I've read all the posts in this thread and theres a lot of good ones. My thoughts are exactly like Nu2mOdng. I had smoked for 48 years and was smoking 2 1/2 packs a day. I went into vaping knowing I had to make it work,and it did. Getting the best equipment you can get is a big help. I use high capacity everything and have 10-50 backups for everything.In July I will be smoke free for five years. The times I tried a cigarette I could not take but one or two drags and would put it out. I had not tasted one in years and tried one last week just to see what it tasted like. I really felt sick after a couple of drags. Even if I stop vaping I don't think I could ever smoke again, just knowing how much quitting helped me.
Going Back to Analogs
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I don't think very many of us would deny that we replaced one addiction for another.
Many of us probably have addictive personalities to start with and if tinkering with coils or tasting a variety of e-liquids is what we need to do to not smoke then I think it's a WISE replacement.
Vaping is not perfect. Most of us get, at least temporarily, shiny-itis but the same can be said with any hobby. You can enjoy it and just have fun or you can be obsessive and need everynewthingthatyoudonthaveandneeditnowwwwwww.
The bottom line for me is I didn't want to stop smoking. I mean I wanted to not be a smoker but I loved how smoking felt. Cigarettes felt like a security blanket for me. If faced with having enough money to buy food OR cigarettes (and I have been) I've picked cigarettes every time. I never tried to quit, not once. No gum or patches or pills, I just never considered it an option. I was sick of spending all the money on cigarettes and having everything I own stink so I thought eh I'll give it a shot but deep down I didn't really think I'd ever be a non-smoker.
Now I am. Started at 36mg and a month and a half later I'm at 12mg. I'll be at 0mg in a few months and at least for now I have no plans to stop.
So yeah it's a replacement but it's one that I'd do over again with no question whatsoever. Just wish these things had been around when I was 15.
I quit analogues one week in. I had to wean myself off the MAIO chemicals in them basically, even though I was getting plenty of nicotine. I suffer from GAD, and I fully believe that I was self medicating by smoking. It's been a semi rough 6 months to be honest, but it is getting better. Panic attacks have subsided. Really, if I wasn't so into vaping as a hobby, I'm not sure I could have stayed off the cigarettes.
My husband absolutely would be back to cigarettes if not for living with a vape hobbyist. He get's extremely frustrated when something isn't working as it should, while I just look at it like a mystery to be solved. When I realized I really could stick with vaping for a while, I went on a shopping spree (6 month long shopping spree and counting!) and had to try everything out there. As a result, when his starter kit started breaking down (fire buttons got stuck a lot) he was able to just use all my stuff from all my experimentation. That's how he found his ideal set up. By basically "borrowing" my gear and never returning it. If he didn't have all those choices when things didn't work, he would have simply gone back to smoking.
My sister is another one who would be smoking if not for all the excess of stuff I've purchased. I ship out whatever my husband and I don't use to her. She's rough with her stuff, isn't tech savvy at all, and is a bit of an airhead over where she leaves her stuff. She's lost two ego batteries with two Mini Protank II's, broke several clearos, etc.... Gear isn't easy for her to come by, as none of her friends vape and she's still a student and under the age to buy cigarettes in her county. It's actually easier for her to get cigarettes sometimes, as she just bums them from friends.
What vaping needs to convert most smokers over entirely is a cigalike that hits as hard and lasts as long as an MVP. Also, more WTA liquid available. The people on this forum are not representative of most of the vapers out there I think. Many don't like to fiddle with things. They aren't interested in using large, strange, mods. They aren't interested in shopping around for their ideal set up and liquid. They just want to vape and they want it to work, and vaping isn't really there yet. The DIY aspect turns a lot of people off. Add in the common and natural stress of quitting cigarettes, and I think it's easy to see why people go back to smoking. When we can finally recommend a cigalike that WILL be satisfying to a pack a day smoker, I think we'll have many more converts.
