Did i or did i not "Quit Smoking"?

[JoeMcPlumber]

Yeah, it seems too easy.
Of COURSE i quit smoking a week ago,
when i started inhaling vapor.

But this forum is giving me lessons in semantics and subtleties
and the question has ramifications all over the board,
including on the legal front.

I have to say up front that most of the time
i'm tickled, i'm ecstatic, i'm even proud of myself
for all of the urges i've successfully avoided these past seven days.

But i've STILL got this nagging little vestigial genetic Puritan
telling me that i haven't accomplished a damn thing.

How can this be?

In the past week, i've...

- Regained my sense of smell.
- Ceased to stink, (i can tell b/c i can smell me).
- Increased my sex drive.
- Increased my availability to my relationship, because i'm not out in my shop smoking.
- Broadened and deepened my spiritual practice, in a fuller recognition of the sacred nature of my breath.
- Etc., and also i have fundamentally altered the premises of my marriage by the above changes in behavior, attitude, and odor.

But *i* didn't accomplish anything?
The little bastage says not,
because i haven't suffered for my sin
nor the moral lapse that caused the sin in the first place.

What's up?

How do YOU feel?
I know of at least one other forum-ite whose conscience won't let him tell anyone
that they've gonna "quit smoking" by using an e-cig instead.
(I'm not calling you out, sir, just sayin')

- joe

 

[bbl63]

I feel like I've traded one thing for another, but if a doctor asks if I smoke, I can say no.

 

[JoeMcPlumber]

Actually i have a Dr. appointment coming up
and that's one of my anxieties.
I want to tell him with conviction that i quit smoking,
but it sorta depends on the time of day
whether i have that conviction or not.

- joe

 

[hyperdeficit]

As far as the doctor appointment goes, there was one member on here who went to get bloodwork done before and after vaping and the results were icredible i cant remember the user or the post, but they were saying they had high cholesteral or blood pressure or something and that was almost healed fully.

They also somehow did a nicotine check or something like that (can barely remember) and the nicotine check was really good too.

I can brag to anybody how i have quit smoking but some people are still skeptical. thats just them. all that matters is what you know.

another user has a signature one here I also cant remember this but it says. "I maybe still be a nicotine addict but at least i am not DYING for a cigarette. I agree with this completely and i will say it all the time to skeptics.

overall beautiful written post, very thought provoking. you should consider becoming a writer

 

[Shortstuff116]

You quit smoking. Period.

Call it semantics if you want, but like yourself I know longer light up a rolled paper full of tobacco which technically and in essence (and for all intents and purposes) is smoking. Therefore, I no longer smoke cigarettes and have quit smoking.

You expressed yourself very well in that I can relate to every word you wrote. I also wonder if I kinda "cheated" and took the easy way out to quit, but you know what? It really doesn't matter how you do it, as long as you did it. You should be proud of what you did! I am proud of all three of me (Me - Myself and I) because after 36+ years of cigarettes I quit instantly with the assistance of my PV. I have not since in the past 37 days had the urge or desire to touch another analog and my health is improving daily. All the "good" things you mentioned are a bonus!

In my short period of time as a "vaper", I have found that all non-smokers (never did smoke) support what I've done 100%. But I've also ran into a few current and former smokers who could care less what I've done.

Hey, you've quit smoking and perhaps made one of the best decisions in your life. Sure I could drop dead tomorrow because of 36 years of smoking, but I think I may stick around a little longer (even if it's a few days longer) just to spoil my grandchildren and enjoy life a bit more.

Congratulations to you and anyone else who has either quit completely or cut their analog habit dramatically with the use of PV's!

 

[jj2]

Plain and simple, you've quit smoking.

As for changes. Went to the doctor months back because I was feeling blah. For good reason too because my BP was way down. Doc reduced my meds. Since I started vaping I'm off my inhaler, my Advair. No more pain in my legs when walking. My hearing has even improved---I had circulation problems I didn't want to admit to.
Energy level is up and sense of smell and taste have returned.
Basically, I'm sixty and feel like I did ten or more years ago.

 

[SmilingSlasher]

Look at it like this......You quit smoking. You are no longer burning anything, therefore no "fire", no smoke. You now Vape. You are still getting Nicotine, but have chose to deliver that Nicotine in a safer way......through Vapor. VAPOR IS NOT SMOKE.

You aren't still smoking if you choose to deliver the Nicotine through patches or gum.........same for vapor, even if it does look like smoke.

And if you still feel you need to suffer for your sin..............Bash yourself in the knee with a 24 oz Framing Hammer........don't do it but once though, cause that will make you suffer enough.....promise.

 

[Janetda]

If it makes you feel any better, my doctor says I quit smoking. I was completely straight with him when I started using e-cigs over six months ago. I was a little surprised by his reaction. He was delighted! Now my medical records indicate that I'm an ex-smoker and for the first time since going on Kaiser some 20+ years ago, I didn't get the "Stop Smoking" lecture when I checked in the last time I was there.

