Quit Smoking Phoenix AZ FAQ's

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. What is the treatment, what will I go through at the clinic?
	It is a one-time treatment and plan on being there for 2-2 1/2 hours. You will receive a brief physical exam including an EKG and lung function test. You will learn all about the treatment through a video and oral presentation. Your treatment consists of a couple of injections that will make you a non-smoker when you leave the clinic.
2. What is in the shot?
	A combination of FDA approved medications (Atropine & Scopolamine) that go directly to the nicotine receptor sites and block them much like how Novocain works on a tooth.
3. Will the injections stop me from smoking?
	Nicotine addiction, like any drug addiction, is both physical and psychological. The difficulty in overcoming the addiction is that the physical withdrawal symptoms must first be eliminated before the psychological aspect can be addressed. It is the physical torment of nicotine withdrawal that grips smokers and eliminates most efforts to stop smoking in the first 2-3 weeks. Our treatment will remove the physical torment and you will not have a physical need to smoke. Like all medications, your body will break down the initial dose. Therefore, you will be given follow-up medications to maintain effective levels of these drugs for two weeks. After two weeks, you will not experience physical withdrawal symptoms. You will experience psychological cravings – the injections will not eliminate emotional urges. This is a habit you have engrained in your lifestyle for many years. The good news is that once the torment of withdrawal is eliminated, you will be much more open to the necessary lifestyle changes you need to make to ensure you become a non-smoker for life. This can be done by reading our step-by-step booklet that shows you how to change your current smoking lifestyle. If this is not enough, you may participate in our 8-week behavioral and education course or schedule a hypnosis session.
4. What are the take-home medications?
	BENZTROPINE MESYLATE TABLETS- the same thing as in the injection, but in a much lower dosage to keep the medications active. SCOPOLAMINE PATCH - the same thing used in the injection. It will make sure that you do not have the urges and cravings to smoke.
5. How long do I take the follow-up meds?
	14 days for the pills, 6 days for the scopolamine pills or patch.
6. Are these medications addictive?
	No, the medications are not addictive and will only be in your system for two weeks.
7. Why can't I drive home?
	The medications will make you very lightheaded and euphoric and you will get a D.U.I. if you are able to drive at all. All patients must be driven home – no exceptions.
8. Can I work the next day?
	Yes, You will be fine the next day but you may feel a little groggy, just the way you do when you take cold medication like Nyquil.
9. What are the side effects?
	The biggest side effect is that you quit smoking! Yes, there may be side effects. These drugs, although very common, are powerful. That is why they are FDA regulated and only administered by medical professionals. You may experience some light-headedness, dizziness, constipation, dry mouth and altered sense of taste and smell. You may have difficulty urinating since the drugs influence nerves to the bladder. You will be okay to drive the next day but you may experience some blurriness while focusing near to far. The blurry vision could possibly last 6-8 days and is caused by the scopolamine. It will clear up within 24 hours of removing the patch. Rarely, and typically seen in elderly individuals, a patient may experience extreme confusion and disorientation the night of the injection. This is never a life-threatening condition but it has caused some alarm with some family members. If we think that you would be at risk we will discuss this the day of your appointment. Most people experience either none or very minimal side effects. And keep in mind, a bit of discomfort is well worth the end result – freedom from nicotine addiction.
10. What is the success rate?
	About 80% of the people treated are still non-smokers 2 months after receiving the treatment.
11. I've never heard of your company, how long have you been in business?
	We have successfully treated thousands of patients since our inauguration in 2002, yet our medications have been used to treat tens of thousands of people across the country since the treatment was first developed in 1986. There are clinics in Tampa, Atlanta, Chicago and other cities administering similar programs. The clinics are operated by licensed medical doctors with many years experience in caring for patients.
12. Is this treatment FDA approved?
	The medicines in the injections are FDA approved and have been around for over 100 years. The treatment itself as it is used to help people stop smoking is not FDA approved and has never been submitted to the FDA. In order to meet FDA standards millions of dollars of research would need to be performed. This would result in a cost to patients that would be prohibitive. Thus, we depend on our proven track record, word-of-mouth recommendations and the implementation of therapy by licensed physicians, schooled on the medications use and side effect profile. The dosage you will be given is equivalent to a child's dose and is very safe.
