could really use some help

[Ryan Kelly]

hey guys. i started vaping to quit cigs like most people. i bought my first ego starter kit back in february, moved to regulated devices (Innokin VTR and SVD), moved to mech mods, have about 12 different tanks, batteries upon batteries, probably 1000 mls of various juices, even went out today and bought a nice stand for all my gear because i was tired of fishing through drawers of crap to find the stuff i needed, got into rebuilding and subohming. yet my main setup that i use throughout the day: marlboro red analogs with a bic lighter. i just can't seem to kick the habit. I'm in love with vaping as a hobby and love the community so I'm not gonna give up on vaping just because i still smoke, i just can't seem to put down cigarettes. when i bought my first starter kit i only vaped and didn't have a single cigarette for over a week. then i started craving them really badly and was stressed about all the tests i had coming up so i started smoking but still cut back a lot only having 2 or 3 a day. and just like when i first started smoking i kept smoking more and more and now I've been back to my pack a day habit for a couple weeks. i just don't know what it is and i hate it. i want to quit so bad. i know the negative health effects and if someone gave me all the money i spent on cigs in the past month i could buy a gold plated provari! like i just don't know what my problem is. i hate the taste of cigarettes, i hate constantly being out of breath, vaping gives me the nicotine i crave and still lets me have the throat hit and visual smoke of cigarettes but when i wake up in the morning or finish a meal the only thing that i want is a cigarette. anybody have some non vaping tips to help me quit? any help is truly appreciated. thanks for your support!!! can't wait to be able to put one of the little banners as my signature showing how long I've been analog free!!!

 

[jp_cfc09]

my partner is the same, but it has to be set in your head. vapeing helps you quit but just wanting still isnt enough you still need will power even after a month or so it can still be hard. my partner says everyday she wants to quit, every week or so she stops and just vapes but goes back. its just not there I think, that final decsion to stop and never go back. I find most people really do want to stop smokeing but most dont try untill its too late and they have probelms.

some people just cant stop right away and thats not a bad thing, every one you stop is still good and one avoided at the end of the day. maybe try to stop bit by bit, go down to 5 day and then 2 day untill just one untill finally you force yourself to stop completely. ive stopped for 6 or so months but still crave a smoke but would never go back, I wish you the best mate but its not easy for most or everyone would stop.

 

[Kracker]

I went through the same thing ! I LOVE smoking and would have NEVER quit, but I went to have a X-ray done and they found a few nodules in each one of my lungs. Still getting tests done to see what it is, or could turn into ? I still have my moments with cigarettes but now they're pretty far in between. It's REALLY hard for me when I wake up, get done eating, or right before I go to bed. I actually did a LOT better with the BLU's. I think they suck as far as vaping compared to my mech.'s but it felt like I was smoking. At first I was smoking outside, then coming in and vaping. Then I started going out less and less. It's been a while for me now ....



It's not easy....well, it wasn't for me. I had to look at it like "I can't smoke and THIS will help me with not being able to"

 

[Scott2Quit]

You sound like me, except I've been into vaping for about almost 2 years. I've been seriously into it for at least a year. I have dozens of bottles of juices. I have 4 twists and 3 (expensive) mods. I have a collection of around 15 different tanks. I have a ton of DIY eliquid stuff, although I tend to vape commercially bought juice. I've spent probably over a grand easy on my hobby. And I love it. But I still smoke.

I've tried all kinds of stuff, WTA juices, Swedish snuss, even snuff to no avail.

But I'm the heaviest smoker I know. Vaping definitely helps me cut down, I'm at less than a pack a day vs. 3 packs a day a year ago. I can vape all day/night at home and not smoke. I think the thing that gets me is work - I get stressed and take smoke breaks. Anyway my real problem is I haven't just buckled down and said "either vaping or nothing" - but I'm working on it.

A lot of people quit the first time they vape, I think that's awesome, but many don't. There's a lot more to the cigarette addiction than just nicotine.