My husband absolutely would be back to cigarettes if not for living with a vape hobbyist. He get's extremely frustrated when something isn't working as it should, while I just look at it like a mystery to be solved. When I realized I really could stick with vaping for a while, I went on a shopping spree (6 month long shopping spree and counting!) and had to try everything out there. As a result, when his starter kit started breaking down (fire buttons got stuck a lot) he was able to just use all my stuff from all my experimentation. That's how he found his ideal set up. By basically "borrowing" my gear and never returning it. If he didn't have all those choices when things didn't work, he would have simply gone back to smoking.
My sister is another one who would be smoking if not for all the excess of stuff I've purchased. I ship out whatever my husband and I don't use to her. She's rough with her stuff, isn't tech savvy at all, and is a bit of an airhead over where she leaves her stuff. She's lost two ego batteries with two Mini Protank II's, broke several clearos, etc.... Gear isn't easy for her to come by, as none of her friends vape and she's still a student and under the age to buy cigarettes in her county. It's actually easier for her to get cigarettes sometimes, as she just bums them from friends.
What vaping needs to convert most smokers over entirely is a cigalike that hits as hard and lasts as long as an MVP. Also, more WTA liquid available. The people on this forum are not representative of most of the vapers out there I think. Many don't like to fiddle with things. They aren't interested in using large, strange, mods. They aren't interested in shopping around for their ideal set up and liquid. They just want to vape and they want it to work, and vaping isn't really there yet. The DIY aspect turns a lot of people off. Add in the common and natural stress of quitting cigarettes, and I think it's easy to see why people go back to smoking. When we can finally recommend a cigalike that WILL be satisfying to a pack a day smoker, I think we'll have many more converts.
VERY well said. I hadn't thought about that but I think you are right. I'm a tinkerer by nature. I remember being like 4 years old and taking my Mickey Mouse radio apart because I needed to know what was inside and how it worked.
I think we forget that vaping is in it's infancy compared to so many other things. I really believe that 10 years from now these cutting edge, high tech PVs we use are going to seem like a chisel and stone.
Yep. And I'm going to miss my hobby of making things work! I really see variable watts set at around 8 watts as a standard for beginners, like Innokin's Coolfire. No settings, no more concern about resistance, no need to learn about ohms law. That technology DOES exist, but we have yet to see something truly leak proof and battery technology is no where neat to creating a 1300 mAh device in the size and shape of a cigalike.
I am a multi-decade smoker that switched to vaping and never looked back once three issues were dealt with:
1. The vaper liquid had to be pleasant to my senses and in my case give me a tobacco impression. I don't like candy or fruit or artificial flavors.
2. The hardware had to work effortlessly. Nothing is more aggravating than a machine acting up when I want my nicotine
3. The nic level needs to match my need. This has decreased over time for me so I needed to adjust downward.
The flavors tagged as "Tobacco" in the juice shops around here are disgusting to me. It seems that artificial nut flavors like hazelnut and peanut are being promoted as cigarette-like. Not to me. I found the tobacco extracts to be mild, sensuous and very satisfying. Very soft friendly and resinous impression is what I get from real tobacco extracted flavored liquids. (I smoked imported cigs for many years - II liked sweet Virginia tobaccos that I could only find in England (Three Castles, Gold Flake) and I had to settle for some Canadian substitute (players or Export A).
I found the right equipment: KangerTech minipro tank on a Itaste MVP2 battery. Anything goes wrong I just change the wick.
The Ego stick is great too (small) but it only lasts half a day for me and I don't like carrying around the adapter for charging.
I started making my own real tobacco extracts that satisfied my palate (they are so good every smoker at work has converted! I worked in a lab for years as a product developer so this was a fun project).
My natural tobacco extracted e-liquids are going commercial soon. We are testing locally now as I don't know if my taste in these things fit most peoples but I suspect that ex-smokers will have similar concerns and taste requirements as myself.
That's my two cents worth here in Seattle.
