation.

"We are finding that it is very damaging to try to suppress negative feelings," says Spiegel. "If people want to put on a happy face, we call it the prison of positive thinking', it's a bad thing. As a psychiatrist, if somebody has a bad case of cancer and isn't sometimes sad, angry and fearful, I worry about them because they ought to be. We're finding that you actually get reductions in stress physiology when you're more open and expressive about all of the feelings that you have."

Again, he cites research showing that discussion groups change people's tendency to express emotion and make them feel more confident about managing their emotion, both of which serve to reduce anxiety and long-standing depression.

At Stanford, Spiegel and his team have spent decades exploring the links between social environment, mind and body, links which he describes as strong but not simple. "How much stress you experience, how you handle that stress and the social support you have certainly affects your quality of life. It may even have an effect on the way that the disease progresses. It's not the case that you can wish away cancer in your head or just put on a happy face and the cancer will go away. We have these two extremes that the public thinks: that either doctors say take your medication and that's it, or patients think; If I fix my head I can fix my body'. Neither of those is true but the mind and the body do interact."

Indeed, modern life and its associated stresses are leaving us more prone to illness than our ancestors. "We drive around in fancy four-wheeled wheelchairs so that we keep our bodies from exercising. We are isolated from other people so that you don't bump into people when you are going home, you honk your horn at them if they cut you up. We've erected lights that have completely disrupted our circadian rhythms (our natural 24-hour cycle) so we sleep far less than we should. We have evidence in our laboratory that disrupted circadian patterns predict an earlier progression of breast cancer, for example.

"A lot of the things we do - bad diets, lack of exercise, lack of social encounters and disrupted sleep cycles - are bad for our physiology and put us at higher risk through things like obesity and smoking."

In addition to physical factors that can make us vulnerable to illness, Spiegel believes that stress, trauma and depression can make people more susceptible to illnesses such as cancer. "The literature is complicated but there are large-scale studies showing that objective stressors like losing a spouse, or a job, are associated with a higher incidence of breast cancer. Some 19 of 24 recent studies show that being depressed is associated with more rapid progression of cancer.

"Maggie's centres are offering support for the long-term effects and the stress is the one thing which is going to be with you the most because you are going to be going back every year, having tests and possibly developing multiple cancers," says Spiegel.

"Some of the comfort offered by hypnosis or other forms of support becomes incredibly important as this evolves."

How to get involved

To mark our 225th anniversary, The Herald is teaming up with Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres in a campaign that will provide lasting support for people across Scotland affected by cancer. We are inviting you to become a Herald Friend of Maggie's, either as an individual, a group or a company, to support the charity's work in 2008 and beyond.

Maggie's Personal Friends are individuals who give by direct debit to Maggie's. This is a simple way to make a big difference. Knowing how much money is coming in each month makes it possible for Maggie's to plan ahead for the year-long courses they offer at their centres. From as little as £5 a month, a Personal Friend can give someone affected by cancer the chance to attend one of Maggie's workshops once a month for a year. The programme of workshops supports the emotional and psychological wellbeing of people with the disease and their friends and family. They include Living with Cancer, Stress Management, Nutrition, Relaxation, Yoga, T'ai Chi and Expressive Art.

Active Friends are volunteers who form a group that represents Maggie's in their home area and helps raise money in local communities. Groups of Active Friends have between five and 20 members. You don't need experience, just good organisational skills and a passion to improve cancer support in Scotland. A Maggie's fundraiser in your area will work closely with you to develop a variety of activities. Examples include coffee mornings, book sales, fashion shows and balls.

Corporate Friends can support Maggie's in a range of ways, including taking them on as their Charity of the Year or holding networking and business breakfast events. The Maggie's corporate fundraising team will work with you to tailor a programme of collaboration that meets your goals, whether you want to build your profile as a socially responsible company, improve teamworking or boost staff morale.

Everyone who signs up as a Personal or Active Friend is sent a stylish carrier bag designed by the Scottish textile and wallpaper design studio, Timorous Beasties.

Pain relief that’s all in the mind

www.theherald.co.uk

Think Chantix side effects are bad? Just wait

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 13:47:00 +0000

Since 1988 when then Surgeon General C. Edward Coop announced “that nicotine was as addictive as cocaine or heroin” every governmental agency, non-profit organization, hospital, and university has and continues to be the sales spokesperson for the chemical models of smoke cessation. These models, ranging from Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT), antidepressants like Bupropion (Zyban and Wellbutrin), anesthesia shots, and Varenicline (a derivate of the poison Cytisine) sold as Chantix, unfortunately contain very adverse and potentially lethal side- effects, are costly, and have very high relapse rates, which range as high as 95% in the fist year.

Chantix the new wonder pill to emerge is proving dangerous to many smokers. Since Chantix's approval in May 2006 there had been 26 "severe adverse effects". Chantix has been linked according to the FDA to at least 40 suicides and 400 attempted suicides, over 397 cases of possible psychosis, and 525 reports of hostility or aggression with many of the patients reporting hallucinations and thoughts of killing people. This has prompted the Veterans Administration to inform 32,000 veterans that they are using a drug linked to suicide or violent behavior. The FAA as also banned the use of Chantix for all pilots and air-traffic controllers. Chantix is also banned for all truck drivers.

It may get worse!! Nabi Biopharmaceuticals is already developing NicVAX -- a vaccine to treat nicotine addiction and prevent smoking relapse. The vaccine is designed to stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies that bind to nicotine. A nicotine molecule attached to an antibody is too large to cross the blood-brain barrier. Nabi says, NicVAX blocks nicotine from reaching its receptors in the brain and prevents the highly-addictive pleasure sensation experienced by smokers and users of nicotine products.
Nabi also said in 2007 that trials are expected to show that antibodies from NicVAX will last 12 months or longer. If that proves to be true, it would support getting through the 95 percent relapse rate in the critical first year.