My best friend used to think vaping was "dumb", and he was a pack+ a day smoker. He finally decided to give it a shot, He picked up a twist kit, some cheap cartos and a couple of juices. A week or so into it he was like I am now, vaping and smoking a little less. I suggested maybe a better tank or even a nice AVP may help. He said he liked his gear just fine. Fast forward 30-days, he smokes maybe one cig a week when he drinks (if any). He vapes the same 2 juices he picked out when he started. Still only uses twists and cheap cartos. He has zero interest in finding new juices or upgrading his gear, and he's basically quit smoking 100%.

He says it's not easy at first but within a few days he doesn't even crave them (unless drinking around smokers).

Another success story I saw, a sales rep was passing through my office and I went out to smoke, he went outside and pulled out an ego twist. I started talking to him about it, he told me his story - basically bought it just to try it and accidentally quit. I have a gear stash at work - an Evic and an ITaste MVP, a few tanks and probably 5 bottles of juice. He's like "I don't get why people buy that stuff. I'm not in it for the taste, I want nicotine. My gear does its job fine."

I think that in my case at least, I'm still chasing that magic combination that's going to allow me to quit. And I need to make myself realize there's no magic, I have everything I need and I can't buy my way into the "I'm quitting or else" mentality. I stumbled across the forum today because I was asking myself the same question, "why am I still a smoker?"

And the answer is because I haven't made the decision not to smoke yet. I hope I do soon.

I don't want this post to be discouraging to you or anyone else. My point is you can spend months or even years buying gear, trying new things and hoping the smoking will work itself out. But with the right mentality you can buy a cheap starter kit and a bottle of any random juice and have everything you need to quit immediately. I thought that vaping would be a "magic bullet", and it is for some people. But for others it still requires a lot of effort to make the switch.

 

[CountBoredom]

One thing that you should not do is beat yourself up--we all know how strong the allure of cigarettes can be. The very frustration and guilt that you are feeling about smoking will only drive up your stress level and keep you going back. Take a breath, realize that it can be done, and then work on a plan to get there. When you feel like smoking, have a good vape beforehand and wait for five minutes before considering whether or not to light up. The vape may knock the craving away; if it doesn't, it will make the cig taste that much worse. Another thing you can try is to set an increasingly later time of the day before you can smoke--and vape as much as you can during that time. This can be hard because that first cigarette of the day is, well, let's face it, one of the best, but if you can focus on just attaining that limitation, then you won't have to worry so much about achieving the larger goal. You can do this--you've done it once already! Sometimes, it just takes a little more effort.

Edit: I wasn't really trying to quit--just cut down. It was focusing on the difference in flavor that ultimately killed cigs for me. Sometimes it helps to stay away from tobacco flavors...

Also, I haven't seen it posted around here lately, but a couple of months ago, one of the mantras was, "It's not how many you smoke, it's how many you don't that count."

 

[Lurch]

I wish there was an easy answer or some magic trick I could give you to help. Regretfully, there isn't. For me, once i quit for three days I couldn't finish the cigar (I smoked small cigars) I picked up. I still get the occasional urge, but when I do I just vape until it goes away

I wish you lots of luck and well wishes on your journey.

 

[Blackboar]

After smoking for 21 years, I've quit smoking analogs and have been vaping consistently now for over 4 months.

With that statement comes a back story, though.

I've tried to replace smoking with vaping, unsuccessfully, 3 times before this final time worked. The first 3 times I tried, I smoked an occasional cigarette. That became 2...which became 5....then after a couple weeks, a PAD again.

When it comes to addiction, cigarettes seemed to win for me everytime. The faster delivery of nicotine, the sensation of lighting a cigarette, that first smoke in the morning, whatever it is. It made it seem impossible to quit. That and also a stressful job gave me all the excuses I needed to fail.

This last instance, I told myself it would not be half assed. I did not smoke a single cigarette and even when the urges were really great (that first 2 months sucked the worst), I just chain vaped.

Even now, after 4 months, when I go out with friends and they light up, I'm seriously jonsin' for a cigarette. But I just start chain vaping my Provari and it passes.

It took/takes determination for me to keep vaping and not smoke. But so far it's working.

 

[Vaslovik]

From my own experience you have to want to quit. I had health issues, and I was getting sick of the cigs all the time. It was ruining my health and I knew it. It was also ridiculously expensive. It's a personal internal decision you arrive at with yourself. You will smoke while you still want to, even if you know you should quit.