 

[Charged]

And if you still feel you need to suffer for your sin..............Bash yourself in the knee with a 24 oz Framing Hammer........don't do it but once though, cause that will make you suffer enough.....promise.

^^ yea I agree.

 

[Jules22871]

According to my regular doctor, cardiologist, neurologist AND pulmonologist, I have quit smoking and I'm not going to argue with them one bit. Now I'm just a nicotine addict,lol

 

[potholerepairman]

You quit stinking, coughing , smoking.Your a quitter in a good way.

 

[umop apisdn]

You quit smoking without quitting nicotine. You cheated death and taxes, probably for the first and only time in your life. What is there to complain about?

 

[Vocalek]

Hi Joe and welcome. Yes, you quit smoking. The biggest uphill battle we face in getting PVs accepted is that "it looks like smoking." I have a furry-looking coat made out of thousands of Pollys and Esthers. That does not make it an animal fur. Nevertheless, some day someone might throw red paint on me while I am wearing it.

And yes there are those who want to make us feel guilty for getting ourselves healthier, for making ourselves smell better to our friends and family, for not exposing those around us to tar and toxins, and for many, many other positive results. What's wrong with this picture? I'll give you a clue. Something is definitely wrong, but it isn't with us.

You might want to familiarize yourself with the concept of tobacco harm reduction. Start here and then work your way around the site: Tobacco harm reduction. (tobaccoharmreduction.org)

When you are done educating yourself on the subject, you might, like me, feel pretty angry with the tobacco control crowd. Those nicotine abolitionists have been telling lies about safer forms of tobacco use for years. Had I known the truth, I might have switched to safer products years ago and saved my lungs and circulatory system a lot of punishment.

 

[umop apisdn]

Hi Joe and welcome. Yes, you quit smoking. The biggest uphill battle we face in getting PVs accepted is that "it looks like smoking." I have a furry-looking coat made out of thousands of Pollys and Esthers. That does not make it an animal fur. Nevertheless, some day someone might throw red paint on me while I am wearing it.

And yes there are those who want to make us feel guilty for getting ourselves healthier, for making ourselves smell better to our friends and family, for not exposing those around us to tar and toxins, and for many, many other positive results. What's wrong with this picture? I'll give you a clue. Something is definitely wrong, but it isn't with us.

You might want to familiarize yourself with the concept of tobacco harm reduction. Start here and then work your way around the site: Tobacco harm reduction. (tobaccoharmreduction.org)

When you are done educating yourself on the subject, you might, like me, feel pretty angry with the tobacco control crowd. Those nicotine abolitionists have been telling lies about safer forms of tobacco use for years. Had I known the truth, I might have switched to safer products years ago and saved my lungs and circulatory system a lot of punishment.

Oh no! That's post 666! It must be a sign of the devil, therefore a lie!

[/nicotine abolitionist mindset]

 

[Shortstuff116]

Geez... I'm not so sure about the hammer on the knee thing...?

I think I'd rather just look in the mirror, point to myself and say "You are ugly, I am ugly"!

 

[angjen0816]

You quit smoking without quitting nicotine. You cheated death and taxes, probably for the first and only time in your life. What is there to complain about?

you use that as a slogan for the V3L contest

 

[TheTout]

Of course you quit smoking!!! You are using a personal vaporizer, inhaling some nicotine, PG and flavor. Just because they look, taste, and feel somewhat like a smoke they are not. They don't contain all the yuck, don't stink, they don't burn holes, they don't leave ashes, they don't yellow the walls and your lungs, ..... you get the point you quit smoking your brain is working better now with all the oxygen its able to get!!!

See now just convince your better working brain of that.

ps, I told my doc, she asked me for cards to hand out, she gives them to people who really want to quit smoking.

 

[quasimod]

[...] But *i* didn't accomplish anything?
The little bastage says not,
because i haven't suffered for my sin
nor the moral lapse that caused the sin in the first place.

Tell that little bastage I said he can just shut up and get off your back. He's a jerk, and you can tell him I said that, too. There's a whole lot more to it than just nicotine. You unconsciously associate all kinds of things with the nicotine fix. The look, feel, weight, smell, the actions involved in unwrapping a new pack, opening it and pulling out a cigarette. The texture, the feel of it in your lips and between your fingers. There are a bunch of chemicals in there that makes tobacco more addictive (so I've read).

Tell him you quit all of those things. It wasn't "painless" because you missed them. You may still miss some of them. The only thing you haven't quit (yet) is the nicotine and the illusion/sensation of smoking. He can't expect you to do everything at once, can he? What's he want from you, anyway? I don't think I like that guy. He sucks.

Tell him I said that, too.

 

[oldtechno]

If there's no smoke...
there's no smoking.

Nicotine, smikcotine! Go get a pot half full of water, take a potatoe, peel it, cut it into a dozen pieces and put it in the boiling water--take a whiff................................

.....are you smoking now?

 

[Toots]

The question that they ask is starting to change. They are beginning to ask if you are a tobacco user. Next the question will be if you are a nicotine user or inhaler of some sort.

So enjoy proudly proclaiming yourself a non-smoker.