The problem once again the side-effects First, a university of Michigan study concluded that only 32% of smokers are nicotine dependent (this researcher feels that is on the high side). However, if this figure is true then 65% to 75% of smokers do not continue to smoke because of Nicotine addiction. Second, we must look at the averse and potentially lethal side-effects, to wit, one in particular come to mind. We know that nicotine mimics the neuro-transmitter acetylcholine and binds to it receptors in the brain. Since the anti-body’s are designed to seek out nicotine and bind to it, once a person has stopped all nicotine injection these anti-bodies will in essence lose their job and just move aimlessly through the body. Since nature is always in flux suppose these anti-bodies were to mutate ever-so-slightly and begin to block, alter, or destroy the receptors for acetylcholine at the neuromuscular junction? This would in-turn prevent muscle contraction from occurring producing a disorder called Myasthenia Gravis, a debilitating and potentially lethal muscle disease.

When you are ready to stop smoking in an effective and healthy manner, with no adverse side-effects, use the non-chemical herb-free, safe, and reusable TobaccoB’Gone Stop for Life System.

When the want is gone the need is gone and you can…. Stop for Life

The TobaccoB’Gone Stop….for Life System

Richard Erickson PhD HHCP LPHt

Helen & Martin Weiss: Freedom from the smoking habit

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 20:19:00 +0000

Helen Ginandes Weiss, M.A. and Martin S. Weiss, M.A.,
Learning Consultants

Woody Allen once said, “I don’t want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it by not dying!” This famous comedian and psychologist seem to have had the right idea. Take care of yourself and beat the system. Though it’s no positive cure self control and knowledge may help to beat the addicting monster.

Nicotine’s grip is an overpowering force for some of us. We all know the stories about people who have broken the tobacco habit after 30, 40 or even 50 years. Marty’s father was one of those amazing smokers who broke his habit without medication when his doctor told him that he would not see his grandchildren grow up. He stopped and saw the birth of his first great grandson.

Currently medical men see smoking as a medical addiction or even a chronic disease. Most smokers try and fail numerous times before they actually are able to beat the monkey on their backs. There are many reasons for this and experts like Dr. Neal L. Benowitz of the University of California, San Francisco described the pleasurable effects that cause smokers to continue their habit even after being warned that they have developed heart disease, emphysema or cancer. The battle to stop smoking is up against some heavy odds. The smoker who tries to free himself from the yoke of nicotine temporarily gives up relaxation, reduced anxiety and stress, better ability to concentrate and better reaction time. Unfortunately the withdrawal often results in increased restlessness, sullen moods, anxiety, hunger and weight gain and even insomnia. The craving for tobacco is a nasty master that keeps one trapped over the course of time.

Smokers ask why it is so difficult for them to quit. Is it a character flaw? Is it an immoral act? Is it just a bad habit? No! It is a true biological addiction. Nicotine-specific receptors in the brain receive a host of neurotransmitters that “signal a pleasurable experience” and lead to constant reinforcement of the need for this deadly habit. If nicotine is the drug of choice it can be just as habit forming as any other drug. According to Dr. Benowitz, the reward center of the brain actually changes in function when measured on en electroencephalogram (EEG). The smell of smoke, the taste in the throat and the effect of nicotine all please the smoker and displease the non-smoker who has just quit cold-turkey.

To quit smoking for good one needs constant support physiologically, psychologically and behaviorally. Recommending that you quit smoking simply doesn’t do it. Most of us need other supports, such as medication, and behavioral therapy. If lunch with friends, a visit to a local bar, smoking at home with a spouse are identified with pleasure, then continuing that behavior will help perpetuate the habit. Like one who follows the 12 steps to sobriety, avoidance of behavior enforcers is an important control factor.

Recently nicotine replacement therapy has come into vogue and many have found it contributes to improved success and behavior change. Such treatment as the use of a nicotine patch, nicotine gum, inhalers and nasal sprays have been found to be successful for some smokers. These avoid some the toxicity of smoking on the lungs. Medically, those who gain a good deal of weight also need further support and even specifically designed drugs that have proved successful. For some, acupuncture or hypnosis have proven successful. If you need further information on currently available treatments you can check out suggestions at Web sites: such as www.becomeanex.org, www.quitnet.com and www.naquitline.org or call your local hospital and health center and ask about programs.

Join the legions of quitters and find your life less stressful and improve the health as well. Remember “If you try and don’t succeed try, try again”!

For further information contact Helen Ginandes Weiss, M.A and Martin S. Weiss, M.A., Learning Consultants.

Helen & Martin Weiss: Freedom from the smoking habit

www.leadvillechronicle.com

Smoking: The Process

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 17:00:00 +0000

Smoking: The Process
By
Richard L Erickson, PhD HHCP LPHt

Problem:
Smoking, in Indiana, for example, has remained relatively stable for the last five years. Most states are the same. Even with a lower pack purchase rate there is little evidence that Hoosiers are quitting. There are also countless Indiana tobacco users that are contraindicated to the current chemical models for smoke cessation, including: approximately 18% of pregnant women, at any one time, in Indiana are smoking, as well as breastfeeding women, Children under age 18, and many heart, diabetic, and cancer patients. Indiana needs an alternative smoke cessation and relapse prevention system that is safe, effective, and reusable.

