Well, someone finally able to relate fully or almost fully to what I said. And I wouldn't have revisited the thread had it not been for your likes. Since then, I've dropped to 12mg nic, no buzz - I guess the buzz was impressionable at first, though I'm no longer chasing it. I do like to vape - I've stopped a couple of times, nothing major happened other than feeling a bit less stimulated. If this is what a nicotine habit looks like, then I am fine with it as I am certain I can bear the cost of it. I can't -stand- cigarette smoke, never could and never will - but this vaping business is "magical"..these flavors, from DeKang's RY4, to Plume room's cavendish to mountain oak vapor's applewood to Halo's turkish -are just magnificent!
My doc (psychiatrist, a Harvard educated MD w/over 20+ years of experience and his own practice in San Diego) said for the sleeping issue, to quit at 1pm - so I started experimenting, and it seems 2-4 hours prior to bedtime is a sweet spot, which is about 2 half life cycles and drags down the potency to < 25% of the original dose at the first minute. Half life of nic is approx 2 hours.
The other thing that blew my mind - and most here won't know this unless you've medical/psychiatric backgrounds - there are many cases where ECT - electro-convulsive therapy, the more or less 'Cadillac' treatment for severe depression - did -NOT- work for many people, according to the annals of psychiatry and this guy is well read into them in addition to his personal experience .... but guess what worked? Yep - nicotine!
The other thing many may or may not know - getting a 'regular' (whatever that is for you) nicotine dose once in the morning and once in the afternoon, has the same effect on the brain/nervous system as your "chain vaping" or vaping more frequently during the day - in terms of dopamine released - what gives the stimulant/relaxant effect for us all.... and it's practically useless from a physiological standpoint to vape more than coupe of times a day, about 6-8 hours apart which is sufficient for the nicotine to fully go through 4-6 half lives and be fully out of your system.
So why do people chain vape or vape more often than necessary?As Bill here pointed out - thank the human being's natural tendency and propensity for addiction.
The deal with nicotine addiction is - it's not guilt inducing and as far as vaping, it's not even that dangerous -RELATIVE- to burning tobacco, just from a pragmatic/wisdom point of view, despite it being only several years on the market and beginning to explode just now. Unlike porn/.........ion, alcohol, fornication, adultery, gambling, workaholism, travelaholism, shopaholism, exerciseaholism (i.e. Crossfit) cleptomania, anger/being right all the time, isolationism, etc - one doesn't feel the need to hide his or her vaping/smoking - in fact, people like 'pbusardo' make a show of themselves w/their vaping "prowess/knowledge" what have you....
See, we're all -HOOKED- on something - some of it is utterly self-destructive, some of it looks like it's beneficial but ultimately ends up being self-destructive (i.e. excessive amounts of philandering
, and some of it is useful, i.e. exercising a lot, yet it may mask other underlying conditions that do not appear unless we remove the payoff/benefit of said activity.... I'll let you figure out which my favorite vice was prior to nicotine and Zoloft
, that was self-destructive and near-suicide inducing..... coupled with lifetime depression that seems to be running in my entire family, that I wasn't even aware I had until a few years ago in my mid 30's, or at least that's when it started to get really ugly (panic attacks in the middle of the night, thinking I'll die, etc).
Thank God I've found reprieve, rebirth in modern medicine, now vaping, and ultimately of course, God.... with whom anything's possible if we choose to surrender, regardless of the immense suffering on the way to freedom from our sins.
I guess I don't get what all the talk is about on this thread. Nicotine is not bad for you in moderate levels, and actually has many medical benefits. It's in our food, and everyone has nicotine in their systems, though at much lower levels than us vapers. If you're going to pick up a bad habit, this is a pretty good one I think. I think it's a cool one, a great hobby, etc. It's very hard for addicted people to NOT replace one addiction with another, and people with a tendency toward addiction are going to like vaping, and of that I'm certain. Is it better to not vape? Of course, but this is a fairly harmless vice considering all the options out there. Regarding the comment about nicotine being both a stimulant and a relaxant, surely we all know that, and it's used and studied in medicine and medical studies for the treatment of both depression and anxiety, Parkinson's and a host of other beneficial reasons. Even certain juices are good for you. For example, cinnamon oil derived juices is good for the treatment of diabetes. There's all sorts of reasons why my body might want and like nicotine in addition to its highly addictive nature. Ask the American Indians who ritualistically used nicotine about their fondness for the substance, and its importance in their society. Don't get the fuss...but if I am missing something, I do have an open mind and am certainly willing to learn new things. In fact, that's why I come here everyday for the last month. I remember when I got a buzz when I first started smoking some almost 40 years ago. Personally, it worked for me at the time. Did get a buzz when I first started vaping too. I had to chain vape at 24/36 the first few days to power through the cravings. I think I get where the OP is coming from, and if he's like me, he won't be getting a buzz for too long, but will develop a nicotine habit, and that's not the worst thing that can happen to us. Nicotine use is well known to reduce stress, and stress is one of the foundational precursors to the top five leading causes of death in the U.S. I say go for it, but be aware of what you're getting into by carefully reading everything on this forum, and welcome aboard. Vape On!
