"My Mother Committed Suicide after Taking Chantix"

Noblesville, IN"My mother took Chantix and her whole personality changed," says Ashley, age 21. "She became very depressed and angry and pretty much gave up on life. She committed suicide three days after Christmas of 2007 and she was only 38. Back then there were no warnings about Chantix side effects."

"My family had no idea that Chantix was causing her depression, especially when a drug is prescribed by your doctor, and dispensed by your pharmacist, both of whom you trust. We thought she was just having trouble at work—she managed a restaurant. My mother was always happy and always wanted to go out and do things with her kids, up until she took Chantix. Then she became reclusive and quit work.

"She wanted to find another job but all she could do was lay around and do nothing. I think she took Chantix for six months but still remained depressed months after she stopped taking it. Her doctor told her to go back on Chantix!

"My dad talked to her doctor and from what he understood, Chantix was prescribed again to try and ease her off it, to help with her depression. The doctor thought it was just a clinical issue.

"No one has talked to our doctor since but I talked to our pharmacist about two months after my mother passed away. I wanted a full report on Chantix and what it can do to people. He told me that Chantix has started to cause depression in users and there might be a recall. He printed some paperwork, but there was nothing in the material about suicidal thoughts and suicide.

"We suspected Chantix was to blame for Mum's suicide after we got the toxicology report. It showed high levels of the drug in her system and the person who performed the autopsy told us that he heard of other people committing suicide after taking it. Then we went online and saw many websites with people complaining of depression.

"My father contacted Pfizer, the manufacturer of Chantix. They said it wasn't their fault, there was nothing they could do and they were sorry for our loss. My dad then talked to a lawyer and discussed a Chantix lawsuit, but it was too painful for him to go through at that time. I don't know if my dad has changed his mind; we don't talk about it because it still hurts a lot.

"My mum left four kids and my dad behind. I found my mum—she hung herself in our basement. I think everyone should know because I don't want anyone else to go through that. If I had the chance, I would tell the people at Pfizer how painful it is to know that one drug can ruin so many lives. My mum is not the only one; my whole family is shattered by Chantix."

Currently, Chantix claims are being reviewed for people who have suffered severe physical injury or the loss of a loved one. Now that the drug has been linked to a number of psychological side effects, including suicidal thoughts and suicide, there is the potential for Chantix lawsuits across the US.