1. Premise: contrarian view;
• The majority of smoke and smokeless tobacco users are NOT nicotine dependent
• Nicotine addiction is really irrelevant. What is relevant is to stop, and once stopped never ever start again
• Quitting isn’t the problem -----the real problem is Relapse
2. Research shows that one-third of all quit attempts fail within the first 48 hours, and fewer than 10 percent succeed long-term (more than a year)
. Currently, all standard chemical models (nicotine replacement therapy NRT, Chantix, anesthetic shots, Wellbutrin, Zyban) include side-effects that are potentially lethal, are designed to work mainly on the initial quit event, and leave smoking’s Habitual Conditioned Responses (CHR) to self-control; commonly called “willpower.”
3. With these statistics how would you proceed?
4. Start with the Addiction dependency myth: “Everyone who smokes is hopeless addicted and it will take many quit attempts to stop”
• Tachyphylaxis-- Tolerance
• Reinforcement-- Threshold level
5. Five stages of smoking: emotional-shift-self-medicating – give-in –exhaustion
6. Please answer this question. What does chemical addiction to nicotine have to do with:
• The emotional reasons for starting the smoking habit i.e. "to be cool" "rebellious" "part of the crowd" "school or work stress" "suffering through a divorce, a bad relationship, or the death of a loved one?
• Thinking of the cigarette as you little friend and companion?
• worries of weight gain if you quit
• Oral and hand fixations?
• smoking only when bored or stressed
• only smoking a set number of cigarettes per day or week; often for years
• The occasional smoking--- Lighting-up only when, partying, weekends or on vacations?
• Using only certain tobaccos or cigarette brands--- even going without rather that using off brands?
• The urges to smoke at certain "key" moments (with coffee or tea, after a meal, when the phone rings, in the car, at the computer, watching TV, with alcohol, taking a work break), or when emotional (lonely, sad, or angry)?
• The harsh withdrawal not associated to nicotine?
7. Conclusion: willpower and a patch, pill, shot, or gum is costly, ineffective for long-term relapse prevention, potential lethal, and can actually increase the smoking habit

Solution:

The TobaccoB’Gone Stop for Life System: a strict step-by-step approach to smoke cessation and relapse prevention.
1. Education: work/book manual and DVD
• Convince them that addiction to nicotine is NOT the driving force.
• Give them a compelling reason to quit—“still want to smoke”?
• Everyone know tobacco use is unhealthy smokers need specifics

2. Balance and Redirecting Conditioned Habits:
a. My research to the subsequent TobaccoB’Gone System is based in part by Paul McLean’s Triune brain principle, and various studies regarding Medical hypnosis and the effects altered consciousness has on the brain chemistry and transmission of words into mental pictures through the use of the imaginary pathway, which lead to the development of Auditory Linguistic Focused Imagery (ALFI) therapy: a progressive three CD series
b. ALFI Therapy helps to redirect or eliminate past and/or current sensitizing events
3. Nutrition: Two Amino acids and certain Alkaline Natural Foods
• GABA is an inhibitory amino acid in the human brain and is critical in counterbalancing the biological action of the excitatory amino acid glutamate. In a healthy human brain, both amino acids are present in equilibrium. In disease stages such as addiction, to either alcohol or nicotine, this equilibrium is out of balance. GABA concentrations may decrease with smoke cessation, leading to mild depression
• L-Glutamine has been studied extensively over the past 10-15 years and has been shown to be useful in treatment of serious illnesses, injury, trauma, burns, cancer and its treatment related side-effects
• Alkaline Natural Foods:
a. Eases nicotine receptor withdrawal and replaces and helps the hand/ mouth fixation.
b. Restores body’s PH levels to acceptable levels
c. Helps in cleansing the body of heavy metals and other poisons
4. Implementation: When the want is gone the need is gone and you can stop for life

Tobacco B'Gone

NLP is a tried and true, effective method of enhancing one's level of personal development

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 18:25:00 +0000

When I first heard Anthony Robbins speak about Neuro Linguistic Programming some time ago, I became extremely interested in learning more about it. Once I learned about it, I became fascinated. Once I started applying what I learned, I became that much better at whatever I put my focus and attention on.

For those of you who don't know, NLP is a tried and true, effective method of enhancing one's level of personal development by simply learning to change the way you think and speak. I know that may sound a little dated and simple as you've probably heard this before but the difference between NLP and other resources that suggest these techniques is that NLP not only recognizes the power of these principles, but it also encapsulates it in a formula for you to use it.

There's a big difference between knowing or learning about something and having an effective way to execute what you have learned outlined for you. Think of it like this. When assembling a piece of furniture, you have all the pieces and you know that once all the prices are put into the right places, your piece will be complete. It's the instructions however, that make it possible for you to take these pieces and actually make something out of them.

The bottom line is this; NLP works. It has been effectively used by millions of people to enhance their level of self improvement, enrich their lives and generate wealth. Any trusted professional in the area of personal development will tell you this.

But knowing that NLP works is just part of the puzzle. Now the real question becomes "Where can I get the best, most effective information available on NLP?"

Well there are actually many resources you can turn to that will give you a good understanding and foundation of NLP and how to use it. But, if you want what's considered to be the best, you have to turn to the best. And to be called the best, you have to have proven that you can take the information and execute it in such a way that sets you apart from the rest. The results that you achieve using the information must far surpass those of anyone else.

Excellence Is Not Enough

www.wie.org

The Truth about Stage Hypnotism

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 02:15:00 +0000

The Truth about Stage Hypnotism
By
Jerry Valley, MA, CI, CH

There have been so many opinions about stage hypnosis that I thought this would be a good time to clear some of the misconceptions and misleading comments. Please do not think that this is my platform for controversy but I only offer this article fro your information only.

I have done both stage and “clinical” hypnosis for nearly 40 years and have never performed an “R” or “X” rated show. My son, Tommy Vee, a great stage hypnotist, and I have also worked successfully with thousands of clients as NGH Consulting Hypnotists in helping them improve their lives.

Recently, Tommy and I were verbally and viciously attacked by an NGH member who is a stage hypnotist. His complaint was that Tommy and I never told, or would tell, the whole truth about the pitfalls and, as he stated, “the bad or ugly side of stage the hypnotism business.” I have always enjoyed doing stage shows and never saw the “ugly” side of the stage hypnotism business. My staff and I have never promised a “Blue Sky” career but only the opportunity to be a stage hypnotist. This is our statement: “We will show you how to develop the stage show. After this dynamic weekend, you will have an arsenal of dazzling and hilarious word-for-word routines, and the tools to be a professional stage hypnotist.” Further, “While many students are doing very well, your success may be determined by the effort you put forth in this field.”

