Am I the only one who is actually increasing my nicotine levels instead of trying to lower them?

[Crumpet]

Good afternoon everybody!

I'm a newbie from the Richmond, VA area and this is my first thread. This site is a fantastic resource and I've been devouring as much information as I can while getting familiar with the other regular posters here. For the record, I've been vaping for a few weeks and can honestly say I enjoy it more than I ever did tobacco cigarettes. Seriously, they don't even appeal to me as I've discovered how much I actually like the flavor from my cartomizer along with the good smooth throat hit that doesn't ever make my throat dry, scratchy, or sore. I'm also enamoured with how clean e-cigs are. However, over the weekend I grabbed a friend's lighter and tried to light the end of my Smoke Tip battery! Luckily I only got some black marks on it that washed off. I'm also getting used to not ever needing an ashtray or having to crack the window in my car.

I've noticed that many people here express a desire to gradually reduce their nicotine levels to 0 and that many here hope to eventually give up the e-cigs altogether,too. As an ex-smoker who really enjoys the process of smoking I was nothing less than psyched to find a product that lets me smoke without using tobacco and thus jeopardizing my health and stamina (not to mention no more smoke smell or cig burns). My current cartomizers have 12mg and I just ordered more that are 16mg nicotine. I figured, what the hell.....I never actually minded being addicted to nicotine and am baffled that so many people see it as a big deal whereas they raise no eyebrows about people needing their Starbucks or other forms of caffeine. I think nicotine offers a lot of benefits and it frustrates me that so many people (usually the ones who think they know it all) are ignorant about the fact that nicotine is not the dangerous part of smoking, nor is the nicotine addiction the hardest part of quitting smoking. Let's face it: no one picks up smokes after 10 years of abstinence because they are addicted to the nicotine. Any way, I was just wondering if anyone else has increased their nic levels since switching to vaping. When I smoked I could never tolerate the strong cigs but vaping is so different (I'm also planning to learn how to refill my old empty cartomizers).

Nice meeting you!

 

[Rosa]

I'm not planning to lower my nicotine. ...and a lot of people raise their nic level in the beginning, it takes some experimenting to figure out what level makes you the most comfortable but when you find it you'll probably even out.

 

[whiskey]

I stay right at 24mg...haven't gone up or down..welcome Crumpet!!!

 

[Barfnick]

While you are correct in that e-cigs are better for you, you are off the mark when you say nicotine isn't dangerous or detrimental to your health. Nicotine causes your arteries to constrict, which causes plaque to stick to the insides of your arteries. Plaque causes a plethora of nasty things like heart attacks and blood clots. That being said, the other chemicals in analogs add to this danger and are leaps and bounds more likely to kill you.

 

[Vapenstein]

If you can go with a lower nicotine you're better off. Vaping (we hope) removes the risk of emphysema and lung cancer and we consume a hell of a lot less toxins, but nicotine is still a vasoconstrictor. It's not good for your heart or your blood pressure. Neither is caffeine, just don't kid yourself about nicotine being ok, it isn't. We choose to be addicted because nicotine is an extraordinarily addictive substance and we desperately desire something it or the act of consuming it offers us. It's still an unhealthy habit, and the lower you and your body can get by with, the better. It requires a conscious effort to reduce your intake level without increasing your actual intake, but after a couple of weeks your body adjusts.

 

[whiskey]

While you are correct in that e-cigs are better for you, you are off the mark when you say nicotine isn't dangerous or detrimental to your health. Nicotine causes your arteries to constrict, which causes plaque to stick to the insides of your arteries. Plaque causes a plethora of nasty things like heart attacks and blood clots. That being said, the other chemicals in analogs add to this danger and are leaps and bounds more likely to kill you.

From what source do you get this??

 

[SimpleSins]

Personally, I am decreasing my nicotine and am essentially down to predominantly 0 nic for both physiologic and pragmatic reasons. While the amount of nicotine used may not be overly bad for me, it's not necessarily overly good, either because of the vasoconstricting properties mentioned by the previous poster. It may be that there could be some benefits in treating ADHD and Alzheimer's from nicotine, but since I don't have a persona history of the former or a family history of the latter, I don't feel compelled to prophylactically use nicotine just because I can.

From the pragmatic side, the largest portion of my addiction is a habituation to the actual act of smoking. As you yourself stated, you don't feel there is much of a nicotine addiction at work in many people. So I just would as soon not have the vaping rug pulled out from under me should the FDA ban it nor do I want to be reduced to buying nicotine on street corners or building a still in the back yard so I can leech nicotine out of Skol and Marlboros. Plus, even if at the best scenario they decide to treat it as tobacco, it is the nicotine portion that will be taxed to high heaven, so the less needy I am of the parts the government has the power to control, the better off I'll be.

For me it's the action, the inhale and the exhale of clouds, be they smoke or vapor, and the nicotine is a very minimal part of that process, so why bother?

 

[Rosa]

I think red meat is probably worse for you than nicotine. Am I way off?

 

[whiskey]

I think red meat is probably worse for you than nicotine. Am I way off?

I agree with you Rosa...LOL....

 

[NinetyNine]

Anti-nicotine propagandists, one and all...

Nicotine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It's not a magic drug, but it's as close as we can hope for without forming a coven.

Also, on a more serious note, the risks are present, but low in the "I like coffee but have high blood pressure normally" range. It is NOT the dangerous part of smoking and is not highly addictive by itself.

 

[whiskey]

thanks Ninety nine...I was thinking more along those lines myself...

 

[SimpleSins]

I agree it's not the most dangerous part of smoking, but that does not make it risk free. If someone is otherwise healthy, they would probably have no issue with the nicotine. But if an individual's attraction is, as the OP described it, an affinity for "the process of smoking", then it seems like using nicotine creates unnecessary risks. Because I do have an affinity for hyperbole, Russian roulette is safe ~83% of the time, but if you're in that other 17%, the outcome isn't quite so good, so why bother playing?

 

[Matodd]

Nope I've increased mine a little because I didn't feel I was getting enough I started at 6 and now am trying 8mg but if that doesn't cut it I'll increase it again. I'm not smoking analogs and that's the important thing right?

 

[whiskey]

I don't think anyone was arguing that point Simple..but coming off of cigarettes..this is def much healthier...Gloom & doom is so
passe''

 

[christina7]

I like red meet, nicotine and coffee....but that being said, the only reason I use 12mg now is for the TH. I thought I read it is better with the higher nic content. I used 0 for a couple weeks with no side effects, withdrawls or anything, but I was craving a better TH so ordered a higher level. now I'm thiinking maybe it was just my bad atty? huh. well thats some food for thought.

c.

 

[Vapenstein]

I think red meat is probably worse for you than nicotine. Am I way off?

Cost vs Gain...I won't be thinking about the health risks for one second when I am eating a nice, fatty ribeye

 

[whiskey]

I like my meat rare too..LOL

 

[fritos1]

I started using 18mg but was still having withdrawal issues so I increased mine too 24mg too stop that.

 

[VaporNebula]

I believe it is your newbiness. We all started by guessing what strength we needed. Some hit the nail on the head, and probably most were off. Myself, I was WAY off I started at about 10mg and quickly moved up. Eventually settling at 24mg. You will find your spot it just takes a little experimenting and trial and error.

 

[BradSmith]

Yah, it takes a while to find what works best. I'm a nic addict and I am willing to admit it. If not for e-cigs I would be smoking two packs a day before long. So if you're like me, vape whatever you want and just be glad you're not putting all the other extra stuff in your body.