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I had a buddy explain it to me like this "smoking is easy".
He got tired of the batteries, tanks, coils, finding juice that he liked and overall all the extra time and "crap" it took to vape.
He goes to a gas station and buys a pack, gets in the car and lights a smoke.
I've read a post or two here that mentioned the same frustration.
For me it's enjoyable, something to do, tastes good and smells better. Different perspective!
He got tired of the batteries, tanks, coils, finding juice that he liked and overall all the extra time and "crap" it took to vape.
He goes to a gas station and buys a pack, gets in the car and lights a smoke.
I've read a post or two here that mentioned the same frustration.
For me it's enjoyable, something to do, tastes good and smells better. Different perspective!
I am at month three and so far smooth sailing! No desire what-so-ever to go back to smoking! Cigarettes taste downright nasty and I often wondered how in the hell did I ever smoke for 14 years of my life? How come vaping wasn't invented or in the mainstream sooner and a vape shop in my area sooner (probably because I would have been broke every month since lol) I am trying to fix a credit card snafu so I can pay a couple people that I bought some stuff off of in the classifieds...I'm bad when it comes to shiny things I can jwrap it pink in different styles and textures! Chrome doesn't appeal to this girl lol! But the gadgets, the flavors, and the fun vaping off of those different gadgets is whats the best part that keeps me from going back I asked a friend for just a drag off my usual brand of cigarette and God it was horrific! I wanted to vape immediately to get rid of that Gawd awful taste! I don't think I will have any problems at 6+ months!
For me i think my cravings come from not finding juices i like. I use to love butter toffee and now i cant stand it. I have been liking banana split until a few days ago. It is getting boring. I do have 4 other flavors coming. Most i just don't like. I haven't smoked as my banner below reads. I don't want to smoke so that is the reason why i vape on. I will just keep on finding some juices and now that my husband is vaping, he wants to get into making his own. Therefore i will get samples 
. I do enjoy vaping and cravings are less as each month passes. Just wish they would go away and stay away.
. I do enjoy vaping and cravings are less as each month passes. Just wish they would go away and stay away.I've noticed for those around me who are resistant to vaping, they're not "allowing" vaping to supplant smoking. They're looking for the same experience, ease of use, and physiological impact. It isn't the same and unless you're hell-bent on giving up smoking, you wont give vaping the latitude it needs to satisfy.
Mmm... I wasn't hell bent on quitting really. I only promised to try vaping when my grandmother died of lung cancer back in October. My mother picked me up a set up then. I charged it up and realized it was actually possible. Before I knew it, I was consciously trying to see how long it would be before I lit the next cigarette, and not only was it easier to vape through cravings as time went on that week, cigarettes just started tasting worse and worse until I thought I was inhaling burning tire rubber in a garbage dump. After I went my first 24 hours without, and lit one up just to see how bad the taste was after a full day without, I almost gagged and couldn't take more then two drags. I handed the rest of my pack to my husband then, who just got his set up the day before and was in the process of weaning of the smokes the same way I did. He couldn't toss his last pack though. The taste never got worse for him. He did stop himself from buying another.
This may just be proving your point but hear me out. I don't think we have replaced one addiction with another. On a physical level we're still addicted to the very same drug: Nicotine.
It is, of course, arguable that we've swapped one psychological addiction for another. Though once again have we? Really? Once again, we're addicted to the same process of inahaling and exhaling, holding something in your hand and even the illusion of feeling less stress or relaxed. Illusion? Yes. As much as we'd love to believe it, Nicotine doesn't particularly make us relaxed after a while. It gives us that illusion because we're relieving the withdrawal and the urge to smoke another. People that smoke are generally more grouchy than non-smokers for this reason.
When I was finally ready to quit, I didn't find it to be that difficult. I definitely had my "moments" where I wanted a cigarette, usually at morning coffee time, after dinner, and the ole glass of wine. The cravings weren't hard to work through because I very much understand that in those moments it was all psychological, which is illusory as it is just the "conditioning" speaking. Reason, and objectivity are your friends.