He also stated bold-faced lies about having taken “additional training in 2002 with and earned the accomplished title of “Professional Stage Hypnotist” from Messrs. Jerry Valley and the late Ormond McGill, author of the seminal “The New Encyclopedia of Stage Hypnotism” and acclaimed "Dean of American Hypnotists.” This person has never taken training from Ormond McGill or me. He simply purchased our Home Study course and never once did he ask us for any help or assistance.
He also, in my opinion, insulted NGH members with the following statement: "Let's be even more frank here. The dirty little secret among hypnotherapists is most are diploma and certificate collecting part-timers / hobbyists unable to scratch out a full-time living as hypnotists, and so they seek another (part-time) revenue stream."
Enough of these worthless comments. Let’s really discuss where stage hypnotism is today and exactly what we are doing with it.
Very often, when Tommy does a local show, which is always clean and ethical, we get calls from people who become clients at our office in Methuen, Massachusetts. Because they were enthralled and fascinated by the experiments in the show, they became aware that possibly hypnosis could help them improve their lives. Hence, we increase our client base. When we are in other cities, like the Erie County Fair in Hamburg, NY, where over 50,000 people have seen my show, I always mention going to the local, NGH certified consulting hypnotist…….and a good number do just that.
Now, I concede that stage hypnotism is not for everyone just as consulting hypnosis is not for everyone. With that being said, I truly believe that stage shows are here to stay and, if done properly and ethically, they can help our profession attain greater status and acceptance by the general public and the medical profession as well.
In our office, we get many referrals from physicians, psychologists, therapists and other successful clients as well. We are not trying to change the entire world or to suggest that stage work is for all, but only to give all of us more good exposure to many individuals who are seeking alternative methodology to make beneficial changes in their lifestyles.
I also understand, and accept, that some very good consulting hypnotists will probably never condone stage shows, and that is fine. But, for those that feel this venue, done properly, just might be a good tool to enlighten the public, increase your client base and move our cause for acceptance forward, I say: “Try it…you might like it.”
Tommy and I are only here to help.

Get a referral slip for there office here

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Can Hypnosis Snuff Out a Smoker's Cigarette Habit?

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 17:52:00 +0000

New study finds hypnotism is an effective smoking-cessation technique
By Lindsay Chura
Posted June 23, 2008

Smokers trying to quit sometimes use nicotine patches to fight their tobacco dependence. But patches don't work for everyone. New research suggests that patches might be made more effective if used in combination with hypnosis, just as they tend to work better when used in conjunction with professional counseling. A recently published study showed hypnotherapy to be as effective as standard behavioral counseling when combined with nicotine patches in helping smokers to quit and stay off cigarettes for one year.

click here to read more

NRT distributing a poison

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 14:02:00 +0000

According to the American Heart Association Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) is internationally recognized as the only effective treatment for smoking cessation, and is safe and effective when used as part of a comprehensive smoking cessation program.
The problem is a comprehensive program. My research indicates vast holes in the scientific evidence to support Nicotine addiction as the primary cause of continued smoking in some 85% of cases. The facts are clear without a comprehensive program to redirect or eliminate the conditioned habits of smoking, relapse will occur within a year to the vast number of those attempting to quit.
If an alcoholic attends an AA meeting to stop drinking he is not ask to drink a beer or glass of wine!! Why then is "NRT internationally recognized as the only effective treatment for smoke cessation" Could it be that most of the studies are paid for by the pharmaceutical companies?

NRT distributing a poison

IWanttoQuitSmoking.com Hypnosis

Pfizer's Chantix Woes Bash High Hopes

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 02:52:00 +0000

OKLAHOMA CITY -- With Pfizer's (PFE - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) Chantix stop-smoking aid linked to suicide and other serious side effects, some critics question whether the drug works well enough to justify its risks.

Sales of the drug, once viewed as a surefire blockbuster, have already started to fall. Lately, threats of Chantix-related lawsuits have started to surface as well.

At this point, some experts feel, Pfizer looks worse off than it did when announcing its breakthrough smoking treatment three years ago. After all, the company still remains heavily dependent on Lipitor -- which accounts for almost 30% of its total drug sales -- with generic competition just a few short years away.

Last year, Pfizer had to rely on currency benefits just to muster a 1% increase in revenue. By the first quarter of this year, Pfizer saw its revenue actually fall as patients chose cheaper alternatives to some of its most popular drugs. While sales of the company's newer drugs rocketed almost 80%, sales of its older drugs barely budged at all.

Shares of Pfizer have been in a steady downtrend the past 11 months, losing more than one-third of their value to trade recently at $17.66.

To be fair, Pfizer relied on Chantix for just a fraction of last year's $48.6 billion in overall sales. Still, with patents set to expire on so many of its blockbusters, the company needs all of the bestsellers it can get. Moreover, until recently, Chantix ranked as the company's fastest-growing drug franchise of all.

Pfizer's Chantix Woes Bash High Hopes

www.thestreet.com

Do you ever wish you were more in tune with the outdoors?

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 03:22:00 +0000

Do you ever wish you were more in tune with the outdoors? If you wish to learn more about nature, then I encourage you to discover different places near your home or in your town so that you can explore everything that nature has to offer.

No matter where you live, there are beautiful places waiting to be explored by you. It does not take much effort to appreciate the outdoors. Perhaps you could go to a nearby park and walk through the different pathways. While outdoors, you should try to clear your mind and heighten your senses to take in your surroundings.

The outdoors is a perfect place to relax, meditate, and take time out for yourself. When you are outdoors, make sure that you take in the different sights, sounds, and smells. While focusing on your surroundings, you will realize that Mother Nature is beautiful and peaceful.