13. Does this really work?
	As the American Lung Association warns, stay away from ANY program that guarantees that you will never smoke again. Like any medical procedure, there is no such thing as 100% guaranteed. In our experience, about 95% of patients treated, report that the medication is effective in significantly reducing or eliminating withdraw symptoms and as a result about 80% of those treated will remain non-smokers for two months after treatment. If you have had trouble getting over the first few weeks after stopping “cold turkey” our program is excellent and will likely be right for you. At FREELIFE we have incorporated additional interventions to help you stop smoking that have likely improved upon these amazing statistics of success. Some patients return to smoking months later and cite stress as a common reason. That is why we are strong advocates of behavior modification or cognitive retraining therapy as an adjunct to our program to keep people from returning to smoking later on. When you come to our clinic you will be given a list of detailed references for professional behavior modification therapy. Most of the programs we provide you are free. Our program is far more successful than alternate approaches such as nicotine patches, gum, herbal pills, hypnosis, or Zyban etc. There are situations where medicines being taken by people diminish the effectiveness of our treatment. This is why we screen meticulously and why it is imperative for your success and well being to answer all questions accurately on the medical questionnaire. 14. If it doesn’t work for everyone, who doesn’t do as well with the program? We have noticed that individuals with severe psychiatric illness do not do well with the program. If you have severe depression, severe anxiety, or schizophrenia you should not be treated. It has been our observation that these individuals do not do as well with the program. A good rule of thumb is that if you are taking more than two anti-depressant or anti-psychotic medications you should strongly consider not doing the program. We will never turn down someone who wants to stop smoking for these reasons, but we will strongly suggest that you do not complete the shots.
14. I've tried patches, gum, Zyban, hypnosis, etc., and I always go back to smoking. Why will this short treatment work for me?
	All of those treatment methods do not deal with blocking the nicotine receptor sites. Our treatment blocks the nicotine receptor sites and stops the signal from the brain telling you to smoke another cigarette. Patches and gum keep putting nicotine back into your body and you never kick the nicotine habit, even though you may stop smoking. You probably know people who are now addicted to nicotine gum instead of cigarettes. You will never be free of nicotine with these methods and your body will not revert back to that of a non-smoker. Zyban is a stimulant anti-depressant. It is effective in a select group of smokers but not effective for most people. It does nothing to diminish nicotine withdraw symptoms. At FREELIFE, you will be screened to determine whether or not Zyban might be effective for you. Some of our patients are prescribed Zyban as an adjunct to our treatment. Hypnosis has never proven to be effective in large studies but on an individual basis it may be effective for some people. It may be useful in helping individuals cope with stress later on. Stress is often the driving force to return to smoking months later after having received our treatment. Studies have shown that when smokers confront the addiction with multiple interventions they are more likely to be successful. That is to say that if smokers combine, medical therapy, hypnosis, acupuncture, Zyban and/or psychotherapy together at the same time, their likelihood for success is greater. We follow this principle at FREELIFE and provide smokers with multiple options in addition to our anticholinergic treatment program. Depending on your smoking background and psychological makeup, our physicians may prescribe anti-depressants or other FDA approved anticholinergic medications, or provide you with hypnosis tapes or psychotherapy resources. After the physical anguish of nicotine withdrawal is eliminated and subsequently overcome in about two weeks, you can then rely on our behavior modification program.
15. What is the behavior modification program?
	This process was developed in 1992 after 12 years of studying behavioral changes in smokers. The end result is a step-by-step program that, if followed as described, will guide you through the necessary lifestyle changes to become a non-smoker for life. One example is avoiding places where you normally smoke because your mind will associate that place with the act of smoking. If you can identify routines that are associated with smoking, changing such behaviors will reduce your risk. Behavior modification also helps you identify life stressors and how you manage or cope. The process teaches you to deal with these stressors in more constructive ways that do not involve nicotine. The lifestyle changes become easy when you are not dealing with the irritability associated with nicotine withdrawal.
16. Can anyone receive treatment?
	As with any medical procedure, only people who are deemed to be suitable candidates will be treated. The treatment will not be given to people with the following conditions; cardio arrhythmia, narrow angle glaucoma, recent heart attack, enlarged prostate, bladder dysfunction, pregnancy or uncontrolled high blood pressure. People who are addicted to pain killers or take more than one anti-depressant or anti-anxiety medication are not good candidates for this treatment. You will be screened for these items prior to making an appointment. The doctor will only treat patients he deems suitable after reviewing patient history and the EKG test.
17. Will my insurance company cover this?
	Insurance coverages vary. Some insurance companies will pay all of the charges, some will pay only a portion and others will pay nothing at all. We do not bill insurance companies and patients will be responsible for payment at the time of treatment. The receipt given to you at the clinic will contain a breakdown of charges including the diagnostic codes needed by the insurance companies.
