How Long Did It Take You To Totally Quit "Those"?

[seahawkin]

I had quit for 3 months and was starting up again when friends begged me to try these 'e-cigarettes' they had seen. My friends had been through the starting and stopping with me and knew it was a health issue meaning I needed nicotine but have health issues that make smoking very dangerous for me. So for me it was easy cause I was so grateful even with the crappy gas station disposables that I might have other options. Took over a year though for it to be a joy to me as opposed to like taking medicine. Learning curve was steep, but I made some awesome vape friends that set me straight.

 

[Just Me]

...So how long did it take you? Or what helped you to finally say goodbye forever?

It took me a little over 45 years to quit. Seriously, like Baditude, I tried patches, gum, hypnosis (no Wellbutrin, though), the first cig-a-likes, and even managed for two months going cold turkey. That two months was the longest I had ever quit, and I was miserable. Other times, I quit for 5 days cold turkey, two weeks with the gum, nothing worked, because I wasn't happy. I guess I really didn't want to quit the hand to mouth habit itself, just wanted away from coughing, stinking, and spending a lot of money.

When my last lighter conked out, I toyed with the idea of quitting smoking again, so I started by breaking the lighter habit and began lighting my cigarettes with matches. I prepared my mind with the notion that when I ran out of cigarettes, I wouldn't buy any more (I had three cartons at the time, so that would be about 2 to 2 1/2 weeks).

When I had one cigarette left, I went to the vape store and bought my ego starter kit. The place was alive with about 8 people all excited because they had quit smoking, people were sampling juices and buying stuff, and I engaged in conversation with a few of them. "Have you quit smoking?" "Yep, it's great!" "Did you quit?" "You bet!" Men, women, all of them had quit. Two months, four months, etc. And these people were all middle-aged and older. I knew if they could do it, so could I. The people working in the shop advised it would be better not to duel use. Smoked my last cigarette that day and was done.

Not to say I haven't had a couple of bumps in the road. First bump was that I was told the e-cig was already charged and ready to go. Turns out it wasn't. ha Then, of course, those crummy CE4s...might get a good one here and there, but some would leak, some would gurgle, some had burnt taste, yada, yada, yada. But I kept at it. Got a sore throat, some quit zits, stomach issues, all that stuff, all short-lived. Got those cravings once in a while, nothing really serious that the vape didn't handle.

About a month in, I wanted something better. I read a lot on here, mulled over it briefly, then dived in and ordered a mod. Switched toppers to evods. Much better. Began ordering flavorings and nicotine, have been making my own juice for over 6 months. I can rebuild and rewick coils, but I don't really like to. Not to say all that's required; it's just what I wanted to do. You couldn't pay me to smoke a cigarette now.

I may or may not get a Reo someday, maybe an RDA or an RBA, maybe not. Right now I just don't see a need. I'm happy.

You can do it if you really want to. Keep at it!

 

[soba1]

About two weeks I think. Vaped when I wanted to smoke.
Been cig free for a little over a year now

 

[Cullin Kin]

Took me one day of vaping to quit analogs and never looked back. They sure did smell good for a while though, finally to the point where they don't after a year and a month!

 

[lmets]

I quit the day I started vaping too, BUT...

I know it's not quite that simple.
This is the second time I tried vaping, first time I did the same and switched instantly but only lasted weeks.

This time round it was moving up to better vaping gear and getting into rebuildables that got me past that point where I knew I would never need to go back to the stinkies.

 

[DC2]

What a great thread! It's been awhile since I read one like this.

The thing that I've learned over the years, which this thread clearly shows...
We did NOT all smoke for the same reasons, no matter what the anti-nicotine people want you to think.
And we did not all want to quit either.

But when you find the vaping situation that gives you what you wanted from cigarettes...
That's when it all clicks.

And that is not the same for everyone.
In fact, it is pretty rare that it is the same for any two people.

That's how different this is for each of us.

 

[kwb5064]

Progress, not perfection! Keep at it man!


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[Spencer87]

Ok heres the thing
Vaping is not smoking, and it will never be, and it will never feel like it completely.
I vaped before, and wanted a cigarette right after....
this time, I had a strong desire to quit. Quit like 11 days ago. I was near enough Pack a Day, PAD, that I rarely didnt buy a pack in the day... , and First day i had my good vaping kit (Halo Triton), i smoked like... 10, next day I smoked 6, Next day, it was 2, then 1, then 1 only because both my batteries died, at the same time, due to me alternating the flavors. then I told myself that was the last one. I still have 4 in the last pack (after I got my vaping kit, I told myself i wasnt going to buy a new pack).You need to want to quit. i wanted too because i smelled nasty. My students could smell it. even as I am writing this... I want a smoke... (bit of a craving, ) but... i wont have one... i am making a conscious decision not to. If the craving gets really bad, I go somewhere and Chain Vape.

Since I got my kit....I also Got a nemesis clone, an RBA, an MVP 2.0 (my primary now) ...and looking at more daily...haha

i have about 50 bottles of juice, most I dont like or are so so, but I am trying them. Im buying more today.

Thing is, Would I rather smoke vanilla cream... or burnign tobacco flavor... I can... grit my teeth (joking) through delicious flavor for the not smelling like nasty. im still down a few hundred dollars, but... How much is my life worth. i thought... I would pay.... 3000 dollars to have an extra 5 minutes added to my life... and this adds more... so its priceless..


heres a site that helps me...

http://whyquit.com/whyquit/A_Benefits_Time_Table.html

i think If i smoke,i am back at square one

 

[Ryedan]

I smoked about a PAD for 37 years. I really needed to quit in 2012. I had watched my Dad pass away from complications from COPD a couple of years earlier after smoking for almost 50 years and I knew I was going down the same path.