Common sense key to gettng in tune with the outdoors

www.knoxnews.com

Hypnosis in Medicine

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 16:41:00 +0000

David I. Brager

Washington State University

Throughout history, there has been a struggle for each human to overcome fear in his or her attempt to survive pain. This survival has taken place through a variety of discoveries, both internally, through reason and thought, and externally, through machines and constructions.

The limits of our abilities have been tested by experimentation, trial and tragedy. Of these limitations, fear of the unknown has been the gravest limitation of growth.

Discoverers and explorers have pushed our knowledge of the outer world while doctors and philosophers increased our knowledge of the inner world. With each new discovery, society has tested theories, accepted a few as consistent, adapted these into practice, and transcended the fears of old with a fresh, bold hunger to learn more.

Over time, unusual mental phenomena have occurred which allow people to overcome pain by turning off their abilities to sense stimulations. Such controls have allowed people to survive what would otherwise be undesirable or unbelievably cruel levels of pain.

Phenomena of survival have commonly been dismissed as miracles or freaks of nature. For centuries, such were never seriously considered as solid scientific discovery (BSMDHW).

Ever since 1836, when a method was developed by which one could induce the phenomenon, a new terminology was coined to describe this thought-provoking process. The term has been in use to describe it to this very day: "Hypnosis" (BSMDHW).

Hypnosis is the ability to put oneself into a trance-like state by autosuggestion (Mosby). So, as defined by Mosby, "autosuggestion by oneself" means that hypnosis is actually self- induced. Therefore all hypnosis is self-hypnosis.

Hypnosis use in the medical field needed to radiate more authenticity. Thus, in the use specifically for the reduction of pain, the medical terminology is called "hypnoanesthesia" (Defechereux, 1938).

For a patient to achieve pain reduction through hypnosis, the patient must become an integral member of the surgical team (Mutter, 705 [4]), for the patient becomes his or her own anesthesiologist. However, in the rare case that a patient slips out of hypnoanesthesia, the standard anesthesiologist will step in and administer general anesthesia (Defechereux, 1938).

Based upon the procedures noted, there were basically two types of induction approaches used, both of which induce intense levels of boredom (the key which unlocks the entrance to the subconscious):

•Eyes open suggestion/fixation (Whorell, 69[4]) or Erickson's method (Defechereux, 1938; Havens) require the patient to focus his or her eyes on a single point or spot on the wall (often a single beam of light on a wall in a dark room) until the patient is bored into a subconscious state.
•Eyes closed suggestion (Halligan, 986) or scripted (Lang, 1486), which also place a patient in a calm or dark room (Loitman, 118), but allow the patient to use his or her imagination while a monotonous repetition of words (Mosby "Self-Hypnosis") coax a person into a subconscious state.
It has been found that hypnosis does not increase endorphin production as it was once thought to occur (Anonymous, 313[6]). In plain language, this means that the brain is not being affected by the morphine-like drug, endorphin, that the brain is known to have the ability to create. Thus, such pain relief is not clearly understood, though there are many technical theories.

One theory has been hypothesized that hypnosis blocks pain from entering the consciousness by activating frontal-limbic attention systems to inhibit pain impulse transmissions (Anonymous, 313[6]). What this means is that the state-of-mind which is created by hypnosis keeps the signal of pain from entering the conscious mind. The hypnosis does this by shifting the attention systems away from the stimulation that pain creates. By shifting attention, the brain does not process the stimulation or note that anything in the body's operating environment is abnormal. Under normal conditions, when the body notes a problem, it will then turn on the signaling sensation of pain, noting that some part of the body is hurt, broken, or ill.

It has been found that hypnosis does not actually stop the signaling of pain. When this discovery was first made, there was a concern that people who underwent hypnosis were actually feeling the pain but masking their emotions. However, further studies revealed that although the pain signals were being generated by the body, these sensations were not being processed by the brain. Thus, the patient was not "feeling" the pain. It is this distinction which is essential to understand how a patient, who has had hypnoanesthesia, does not go into post-surgical shock (Wolkes, 22[6]).

Hypnosis began its use in surgery in 1837 when Dr. James Esdaile, a Scottish surgeon, adapted and used it as his sole anesthesia for painless surgery in India (Mutter, 705(4); BSMDHW). From his experimentation and use, post-surgical shock dropped from 50% to only 5%, but his credibility amongst his peers lapsed, due to their distrust of something as mysterious as hypnosis(BSMDHW). The stigma hypnosis has had was recently shattered by medical doctors who tested it extensively and found similar successes.

Between April 1994 and June 1997, 197 thyroidectomies and 21 cervical explorations for hyperparathyroidism were performed under hypnoanesthesia using Erickson's method. The surgeons all reported better operating conditions for certivotomy using hypnoanesthesia, with only two (1%) requiring General Anesthesia (Defechereux, 1938).

Biobehavioral "non-pharmacological" analgesia in the form of imagery, relaxation training and hypnosis has been used successfully to treat procedural pain (Lang, 1486). Clinical practice guidelines for acute pain management, published by the U.S. Public Health Service, mention relaxation exercises and cognitive approaches. However, other uses are now being explored.

Eighteen patients, ranging from ages 20 to 48, were monitored for the effects of hypnotically induced emotions of excitement, anger, and happiness on colonic motility (spontaneous motion). Each patient had a solid-state catheter entered into their anus via an colonoscope. After each patient was hypnotized, he or she was then suggested to feel each intense emotion. During the suggestion of a specifically intense emotions, the patient's colon motility was then measured.

During the test, the suggestion of anger, and then of excitement, each revealed high motility. However, the suggestion of happiness caused a measurement which was so low, it equated to the baseline (pre-hypnosis, fasting) measurement.

The study purported to have proven that hypnosis-based emotional suggestions indeed had effects on colonic motility. The authors further suggested that hypnosis might be effective for patients with irritable bowel syndrome (Whorell, 69[4]).