I quit when I faced the fact I was killing myself and I wanted to live.

 

[angstless]

I thought because I was a heavy smoker, I should do the tobacco juice. I then discovered that the only juice that really satisfied my craving was menthol....whoda thought. I ain't smoked a Kool cig since I was 13!!!!!!!!!!

Find the juice that will do for you what smoking does...or even better...which I feel my menthol juice is better than smoking.

 

[desertrider]

Im a type 1 diabetic, and was diagnosed at 10 mos old. Im now 48, and have NO complications. My smoking was NOT gonna play in my favor. At all. Smoking and diabetes is a deadly combo and one that never ends well for the player. That was MY motivation to quit.

Now, with that said, let me offer my .02. As others have said, there HAS to come a time when you mentally, deep down in your knower, WANT to quit. We may not continue to smoke 100% by choice (addiction is a very real thing) but quitting IS a choice. The fact you havent quit 100% means you havent made the choice yet.

I wasnt a heavy smoker, maybe 10-15/day. When I decided to start vaping, I was a lucky one...I quit 100% immediately. That was about 4 mos ago. The things that helped me quit and not go back were mostly keeping the same habits I had before. i.e. first thing in the morning, with my cup of coffee, go sit out on my back porch. Or taking breaks at work and walking out to the smoking section. Or when Im driving...cracking the window..etc. Except now, I vape instead of smoke. Im fact, I still do all the same "habitual activities" I did before, just with a vape instead of a ciggy. It keeps the craving at bay.

The second thing, and IMHO one of the T H E most important things, is find a juice (or juices) you LOVE. I mean, crave. Youve GOT to love the juice if youre going to be successful. If youre "meh" about your juice, mentally youll start craving the ciggy again.

As far as hardware goes, it really doesnt matter what, or how many, devices you own. If theyre of better quality than Blu's, theyre fine. Ive only had 3 devices since I quit...the EVOD VV (which Ive since given to a friend who is quitting), an eVic, and now a Provari. Im done. Im not one of those who needs 100's of different juices and dozens of devices. I just need a quality device that will deliver my juice is a predictable way. Thats all I need. But everyone is different in this regard. Many like to collect devices. *shrug*

I know this is long winded, but take it from someone who honestly thought I *couldnt* quit, and did-successfully. Just sharing what has worked for me.

Oh, and BTW. Once you DO quit 100% you WILL get to a point where you have no interest in ciggys. About 2 months ago I had a drag off of a friend's, and just about threw up. Thats all the affirmation I needed. When I start thinking about bumming one or buying a pack, I remember THAT moment, and take a few vapes. The urge passes quickly.

Good luck Ryan. You can get there!

 

[Myrany]

For some people there are other chemicals that kick them harder than the nic when quitting. NETS and WTAs seem to help them. Also making sure your nic level is high enough.

In the end though it really does take a real dedication to quitting. If you are not ready yet then there is nothing that will work.

Don't beat yourself up every cig you don't smoke is a win. Focus on the ones you don't smoke instead of the ones you do.

For me I had to walk completely away from tobacco flavors.

 

[peterforpats]

hey guys. i started vaping to quit cigs like most people. i bought my first ego starter kit back in february, moved to regulated devices (Innokin VTR and SVD), moved to mech mods, have about 12 different tanks, batteries upon batteries, probably 1000 mls of various juices, even went out today and bought a nice stand for all my gear because i was tired of fishing through drawers of crap to find the stuff i needed, got into rebuilding and subohming. yet my main setup that i use throughout the day: marlboro red analogs with a bic lighter. i just can't seem to kick the habit. I'm in love with vaping as a hobby and love the community so I'm not gonna give up on vaping just because i still smoke, i just can't seem to put down cigarettes. when i bought my first starter kit i only vaped and didn't have a single cigarette for over a week. then i started craving them really badly and was stressed about all the tests i had coming up so i started smoking but still cut back a lot only having 2 or 3 a day. and just like when i first started smoking i kept smoking more and more and now I've been back to my pack a day habit for a couple weeks. i just don't know what it is and i hate it. i want to quit so bad. i know the negative health effects and if someone gave me all the money i spent on cigs in the past month i could buy a gold plated provari! like i just don't know what my problem is. i hate the taste of cigarettes, i hate constantly being out of breath, vaping gives me the nicotine i crave and still lets me have the throat hit and visual smoke of cigarettes but when i wake up in the morning or finish a meal the only thing that i want is a cigarette. anybody have some non vaping tips to help me quit? any help is truly appreciated. thanks for your support!!! can't wait to be able to put one of the little banners as my signature showing how long I've been analog free!!!

