Debating giving up.

[Maka]

In a month I have spent way too much on all of this myself.
I would be nearly $500 or more better off if I hadn't started this vaping.
But for me I would NEVER have been able to stop smoking if I hadn't done this, I wanted to but I couldn't.
This way I have stopped smoking over 30 cigs a day, where I live cigs are so cheap the price is nothing but all the money I have spent of vaping juice and equipment is well worth it.

I have learnt lots and lots of useful info, I love learning new things too.
I am no longer smelling of cigs, I feel so much healthier, So with all that the money I have spent IMHO is well worth it.

I am now set up with 4 Viva Novas, 2 which I am using and 2 still boxed up.
I have enough replacement heads/wicks for them to keep me going for I'd say a year as long as I keep up with cleaning them every few days, which is so easy it's laughable.

The Vivi Novas go onto my new Lava Tube L-Rider Lambo 4, which is working great and gives out the same hit and vapour each and every hit.
I will invest only $41 more this coming week on a back up Lava Tube, the Young June version so I am hoping with having both the L-Rider and Young June I will be set up for a while.

I also have enough liquid to last me a good 6 months.

Next year as long as my Lava Tube/s/ are still going strong I will be thinking about the next level the Proveli, I think once one of my LTs die I will then spend the next money on the Proveli But I am hoping that won't be till mid to late next year if that.

 

[blondeambition3]

I can relate to wanting to give up as well. It gets frustrating. I see several mentions of upping nic levels in this post and others as well. I was using 24mg when I started and was doing pretty good....cut back from 1 1/2 PAD to 1/2 PAD. Problem though was I was having problems sleeping. Waking up in the middle of the night and couldn't get back to sleep, night sweats, etc. Had a few days where my heart was racing for several hours after waking up. I have switched to 18 mg and have also been dealing with a cold/sinus infection and have gone back up to about 1 PAD. I am tempted to go back to 24 mg but don't want the problems with sleeping and the heart racing (that's pretty scary!). Any suggestions?

I believe you're experiencing something other than 'vaping' issues and my guess is 'withdrawal' from the Analogs. The sweating & inability to sleep are DEFINITE issues when I first stopped smoking. I had stopped smoking (cold turkey) a full 3 years before I began vaping and vaping has NEVER caused any problems for me whatsoever, such as racing heart, night sweats, insomnia.. what have you. My suggestion is don't vape at higher nic levels WHILE you're still smoking... THAT'S the issue, I believe.

 

[NancyR]

To the Op,

When I first joined ECF, there use to be more of the vets hanging around the newbie area who admitted that they smoked and vaped for a long time when they started, some as much as a year. Beating yourself up if you have a smoke just leads to needless stress on yourself which in turn will make you want to smoke more. I do agree with upping the nic, some here go as high as 36 mg. I used 24mg til I got into gennys and I had to cut back my nic on them.

I can relate to wanting to give up as well. It gets frustrating. I see several mentions of upping nic levels in this post and others as well. I was using 24mg when I started and was doing pretty good....cut back from 1 1/2 PAD to 1/2 PAD. Problem though was I was having problems sleeping. Waking up in the middle of the night and couldn't get back to sleep, night sweats, etc. Had a few days where my heart was racing for several hours after waking up. I have switched to 18 mg and have also been dealing with a cold/sinus infection and have gone back up to about 1 PAD. I am tempted to go back to 24 mg but don't want the problems with sleeping and the heart racing (that's pretty scary!). Any suggestions?

To Kim, what many have done and something you might want to think about is they used a higher nic level like first thing in the morning, or when they where really stressed or wanting a smoke, but most of the time used a lower nic.

It is very easy to take a carto or a clearo and have it set up with a higher nic and mark it so you know which it is or for that matter even drip for those times when you need that kick, not doing it all the time may help.

 

[Riversong]

I think Nancy has good points! I will admit that I still grab a smoke here and there. I want to become a vape only girl but I won't let myself feel like i've failed if I do smoke. I just feel good about all the times I haven't. Also.... I have 6mg juices that I go wild with in the afternoon and evening. I mean, I just vape away constantly with them. In the morning or if i'm feeling tense, It has to be the 24mg for me. We're all different, and that's okay!

 

[Black Strat]

After reading your post Id recommend buying the most expensive setup you can find.Like someone else noted you seem to be money motivated and worried about value.If you spend 250 on a Provari and nice tank you MIGHT be more inclined to stick it out at least until you recoup your investment and by then you might be home free

Seriously? Expense is the reason the OP complained!

 

[Black Strat]

Just stick to something inexpensive that works well, like eGo battery and Mini Vivi Nova or Smoktech DCT.

Cheap and effective.

 

[cags]

I think Nancy has good points! I will admit that I still grab a smoke here and there. I want to become a vape only girl but I won't let myself feel like i've failed if I do smoke. I just feel good about all the times I haven't. Also.... I have 6mg juices that I go wild with in the afternoon and evening. I mean, I just vape away constantly with them. In the morning or if i'm feeling tense, It has to be the 24mg for me. We're all different, and that's okay!