In another case study, a patient with longstanding conversion hysteria, which is a medical term for psychosomatic leg paralysis, was monitored by using Positronic Imaging Tomography, which is known in the medical field as a "Pet Scan." It was discovered that two distinct prefrontal areas of the brain were activated.

The doctors in the study hypothesized that if someone was hypnotized to believe he or she had leg paralysis, thereafter, that person's brain would, by Pet Scan, reveal similar prefrontal activity. So, a second patient, who did not suffer from conversion hysteria, was hypnotized using an eyes-closed relaxation and deepening involving visual imagery and the sensation of descent.

After the induction, the patient was suggested that his left leg was paralyzed. The patient believed the suggestion and found he could not move his leg.

After the hypnosis suggestion was made, the PET scan that was done which revealed similar prefrontal activity in the hypnotized patient as to that of the non-hypnotized patient with actual hysterical paralysis. Thus, it was considered that this conclusion supports the growing body of evidence that shows hysterical and hypnotic paralysis share common neural systems (Halligan, 986).

On the other hand, in treating psychosomatic conversion hysteria, hypnosis also been shown to provide a cure. A patient from Libya, who was suffering from leg paralysis, had been in and out of medical hospitals all over Europe, but no possible organic explanation or solution could be found to explain his illness.

In Paris, it was suggested that his illness may be psychosomatic, and was thus seen by Chawki Azouri, a Lebanese psychoanalyst from the Centre de Formation et de Recherche Psychanalytiques. While in a hypnotic state, it was discovered that the patient's father had abused him, both with mind-altering drugs and tormentation, in an attempt to control his behavior into accepting an arraigned marriage. He resisted, and in the process, paralyzed himself with fear, on a subconscious level, which removed him from having to deal with the situation. After two months of sessions, wherein the patient overcame his mental anguish in relation to his family problems, his paralysis disappeared, and he was deemed "cured."

One of the greater benefits of using hypnosis in medical procedures is to effect and shorten the patient's time to recover. This is not only beneficial for the patients but also for the doctors, staff, and hospitals, for every minute one patient is moved out, there is room for the next patient to move into place, especially in operating rooms.

Replacing or supplementing anesthesia with the relaxation techniques reduced the average procedure time by 17 minutes (20% of total procedure time). This, in turn, reduced the average procedure cost by $130 per patient (Lang, 3097). Such reduction in cost was primarily the result of fewer interruptions during the procedures and avoiding over- or under-sedation of the patient that usually results in the patient being held overnight instead of being released in a few hours.

Consider Kadlec Medical Center, which has eight operating rooms. During a twenty-four hour period, assuming the average data from Lang is correct, each operation normally takes eighty-five minutes. Thus, at maximum in a single day, there are roughly sixteen completed operations per room.

If twenty percent of the operating time was eliminated by using hypnoanesthesia, the average time per operation would then be sixty-eight minutes. At this rate, a room could maximally host roughly twenty-one sessions in a twenty-four hour period.

When taken to the fact that Kadlec has eight operating rooms, the cost effects on the profitability of a hospital become clearer. Without hypnoanesthesia, the maximum number of operations in a single day Kadlec can perform is 128, but if they adapted hypnoanesthesia, they could deliver 168 surgeries per day. This is approximately a 30% increase in overall operating room effectiveness.

In the case of the 197 thyroidectomies and 21 cervical explorations for hyperparathyroidism, all patients having hypnoanesthesia reported a pleasant experience and had significantly less postoperative pain and analgesic use (Defechereux, 1938). This is of recent major benefit, for drug addiction, especially for prescription drugs, is often implicated from dependency on painkillers.

Hospital stay was also significantly shorter, providing a substantial reduction in the costs of medical care(Defechereux, 1938). Using figures from Kadlec Medical Center, when a patient has to be moved to a room, even for an eight-hour stay, a room rate of $500 is tacked on the patient's bill. When a patient recovers enough to be released without being checked into a room, the savings become very clear.

When considering pain management, dentists have found hypnosis to be effective for patients with painful toothroot sensitivity. In a study done by the United States Air Force Dental Corps, eight patients, all of whom had suffered with this problem for an average of four and a half years, were induced into hypnosis and told that they could tolerate or ignore pain on one side of their mouth. The hypnotic suggestion was implanted once a week for three weeks, and in all, seven of the eight patients' pain sensitivity decreased, as this result was tested, and lasted for over six months.

Hypnosis has even been found useful in increasing the blood content of white blood cells. In a study done at Washington State University by Professor Arreed F. Barabasz, Ph.D., sixty-five volunteer college students were selected, had blood samples taken to determine current white blood counts, and categorized into two groups. One group of 33 students were easily able to achieve hypnosis while the other 32 had great difficulty. All volunteers then watched a video describing the immune system. Afterwards, they then listened to a hypnotic induction asking them to imagine their white blood cells attacking "germ cells," and for them to repeat the self-hypnosis process on their own time twice a day.

Students who easily underwent hypnosis revealed, in blood tests taken at the end of the study, a larger increase in two major classes of white blood cells than those students who did not take well to hypnosis. Thus, the study purported that hypnosis may prove to be helpful in the treatment of Cancer and AIDS (Bower, 152[1]).

With so many discoveries on the use of hypnosis, there has been more emphasis on learning and disseminating these approaches to others. One of the pioneers in this field has been Stanford University Professor Emeritus Ernest R. Hilgard, who opened Stanford's Laboratory of Hypnosis Research in 1957 (Wolkes, 22[6]).

Dr. Hilgard believes that hypnosis is a technique, like using a stethoscope. It is based in a routine skill, which require minimal abilities to be delivered to a patient.