here is my simple tip- keep smoking and die. switch to vaping and live longer. if that doesn't work for you then i can't help you.... i suspect no one can.....

 

[Bontasia]

Don't beat yourself up every cig you don't smoke is a win.

^^ This.

The ONLY magic answer is don't give up.

There's a reason so many millions of people smoke - it's addictive as hell physically and psychologically and having to stop just freaking sucks.

I'm almost 3 months in and I smoked 1-2 packs a day for 29 years. There are still times when I want to smoke, especially when I'm stressed because that was for SURE when I depended on cigarettes the most but I just put it out of my mind and grab the tank of higher level nic e-liquid that I have loaded up and ready.

You will get there. Don't compare yourself to anyone else because that's just setting yourself up for failure and that's just going to push you to smoke more.

Please don't give up. And when you DO quit for good you better make a huge post about it cause I wanna see your banner!

 

[Ryan Kelly]

thanks for all the support guys. i know i want to quit. i really do. really. i always finish a pack and say ok thats it no more and i drown myself in vaping. then i wake up the next morning, crave a morning cig but refuse to give in. a couple hours go by and i think i really want to go out and smoke. then i drive somewhere and not being able to crack the windows and light up just drives me crazy and once i pass the 5th gas station i give in and buy a pack. i know that this is only my fault for not having will power. i guess i need to stop trying to quit cold turkey. ill buy a pack, limit myself and then keep decreasing the limit until I've quit. hopefully that works. ill update you guys. thank you so much for the help, its good people like you guys that really motivate me to get it done. ill update you guys when i feel i deserve some congratulating hahaha.

 

[CountBoredom]

thanks for all the support guys. i know i want to quit. i really do. really. i always finish a pack and say ok thats it no more and i drown myself in vaping. then i wake up the next morning, crave a morning cig but refuse to give in. a couple hours go by and i think i really want to go out and smoke. then i drive somewhere and not being able to crack the windows and light up just drives me crazy and once i pass the 5th gas station i give in and buy a pack. i know that this is only my fault for not having will power. i guess i need to stop trying to quit cold turkey. ill buy a pack, limit myself and then keep decreasing the limit until I've quit. hopefully that works. ill update you guys. thank you so much for the help, its good people like you guys that really motivate me to get it done. ill update you guys when i feel i deserve some congratulating hahaha.

Good luck, Ryan! But... come back even if you don't feel deserving of congratulations--we'll help if we can.
Speaking of help, I was reminded this morning of another thread that you might find of interest: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/pay-forward-pif/519384-still-smoking-support-chat-thread.html.

 

[jwvpz]

Good luck!! Cigs are horribly addictive, just work on your will power and remember how much of a favor your doing yourself by not picking up the cancer sticks

 

[jp_cfc09]

thanks for all the support guys. i know i want to quit. i really do. really. i always finish a pack and say ok thats it no more and i drown myself in vaping. then i wake up the next morning, crave a morning cig but refuse to give in. a couple hours go by and i think i really want to go out and smoke. then i drive somewhere and not being able to crack the windows and light up just drives me crazy and once i pass the 5th gas station i give in and buy a pack. i know that this is only my fault for not having will power. i guess i need to stop trying to quit cold turkey. ill buy a pack, limit myself and then keep decreasing the limit until I've quit. hopefully that works. ill update you guys. thank you so much for the help, its good people like you guys that really motivate me to get it done. ill update you guys when i feel i deserve some congratulating hahaha.

every day you smoke one less is a victory mate, it took me a month almost to quit completely. after the second week I was down to two a day untill finally I stopped completely. one thing ive always done was make sure theres a e cig in arms reach at all times or else its alot harder. while driveing I still crack down the windows and blow clouds of vapour out lol, only differance is my car smells lovely after it. good luck

 

[Feignix]

Ryan,

It was stories like yours and a couple of other similar ones on this thread that really had me concerned that the same would be true for me! Now 3 months later, coming from a 2 1/2 -3 PAD habit for over 20 yrs I've been smoke-free and I can honestly say I don't EVER want to smoke and I RARELY "crave" a cigarette!
I've changed my style to not be so long winded to if anyone wants any additional info feel free to ask!