I had heard about e-cigs and found ECF in early March. I bought my eGo-C starter kit and vaped and smoked for about two weeks while I got to know that setup. I quit smoking entirely early in April 2012.

I've had two smokes since then, in May and July 2012. I really liked them both, but I prefer vaping. I can breath again and that's a really big deal for me

I doubt I'll ever smoke another cigarette.

 

[Zavri]

I quit for a week when I got my first ecig ( blu starter kit ) but it wasn't doing the trick enough and it was costing more then cigs. Once I got a G6 from halo I was able to mostly quit, but I didn't quit 100% until I upgraded to the triton system from halo. Now I get enough throat hit and clouds to never miss smoking.

 

[Solid Snake]

It took me one day. The only thing stopping me from quitting cold turkey was the physical (and mental?) routine. After vaping Blu (yes, just Blu!) after a week, I lit up a cig and it was disgusting. The same thing happened when I switched from Coke to Diet Coke many years ago. I forced myself to drink Diet Coke for two weeks. Ever since then, I can't stand regular coke. I say fight the cravings, vape exlusively for a week or so, then see how a cig tastes.

 

[MESAZAK]

I was a pack a day smoker. My fiancé finally told me one day " I told you when we got together I wasn't going to marry a smoker, and here we are engaged and your still smoking"! We had purchased an atmos Rx, so I grabbed it and ran to a smoke shop to get juice and figure out how to use this thing. Took me almost a month of back and forth before I decided "if I have analogs I will smoke them" so I stopped buying analogs. I have bummed a smoke once or twice since but the taste[emoji21]


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[Robino1]

It took me a month to transition. And it was pretty easy! relatively speaking.

The first day I immediately cut down by more than half the cig consumption. Over the next few weeks, those tapered off to just one at night. The last two nights as a smoker, I could only tolerate less than half of a cigarette. The flavors I could get in the liquid surely made the transition easier. I mean come on! Who wouldn't like a nice cinnamon baked pear over the taste of a regular tobacco cigarette?!?! All this while getting the action of smoking. Pure genius!

The day I joined ECF was the day I received my e-cig. The first day as a non-smoker was October 5, 2012. I had lurked and read tons over multiple weeks. I couldn't believe the stories I was reading. All these people that quit smoking with this device! Some by pure accident

I honestly didn't think that it could totally work for me, nothing else ever did. Surprise!!

Lovely thread. It helps to remember the steps I went through and the angst, to count my blessings that I found ECF when I did. Nooooowww on with the fight to keep vaping a viable and available alternative.

To all that feel like you are struggling, hang in there. It can happen. If you don't completely switch, remember to count the ones you didn't have, not the ones that you do.

 

[Mig01]

I quit analogs instantly when I started vaping, with no intention on quitting tobacco. It just happens that I liked vaping more than I ever enjoyed smoking. I have yet to experience craving for an analog after 35 days of vaping.
The keys for me were: flavor, throat hit (I am using 12mg nicotine), volume of vapor production. I had the chance to find the right combination right away

 

[WaynesWorld]

Both my wife & I were smokers for 30 yrs. I was a 2 PAD Full Flavor & the wife was a 1 1/2 PAD Light smoker. Took me about 2 months to fully quit, but within 5 days I had cut back my analogs by 90%. My wife also cut back about 75% but took about 3 months to be Smoke Free

 

[Vicman]

Like a few others mentioned, I didn't start vaping to quit. Just wanted to try something new that could possibly save me some money (2+ PAD at over $10 a pack was kinda costly). I bought the Blu starter but was unimpressed so went to a new vape shop in the area and got an ego starter with five different flavors. I went down from 2+ PAD to a pack every 2-3 days within a month. I then upgraded to a MVP2 plus some glass tanks (protanks and Davide's) and loved it; that, plus finding a couple juice flavors that satisfied me, was when I made an active effort to stop smoking. From the time I bought the MVP to quitting was about a month with me saving two analogs for two weeks. Had one analog on Christmas and the last one on January 03 this year. Have not had the desire to have one since and am happy as all heck that I quit on what I consider an accident. I think that not actively trying to quit ultimately helped me to quit; every time I tried before the rebel inside me would fight back and I would justify smoking in my head and I'd give up on quitting.

 

[Hammerfyst]

And more...

Yeast?? Really?

 

[keepsmiling]

First day...no stinky sticks yet!! Thanks for everyone's encouragement!

 

[keepsmiling]

The same thing happened when I switched from Coke to Diet Coke many years ago. I forced myself to drink Diet Coke for two weeks. Ever since then, I can't stand regular coke.

If you have been experiencing ANY extra pains, quit drinking this stuff. Seriously! I used to be a hardcore DC drinker and had a lot of severe pains in my joints, especially wrists, hands, etc. .
A friend told me to swear off diet coke for a month. Sure enough, the pains subsided. Now if I were to have one it nearly kills me by the next day. I occasionally drink a diet pepsi, but never get the same reaction.
It's the aspartame.

 

[curmudgeon1]

After 25 years of smoking, I was finally ready to quit. Last week on my way to the vaper store I smoked my last Marlboro. Ive had zero craving so hopefully it works out.
I do have to say though that I do smoke pipes and an occasional cigar, but no inhaling. Tobacco pipes are my main hobby, I smoke them, make them and think about them most of the time. However, my pipe smoking has been cut in half sinse vapeing.