One who delivers hypnosis must develop an acute awareness of the responses a hypnotized patient will deliver more precisely over that a non-hypnotized patient. According to Dr. Hilgard, who has produced the most widely used experimentally derived scales for measuring hypnotic susceptibility, there are three primary differences a hypnotized patient delivers which a non-hypnotized patient will not:

•Intensely controlled muscular action, such as inducing temporary paralysis, is easily produced in the hypnotized patient. As noted above, a patient who accepts paralysis under suggestion will create the same neurological processes as are involved with actual conversion hysteria to induce such paralysis.
•Secondly, hallucinations that alter a patient's field of vision are accepted as real. Such suggestions test how deep the patient's belief in the hypnosis really is. A hypnotized patient, with eyes open, can either "see" things that are not real, or edit out things, that others around them can see, from their own sight.
•Finally, a patient's acceptance of a suggested imaginary activity or ability is effortless. By watching how a patient adapts, accepts, and believes in the suggested activity, the patient delivers visual signals to the hypnoanesthesia team on just how hypnotized the patient is. So, if a patient is told that he or she had just climbed Mt. Everest and needed to tell about it, the patient's imagination would rationalize the suggestion as real, augment a false memory with details so the patient would be professing "truth" because the patient was unaware the story was being generated merely by a working suggestion.
With the dissemination of information expanding on the use and acceptance of hypnosis among medical practitioners, especially with the help of internet sources, the trend for more adaptation of these techniques appears to be well supported. Combined with the testing for new avenues of use, the future of hypnosis in medicine looks to be an enterprising field.

As health care costs have skyrocketed, when one considers how hypnosis aids shorter surgical procedures, decreased anesthesia use, and faster recovery time, the financial benefits become abundantly clear. Any process which factors into lower medical costs, better pain reduction, and higher survivability for the patient must have more information generated to educate and aid the general public's acceptance and request for its use in their own medical therapy.

Hypnosis should become a standard practice in the medical field. In this way, it can better aid the survival of humankind.

Works Cited

"Hypnosis." Mosby's Medical, Nursing, & Allied Health Dictionary. 5th ed. 1998. (InfoTrac)

"Self-Hypnosis." Mosby's Medical, Nursing, & Allied Health Dictionary. 5th ed. 1998. (InfoTrac)

Anonymous. "Integration of Behavioral and Relaxation Approaches into the Treatment of Chronic Pain and Insomnia." JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association 276.4 (1996): 313(6). (InfoTrac)

Bower, Bruce. "Marital tiffs spark immune swoon ... but hypnosis offers immune aid [study by WSU Professor Dr. Arreed F. Barabasz]" Science News 144.10 (4 Sep. 1993): 152(1). (InfoTrac)

British Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis. "A Brief History of Hypnosis in Medicine." British Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis Website (BSMDHW).

Defechereux, Thierry. "Hypnoanesthesia for Endocrine Cervical Surgery: A Statement of Practice (an abstract)." JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association 283.15 (2000): 1938. (InfoTrac)

Halligan, Peter W., et al. "Imaging Hypnotic Paralysis:

Implications for Conversion Hysteria." The Lancet 355.9208 (2000): 986.

Havens, Ronald A., ed. The Wisdom of Milton H. Erickson: Hypnosis & Hypnotherapy. New York: Irvington Publishers, Inc., 1985.

Lang, Elvira V., et al. "Adjunctive Non-Pharmacological Analgesia For Invasive Medical Procedures: A Randomized Trial." The Lancet 355.9214 (2000): 1486 (InfoTrac)

Lang, Elvira V. "Relaxation Technique Reduces Patient Anxiety Before Surgery." American Family Physician 61.10 (2000): 3097. (InfoTrac)

Loitman, Jane E. "Pain Management: Beyond Pharmacology to Acupuncture and Hypnosis." JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association 283.1 (2000): 118. (InfoTrac)

Mutter, Charles B. and Michael L. Coates. "Hypnosis in Family Medicine." American Family Physician 42.5 (1990): 705(4). (InfoTrac)

Whorell, P.J., et al. "Physiological Effects of Emotion: Assessment via Hypnosis." The Lancet 340.8811 (1992): 69(4). (InfoTrac)

Wolkes, John. "A study of hypnosis: director of Stanford's Laboratory of Hypnosis Research for more than 20 years, Hilgard paved the way for the growing respectability of hypnosis (an interview with Ernest R. Hilgard [PhD])." Psychology Today 20 (Jan. 1986): 22(6). (InfoTrac)

Additional Sources

Azouri, Chawki. "The talking cure." UNESCO Courier Mar. 1994: 34(2). (InfoTrac)

Brager, David I. Scrypnosis: Hypnosis without Hypnotists. 26 Nov. 2000

Zarrow, Susan. "Soothing sensitive teeth: hypnosis may relieve the pain." Prevention 42.3 (Mar. 1990): 22(3). (InfoTrac)

Hypnosis in Medicine

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Pfizer Still Pushing Chantix, Even for Mentally Ill

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 15:17:00 +0000

Pfizer Still Pushing Chantix, Even for Mentally Ill

Date Published: Friday, June 6th, 2008

Pfizer Inc., trying desperately to save the reputation of Chantix, is claiming the anti-smoking drug is safe - even for people suffering from mental illness. This, in spite of the fact that the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is reviewing Chantix due to a number of serious side effects, including severe depression and suicide.

Chantix was supposed to be a blockbuster for Pfizer. It was approved in 2006, and was the first nicotine receptor partial agonist - meaning it blocks nicotine receptors in the brain - on the market. But there have been at least 34 reports of suicides related to Chantix in the US. According to an FDA Nov. 2007 Early Communication, the agency said that its preliminary assessment revealed many of the cases reflected new-onset of depressed mood, suicidal ideation, and changes in emotion and behavior within days to weeks of initiating Chantix treatment. In February, the FDA said “it appears increasingly likely that there may be an association between Chantix and serious neuropsychiatric symptoms.” The agency said that it had asked Pfizer to elevate the prominence of safety information regarding suicidal thoughts and other psychiatric problems to the warnings and precautions section of the Chantix prescribing information, or labeling.