I made sure to load up my gear the night before with a "heavier", good tasting and satisfying liquid so that all I had to do was vape. I vaped while reading these forums and looking for new gear which helped distract me immensely so that after a few minutes I soon forgot about the cravings!

WTA from Aroma. Bought the Unflavored 24mg DIY 100%VG liquid to mix in with my juices. Found out I couldn't even chain vape those liquids I added even just a small amount to due to getting "nic sick"! So I chained vaped 18mg liquids extensively the first few weeks! Now I enjoy a good WTA liquid from Aroma every now and then especially Snickerdoodle. The cinnamon in it provides a very nice throat hit and the flavor is exceptional!

Nicoticket juices! After finding them my incessant search for an "all day" vape was completed! Their NET juices, ones that are extracted from tobacco are the best I've found and I've tried MANY of them! PCB is my current favorite, GCD and the Virus are a close runner up!
Reward yourself! I probably have overdone this but this suprising turned into a hobby that I find extremely gratifying and with kids and other expenses I couldn't justify the expenses of supporting BOTH "habits"! I signed up for quite a few monthly juice and hardware boxes which gave me something to look forward to along with vapemail! I don't allow myself to have my "goodies" if I haven't done what I'm "suppose" to even now that the cravings are no longer an issue!

Get involved in the forum, CASAA and similar groups! Nothing helps cement an idea or belief better than sharing ones experiences and helping others to develop new beliefs and behaviors, much like AA or similar support groups work! In other words using cognitive dissonance to your advantage!

Try a GOOD "cig-a-like" for more of a "real" smoking experience, keep the window cracked, do everything else the same until you've successful been able to put the smokes down for a bit. People recommend the e-roll which you can find fairly often in the classifieds and the new prices have went down as well. I used Halo's G6 for this purpose and still occasionally do as a backup and keep filled cartomizers on hands for those bad vaping days when EVERYTHING seems to go wrong and you just want to say SCREW IT! Why can't anything go right....why can't it be as easy as smoking and I just pick up, light up and go??? You can with those! Some people need the smoking experience longer than others, pre-fill the cartomizers with a WTA juice that you really enjoy! I'm wondering if you didn't give it a long enough time to determine if it was helping much or if you're nic strength is correct!

As others have said you have to WANT to, really want to! What does that mean, that you have to want to "with every fiber of your body and inch of your psyche"?? Simply put you just have to want to quit more than you want to smoke! Once I got past that first month it really has been smooth sailing! A couple of weeks in the morning cigarette which was BY FAR my hardest obstacle and when I was smoke literally a half a pack in short order of waking was NO longer an issue, nor the after eating one! Now occasionally, as in hardly every I'll get an out of the blue one that lasts instantly before being replaced with NO WAY, and when something extremely stressful happens which is replaced by it's just not worth going back at this point!

One last thing, I tried both, patting myself on the back for my achievements when I still smoked, and beating myself up as I have a tendency to do that the most with a lot of things I believe I failed at. For me the most effective strategy lies in the middle! While I don't need to make myself feel like a pile of.....dirt, there are times when I need a good kick in the....or a firm "push"! If I wouldn't have pushed myself about a month into vaping and smoking, I'm not sure I would even be where I'm at today, a NON-smoker! It's still hard to believe but a fact I try and remind and feel good about myself over! I think you'll get there too, I certainly know it's possible if you want it bad enough! Best of luck to you and anyone else in your shoes! While not for everyone, prayer I believe helped me as well!

 

[DebiK]

I know about those after food smokes and such. Those gave me the hardest time when I quit. After I ate, I would chain vape till the urge went away. The first few weeks were the hardest, but It does get easier! I promise!

Good luck!