Hey guys,
I've been lurking here for awhile and wanted to talk to some experienced folks who've switched from cigarettes to vaping who might be able to give some advice. Otherwise I'll probably have to check myself in to a mental hospital!
My husband and I quit smoking on 9/13/14. FWIW, he decided to quit due to a severe chest cold with shortness of breath that scared him. I quit to be supportive. I am 35, smoked regularly for 14 years, occasional smoker for about 4 years before that (back to age 17). I had no smoker's issues at the time I quit - I regularly run and engage in other hard cardio exercise, my blood pressure was perfect, perfect blood work, etc. Since switching to vaping, I've yet to see any lung clearing (hacking up brown gunk and whatnot that I hear about).
I smoked two packs a day of Camel Blue (formerly known as Camel Lights). I think what really had me hooked was the mental benefits. I have been diagnosed in the past with anxiety and depression and have been treated for both in the past though not for a few years now. I was already having a serious relapse of both before quitting which I was trying my best to manage with nootropics - mostly amino acids and some vitamins/minerals plus regular exercise and good sleep hygiene. I was having a lot of success with the stuff I tried. But that has all gone away.
The first week, I couldn't get enough sleep. Went to 24 mg juice from two packs a day and that was that. I felt vaguely crappy and tired but it wasn't horrible. On day 7 exactly, I began waking up between 3am and 6am and unable to go back to sleep. Instead, it is laying in bed trying to fall back asleep because I'm exhausted but my mind won't let me and it's due to horrible intrusive thoughts. Once I get up, I'm exhausted and I usually have crying spells off and on until early afternoon. Sometime after lunch, I start to feel a little better. Before quitting/starting vaping it was always FALLING asleep that was my issue. That is no longer a problem. The new problem is staying asleep.
So, I have tried everything I can think of - I lowered the nicotine after 2 weeks to 12 mg then to 3 mg a few weeks later. I read that caffeine tolerance can change to I'm down to 1 cup of coffee a day, sometimes only a half (previously I drank 3-4 cups a day). I quit all supplements that were to help with depression in case they were too stimulating for my mind and am taking, it seems like, handfuls of the supplements meant to aid with anxiety. I'm exercising an hour or more a day to try to get myself extra exhausted. But in addition to the crying spells, the anxiety attacks, the early waking, and what I call 'nostalgia attacks' ("Oh look, its a beautiful day! Remember that beautiful day a few years ago, much like this one, but which can't EVER HAPPEN AGAIN?? Let's cry for 2 hours about how that day can never happen again, just because it's in the past, not because anyone died or anything like that...."), I seem to hear/see things from time to time that aren't there. Perhaps this is a side effect of my new type of insomnia. Or maybe the cigarettes were a special kind of self-medication for me and were masking something else. I don't know.
Like I said before, I was anxious and depressed as a smoker too, just not this bad. It could all be a coincidence that this started exactly a week after quitting cigarettes and starting vaping, but it seems like it can't be. I need it to stop - it's seriously impacting my job performance and everything else. Anyone have any words of encouragement or suggestions?
I've been lurking here for awhile and wanted to talk to some experienced folks who've switched from cigarettes to vaping who might be able to give some advice. Otherwise I'll probably have to check myself in to a mental hospital!
My husband and I quit smoking on 9/13/14. FWIW, he decided to quit due to a severe chest cold with shortness of breath that scared him. I quit to be supportive. I am 35, smoked regularly for 14 years, occasional smoker for about 4 years before that (back to age 17). I had no smoker's issues at the time I quit - I regularly run and engage in other hard cardio exercise, my blood pressure was perfect, perfect blood work, etc. Since switching to vaping, I've yet to see any lung clearing (hacking up brown gunk and whatnot that I hear about).
I smoked two packs a day of Camel Blue (formerly known as Camel Lights). I think what really had me hooked was the mental benefits. I have been diagnosed in the past with anxiety and depression and have been treated for both in the past though not for a few years now. I was already having a serious relapse of both before quitting which I was trying my best to manage with nootropics - mostly amino acids and some vitamins/minerals plus regular exercise and good sleep hygiene. I was having a lot of success with the stuff I tried. But that has all gone away.
The first week, I couldn't get enough sleep. Went to 24 mg juice from two packs a day and that was that. I felt vaguely crappy and tired but it wasn't horrible. On day 7 exactly, I began waking up between 3am and 6am and unable to go back to sleep. Instead, it is laying in bed trying to fall back asleep because I'm exhausted but my mind won't let me and it's due to horrible intrusive thoughts. Once I get up, I'm exhausted and I usually have crying spells off and on until early afternoon. Sometime after lunch, I start to feel a little better. Before quitting/starting vaping it was always FALLING asleep that was my issue. That is no longer a problem. The new problem is staying asleep.
So, I have tried everything I can think of - I lowered the nicotine after 2 weeks to 12 mg then to 3 mg a few weeks later. I read that caffeine tolerance can change to I'm down to 1 cup of coffee a day, sometimes only a half (previously I drank 3-4 cups a day). I quit all supplements that were to help with depression in case they were too stimulating for my mind and am taking, it seems like, handfuls of the supplements meant to aid with anxiety. I'm exercising an hour or more a day to try to get myself extra exhausted. But in addition to the crying spells, the anxiety attacks, the early waking, and what I call 'nostalgia attacks' ("Oh look, its a beautiful day! Remember that beautiful day a few years ago, much like this one, but which can't EVER HAPPEN AGAIN?? Let's cry for 2 hours about how that day can never happen again, just because it's in the past, not because anyone died or anything like that...."), I seem to hear/see things from time to time that aren't there. Perhaps this is a side effect of my new type of insomnia. Or maybe the cigarettes were a special kind of self-medication for me and were masking something else. I don't know.
Like I said before, I was anxious and depressed as a smoker too, just not this bad. It could all be a coincidence that this started exactly a week after quitting cigarettes and starting vaping, but it seems like it can't be. I need it to stop - it's seriously impacting my job performance and everything else. Anyone have any words of encouragement or suggestions?