18. What if I start smoking again?
	Because there is a psychological side of your addiction, your success is a direct result of your commitment over the long term to changing your lifestyle by using the techniques we shall provide. If you should have a relapse within a year, we will re-treat you for just the cost of the office visit and medications - $89.
19. What if I have cravings?
	That is separation anxiety. Call the clinic before you start smoking again and we may need to call in a prescription for you that will stop the anxiety. It is not common, but some people feel anxious. Remember: There will be no more nicotine in the body after 4 days and the physical addiction to nicotine will be gone in a couple of weeks. The anxiety can only be caused by emotional longings and we urge patients to follow through with the advice on behavioral modification that they received at the clinic. For some patients general psychological counseling is prescribed.
20. How soon can I drink alcohol?
	Do not drink any alcohol while on your take-home medications. Usually after a few drinks your will power is reduced, so you will have to be careful at first to make sure you can trust yourself. At all costs avoid drinking where other people may be smoking – it’s just too risky until you have completely changed your smoking lifestyle. Many smokers that come back for re-treatment tell us they were drinking alcohol when they relapsed. We advise all treated patients to refrain from alcohol use for a period of 6 months following treatment. This is simply an arbitrary “safe time” that we suggest that smokers need to learn to be non-smokers. Drinking alcohol puts you at risk of relapse and you will need a period of time before you can identify fully with your non-smoking status.
21. Can I smoke a few cigarettes? “I thought I could just have one”
	NO!! We have heard this statement from countless individuals who have sought re-treatment months later after fooling themselves into thinking they could have just one cigarette. The common scenario typically involves a social situation with alcohol involved. For example, “I went to a bar with an old friend, we had a couple of drinks, my friend pulled out a cigarette and started smoking and I told myself ‘Oh, I’ll just have one”. WE GUARANTEE THIS IS WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT: the next week you will have two a day, then the next week three a day and within a month you will be back to your full dose of daily nicotine. You MUST accept the FACT that your brain is bio-chemically different than a non-smoker. It will likely be years before you can put ANY NICOTINE INTO YOUR BODY. It would take too long to fully explain this phenomena so you will have to trust me, but briefly, after years and years of high dose nicotine exposure the genes in your brain that produce the chemical that causes nicotine withdrawal syndrome are highly activated. When you stop smoking these genes will, over time, stop producing this chemical, but they will still be activated and very ready to work again. Any nicotine you put into your body will rapidly cause these genes to produce this chemical in high quantities and you will be right back where you started. The reason we stress this biological phenomena is that we believe that it is important for you to know that it is not a “psychological weakness” that drives you to smoke after having “just one”. You look around at your friends who may be “casual smokers” that can have a cigarette here or there and you wonder how they can go weeks without a cigarette. Their genes have not been exposed to enough nicotine to activate the nicotine withdrawal syndrome. It is only the chronic daily lifelong nicotine user that has HIGHLY ACTIVATED, SUPER NICOTINE WITHDRAWAL GENES. And, they will stay activated for years. Please do not even begin to think that you are in the category of a non-smoker. And, take it easy on yourself; your so-called weakness has nothing to do with your character, mental strength or conviction. This is a true biological phenomenon. If a non-smoker subjected to the effects of the nicotine withdrawal syndrome, you can almost be guarantee he or she would not be able to resist a cigarette. If you would like a full biological explanation please ask the doctor when you get to the clinic.
22. Does the treatment work for smokeless tobacco or patches and gum?
	Yes. Nicotine causes the same chemical reaction regardless of how it is introduced into the system. Our treatment works for patients hooked on nicotine patches or gum, chewing tobacco, cigars, etc.
23. What are the age restrictions?
	You must be 18 years or older unless a consenting parent or guardian is present and then we will treat down to the age of 16 years. We generally do not treat people over 65 unless they are in very good health. We have treated a few people under the age of 70 but they must be in excellent physical and mental health.
24. I'm taking Zyban, can I still do your treatment?
	Yes, continue to take the Zyban (Wellbutrin) during our treatment. If you are taking Zyban primarily for smoking cessation, plan on weaning yourself off of it once you have completed our treatment. If you stop taking it before the treatment you may experience anxiety, which would unnecessarily make the process more difficult for you.
25. I'm breast-feeding my baby, is that a problem?
	To be on the safe side we recommend that you wait to receive the treatment until you have weaned your baby.
26. I'm going through Chemotherapy for cancer right now, can I still do the treatment?
	No. Finish the chemo and after your doctor says you are well enough, you can receive our treatment.