Then last month, the Institute for Safe Medication Practices issued a report detailing Chantix adverse event repots to the FDA. The report specifically cited 224 reports of potential heart-rhythm disturbances, 372 reports of possible movement disorders and 544 reports of likely glycemic problems, including diabetes. There were also reports of traffic accidents and falls linked to Chantix. As a result of the Institute’s report, the Federal Aviation Administration banned Chantix use by pilots and air traffic controllers. Earlier this week, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said that “… it appears that medical examiners should not certify a driver taking Chantix because the medication may adversely affect the driver’s ability to safely operate a commercial motor vehicle.” The report also led the FDA to announce another Chantix safety review.

Pfizer, which is counting on Chantix to be one it biggest growth drivers, has embarked on an aggressive campaign to prop up the drug’s image. The campaign includes advertisements in the country’s biggest newspapers, as well as a letter campaign to physicians. Pfizer will also submit “opinion” pieces to the editorial pages of newspapers meant to address “misconceptions” about the drug.

Yesterday, as part of that campaign, Pfizer held a roundtable discussion with members of the media. Representatives from Pfizer insisted Chantix is safe, and cited studies - which were paid for by the company - that found no suicide risk. One of the key points the company tried to make at the meeting was that depression - which is a risk factor for suicidal behavior - is not unusual in people who are trying to quit smoking. But some of the reports involving bizarre behavior in Chantix users - including that of musician killed when he tried to break down a neighbors door - sound a bit extreme to be typical of nicotine withdrawal.

Meanwhile, in an Associated Press interview, Pfizer Senior Medical Director Dr. Martina Flammer said Chantix is even safe for the mentally ill, although he suggested such patients inform doctors of their medical history. Pfizer also said it has funded grants to independent scientists to investigate severe adverse events of Chantix in patients with depression, schizophrenia and alcoholics.

But David Gonzales, co-director of Oregon Health & Science University’s Smoking Cessation Center and who led Chantix clinical trials, told the Associated Press that people with schizophrenia and other mental illness were deliberately excluded from those studies so that adverse events couldn’t be attributed to a pre-existing condition.

Pfizer Still Pushing Chantix

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It Burns

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 14:55:00 +0000

It Burns

As the price of a pack of smokes in the city shot through the $10 barrier last week, even nonsmokers were fired up. Nicorette aficionado Barack Obama gave a triumphant speech after finally clinching the Democratic nomination, while Hillary Clinton at first dragged her feet about conceding after officially losing the primary race. Bill Clinton exploded over a Vanity Fair piece alleging, in part, that he couldn't control his temper.
Mayor Bloomberg quietly polled voters to see if they'd like him to stick around. (Unofficial results: As mayor? Nope. As governor? Maybe.) Al and Tipper Gore visited the Central Park Zoo to raise dough for Indian tigers. Cecil "Katie" Suwal, the 23-year-old madam who allegedly booked Eliot Spitzer's February Mayflower Hotel meeting, pleaded guilty to running a prostitution ring. Investigators seized records and computers from the company that owned the crane that crashed on East 91st Street. Ballsy book publisher Jane Friedman unexpectedly exited HarperCollins.

St. Vincent's Hospital announced it would have to close if it couldn't do its massive condo redevelopment in the Village. A lucky Harlem toddler suffered nary a scratch when she tumbled from her second-story apartment onto a cushy rubber garbage-can lid. NYPD water cops rescued a Brooklyn Bridge jumper from the East River. The city ratcheted up its tourism projections-50 million visitors are now expected in 2012, 49 million of whom plan to take the Sex and the City tour. Uma Thurman's stalker was sentenced to probation. Yoko Ono's objections to the use of John Lennon's "Imagine" in the intelligent-design movie Expelled were overruled.

The State Court of Appeals ruled that an East Village couple could evict its rent-controlled tenants to rehab an apartment building into a gigantic single-family home. MTV confirmed that its next crop of Real World twentysomethings will reside in downtown Brooklyn. A pipe-toting Tatum O'Neal was busted allegedly buying crack on the Lower East Side. And while Yankee fireballer Joba Chamberlain was shelled in his debut as a starter, Mets pitching godfather Pedro Martinez returned from injury in top form, beating the Giants. —Mark Adams

It Burns

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Pfizer, Ignoring Evidence, Says Chantix OK For People With Mental Health Issues

noreply@blogger.com (http://www.iwanttoquitsmoking.com/) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 15:51:00 +0000

Look, I expect Pfizer to fight like hell to protect its stop smoking drug Chantix from going up in smoke, as it were, but yesterday the company's defense of the drug took an odd turn:

"Pfizer Inc. said Thursday it believes its anti-smoking drug Chantix, which has been linked to depression and suicidal thoughts, can be prescribed to patients with mental illness.
"In an interview with The Associated Press, Pfizer Senior Medical Director Dr. Martina Flammer, who is also the medical team leader for Chantix, said that patients with a history of mental illness who are considering taking Chantix should let their doctors know of their condition.

"But, 'there is no indication that there is any reason why Chantix should not be taken in this population,' Flammer said."

I'm not sure what counts as an indication for Flammer, but it seems to me that she's not been reading the medical literature. For example, here's a letter to the American Journal of Psychiatry last year, reporting on an otherwise med-compliant person with bipolar disorder who had mania induced by Chantix. And here's the case of a woman who wound up with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, after Chantix made her manic. She'd not had a psych diagnosis before that.

I would think that anyone with a DSM diagnosis, past or present, or who's had a bad response to anti-depressants in the past should be damn cautious about taking Chantix. And their docs should be damn careful about prescribing it to them. I'd say there are plenty of indications for that at this point, regardless of what Pfizer thinks.

Even stranger, at a press conference in New York yesterday, the company tried to link smoking with suicide--as if there aren't a ton of other behaviors that could be tied to suicide--as the WSJ Health Blog notes. This sounds like crazy, desperate talk from Pfizer.

Pfizer, Ignoring Evidence

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