I didn't say it in this thread, but I have said it over and over in other threads - I was a 35+ yr, 2 1/2+ pad smoker when I started vaping. my goal was to get to 1 pad (which I could afford), so if I wanted a smoke I vaped first then if I still wanted the cig, I had it, guilt free. within a week of vaping I was down to 15 cigs a day (exceeding my original goal). after a month I was down to 2 cigs a day. and I still smoke those 2 cigs a day cause I'm old and I want to ! now my little personal rule is that if I smoke 3 cigs a day I have to stop completely and that keeps me staying at 2
now I just need to get that to work for sugar and chips

 

[Shapermc]

I have to admit that it was easier to switch having a pack cost about $10 each. I was cutting down from about 15 cigs a day to about 3-5 using a Blu kit (I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS ROUTE, but the blu refil packs were always in stock at Walgreens right down the street) over the period of about 9 months, I had quit smoking once for about 5 months to move in with my partner who refused to live with a smoker. After one cig I got on a train of getting back into smoking and up to 15 cigs a day, then it took me about a year of smoking Blu ecigs to get down to 3-5. I couldn't kick that last bit and I was only smoking at work. So I realized that part of my problem was the spending between the Blu eCig and the analogues was still about the same average price and looked into getting a REAL eCig kit after someone showed me that I was doing it all wrong. I dropped $150 on my first purchase for 2 eGo-c 650mah starter kit, some eJuice and a couple of stardust clearomizers.

I made that last two weeks, it covered half the cost. . . I was getting frustrated with spending too much.

I decided to just jump in further and allow myself to vape all day as much as I wanted, bought an eGo Twist 1100mah, then 4 ViVi Mini Novas and 1 ViVi Nova, and about a half a dozen different juices from a few vendors. I've dropped my next 1.2 months worth of analogue spending in about a week and now realize that I have at least a months worth of supplies, and I have enough different tanks and flavors and batteries that if I just juice everything up before I go to bed I can take a little bag and keep it on me full of 2-3 flavor trade outs and a back up batteries and on a WORST CASE scenario I could probably make it through a weekend without needing to refill or charge anything.

That sense of security and the options of flavors, and the ability to basically chain-vape all day long if I need to has gotten me over the hump of those last 3-5 analogues a day. Since then I've seen myself slow down, and have averaged my current spending at about $40-$50 a month depending on if I need to buy replacements for any gear.

I've currently spent almost three months worth of analogue money, but finally hit a point where I can slow down and enjoy the vapor.

I only share the story to let you know you're not alone, and it's worth hanging in there.

I was a smoker for 18 years and at my peak smoked 2 packs a day. This has not been an easy journey.

 

[tater_salad]

MOL.. stick thorugh it..
1. I use my ego in the rain.. dunno if I should but I do.
2. Once you find that perfect setup you'll start to bring the costs down.
3. What about your health care costs later.. sure your tobacco vs juice may be different but if you spend 10k down the line on healthcare it's a drop in the bucket.
4. stick with it mol.

 

[bubbajoe72]

You don't need to spend a lot to enjoy vaping. I was happy for a couple of years dripping on a eGo battery and Cisco LR atty and my only expense was $20-30 a month on juice. If you are jonesing for an analog, it's not going to kill you to have one or two. It's all about harm reduction and after a few days and your taste buds start coming back, you'll realize that analogs will lose that thrill and taste like the burning leaves and paper that they are.

 

[blondeambition3]

bubbajoe72 said; "You don't need to spend a lot to enjoy vaping."

Now isn't that the truth in a nutshell?

 

[tokenfemale]

I definitely spent a ton in start up costs looking for the right set up for me. A lot of that was because like everyone else, I was going by what people told me THEY liked - I didn't know what I'd like because I'd never used ecigs before.

I finally stopped smoking analogs, and actually started to prefer ecigs, when I found the right setup for me. Which in my case is dripping if I'm home and using cartos if I'm out. To me, those FEEL the most like smoking a cigarette, and apparently that was the most important thing to me. I'm happier, and do not crave anything if I am dripping a very low nic. But if I'm vaping 24 out of a vivi I still feel somewhat deprived and want an analog.

It's totally a personal journey tho - I thought flavor and nic level would be most important to me, and I was so very wrong. You'll have to discover what works best for you!

 

[woody1]

I have made it simple, finally.

Twist
ego stardust
Juice

Forget all the high end crap, simplify your life. I just bought 12 stardust 60 delivered, it appears these will last atleast 2 months. I smoke a pack a day at 6 dollar per pack. Do the math. You are spending insane amounts of money getting caught up in HYPE

 

[WinterHope311]

First, let me just say that when I get into something as a hobby, I GET INTO IT!!! But right now my hubs and I are planning our belated honeymoon and trying to spare our $$$ as much as possible.

My hubs and I have been using cig-a-likes for the past two weeks that I won in a contest (V2Cigs (He likes them) and Vapor Couture((BLECH!!)). I also have a couple of Volts (which i LOVE!). But I am ready to step it up to a larger setup. I have been reading (and reading and reading!!!) this forum trying to get a handle on all of it. Of course, it would be nice to take a chunk of my next paycheck and buy the nice fancy provaris everyone is raving about, but for my current situation, simplicity and cost efficiency is key!

I am attending a vape meet at my local smoke shop this week and will try a bunch of different models, but after aLOOOT of research, here is what is on my wishlist for payday (as of now):

Ego Twist
CE4's

And I already have a bunch of bottles of juice coming in.

But to comment on the OP's post, DON"T GIVE UP! My first week, I had ZERO cigarettes, and this past week I've slipped quite a bit. We had a few drinks at a Halloween party and I smoked (then bought a pack, which i had to finish! duh!) and have allowed myself to have a couple a day, guilt free (just not at home bc my son is too excited about me quitting).

You should too!!! Having one black n mild a day (or a few puffs!) is i'm sure a huge improvement, and you should be proud of yourself dude!

 

[mylose64]

Just think of it as a hobby and not a smoking alternative

 

[filter]

i suggest you grab a couple volt x2 650mAh (20ea) and a couple packs of blank xl cartos (10ea). anything over $55 gets you free shipping (this is $60) plus you can get another 15% or so with a coupon code. so you're down to about $50 incl shipping. they last all day, don't need cleaning or maintenance and never give out (my experience), can be used while charging and are super easy to fill and re-fill many many times with your favorite liquids.