Once I moved into Rebuildable tank systems, I found myself no longer thinking (Mind) about the morning cigarette, and after dinner smoke because I found RBA's more efficient in 'consistently" delivering a satisfying (feeling/Psyche) vape .. and so the new programming has settled in, and now my morning, and after dinner vapes are the norm.
All addiction is psychological, way more so than it is physical. Whatever Psyche feels, Mind thinks, and vice versa .. they are essentially one and the same, Objectivity being Master of both.
Once I moved into Rebuildable tank systems, I found myself no longer thinking (Mind) about the morning cigarette, and after dinner smoke because I found RBA's more efficient in 'consistently" delivering a satisfying (feeling/Psyche) vape .. and so the new programming has settled in, and now my morning, and after dinner vapes are the norm.
All addiction is psychological, way more so than it is physical. Whatever Psyche feels, Mind thinks, and vice versa .. they are essentially one and the same, Objectivity being Master of both.
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After I began vaping full time and smoking nothing at all, it took me several weeks to get out of the physical habits of cigarettes.
When I felt the urge for a vape, I'd look around for an ashtray. Then I'd rustle around in my pockets for a lighter. When vaping, I'd hold the PV in my hand at all times, even when sitting, being very careful not to burn a hole in my clothes or furniture. When I had my PV in my hand, I'd automatically get nervous knowing that it was my last one.
By now I've gotten completely used to vaping. So if I went back to smoking, I wouldn't look for an ashtray or a lighter each time I wanted to light up. I would, instead, just stand there holding the unlit cigarette for ten or twenty minutes like an idiot. After I would finally get it lit, and after a few puffs, I'd lay the lit cigarette in my lap or place it on the arm of the chair so I could have both of my hands free.
And while smoking my last one, I wouldn't worry about needing any more, which would undoubtedly lead to a middle-of-the-night emergency. Of course, this last scenario may be moot as my house would likely burn down with me in it soon after laying a lit cigarette on the arm of a chair. Or in my lap.
When I felt the urge for a vape, I'd look around for an ashtray. Then I'd rustle around in my pockets for a lighter. When vaping, I'd hold the PV in my hand at all times, even when sitting, being very careful not to burn a hole in my clothes or furniture. When I had my PV in my hand, I'd automatically get nervous knowing that it was my last one.
By now I've gotten completely used to vaping. So if I went back to smoking, I wouldn't look for an ashtray or a lighter each time I wanted to light up. I would, instead, just stand there holding the unlit cigarette for ten or twenty minutes like an idiot. After I would finally get it lit, and after a few puffs, I'd lay the lit cigarette in my lap or place it on the arm of the chair so I could have both of my hands free.
And while smoking my last one, I wouldn't worry about needing any more, which would undoubtedly lead to a middle-of-the-night emergency. Of course, this last scenario may be moot as my house would likely burn down with me in it soon after laying a lit cigarette on the arm of a chair. Or in my lap.
I have had the cravings, but I have no desire to pick up a cig. I haven't had a cigarette since I got my Kanger T3S in the mail. I have however bought more items to go with it and a Protank and more batteries and I could keep going. Muscle memory was the hardest thing to overcome for me. Get in my car, reach for the console where my cigarettes were, so that is where I put my T3S or I keep it in my hand when I'm getting in the car. I also think that the inhale/exhale is sorta like the breathing while giving birth. It may not do anything but keeps your mind off of other stuff. We inhale/exhale and instantly feel the tension and stress leave our bodies, so we don't need the cig anymore. I'm into this vaping thing but it definitely is something that you need to 100% committed to. If you aren't ready to quit, vaping is not going to be easy. I am approaching 40 and very active with my kids and such. So when kayaking and throwing softball with my daughter became a struggle, I realized that it was now or never.
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