How 'Public' are you with your Electronic Cigarette?

[Soignee]

I have 3 children and a Wife.

About 5 years ago I quit smoking using Chantix. I had no side effects except for awesome vivid dreams which I enjoyed. Unfortunately the vast majority of people who use/d Chantix do/did not experience the same results I did. Therefore I do NOT recommend it to anyone.

I started smoking again about 2 years ago and hid the fact from my children but not my wife. We made a mutual decision that my smoking was sending the wrong message to our children. I endeavored to quit until I happened upon e-cigs. E-cigs work for me, haven't smoked a cigarette since the quit date in my banner.

My wife is aware and supportive of this. I still hide my vaping from my children and will continue to do so until I quite them as well. For me it is harm reduction and eliminating nicotine addiction (NT has made this a flavorful plan and I may stretch my addiction out a bit though).

As a parent, I PERSONALLY believe that my actions are directly transferred to my children. It's simple monkey see, monkey do. So I have chosen to not let them imitate me, whether immediately or somewhere 10 or 20 years down the road.

Additionally, I can lose my job if they catch me smoking OR vaping. It is simply not allowed. I work in an 'at will' state and can be fired for any reason at any time. For that reason, I keep it stealthy at work my friends.

In my car, around town. PFFFT! GFY! It's legal, not hurting you, so get over it.

Friends, I actively try and educate about harm reduction and support their efforts to quit.

What's ya'lls take on vaping around your kids, family, work, synagogue or while you are out riding your favorite dune buggy in public?

Keepin' it stealthy?
Lettin' my freak vape fly?

 

[Davey59]

I don't hide it from anybody anywhere. The only people I might influence are my grandkids and they are very happy I no longer smoke. Also you might take into consideration that if you do not talk to them about certain things they may become curious about, somebody else will. If you are not open about things and get caught you set the worst example possible.

I know why people might choose to hide, I have taken that route before too.

Edit: Heh, I forgot to add I for sure would hide it from work too

 

[AndriaD]

I don't hide it either, as I never hid my smoking. My son grew up knowing his mom was a chimney, but at least he knew the real me, I wasn't hiding anything like I was ashamed of it. If you do anything that you're ashamed of and hide from your kids, they WILL find out, and they will lose respect for you. He also grew up knowing I was an alcoholic and that I had to stay sober because of it, which I've done for 22 yrs. He respects me because I saw my own mistakes and did my best to mend them. When I told him I had quit smoking by using e-cigs, he said "who are you and what have you done with my mother?" He's also proud and amazed that I could finally get free of cigarettes that had such a hold on me for THIRTY NINE YEARS, and probably respects me even more because of it.

Be who you are. If you're trying to be who you're not, no one will respect you, and heck, you may not even respect yourself, so how can anyone else?

It's understandable, not vaping at work, but it can be done stealthily, if necessary.

Andria

 

[charlzrocks]

I myself tried quitting with chantix and other than the vivid dreams (some really scarey stuff) I had a bad reaction to it (of sorts). I had to stop taking chantix because I was driving to work and was seeing cartoon characters running along side the car out of the corners of my eyes! Suffice it to say that it did not mix well with my other meds. It did work good for my mom though!
Unless there is a sign forbidding it, I vape where I want!

 

[cuse4ever]

i let it fly, baby. home, work, out and about... it's all fair game. i am, however, respectful of laws that pertain to smoking. if i can't legally smoke somewhere, i don't vape either. most people in my life have been very supportive of my switch from tobacco to vaping. the only one who has really said anything is my sister-in-law. when i asked her if she'd rather that i went back to cigs, she shut right up.

i have a lot of respect for you in what you're trying to convey to your children. i didn't do the same with my son, who's a grown man now. i got lucky, though... he's not a smoker.

 

[Fuzzy Bruce]

Monkey see! I agree! Both my parents smoked and died from smoking related health issues. I smoked for over 35 years but finally realized it was time to quit. I even remember as a child getting candy cigarettes. I am sure I smoked because of these factors.

My nic-addiction is still active through vaping and an occasional cigar or pipe. I try not to do these things around children.

 

[Spooky28]

I don't vape around children or animals. While I don't consider vaping as hazardous I certainly don't think it's without risk for myself or other people.

I covertly vape at work which I never would have done when I smoked. Otherwise I generally vape whenever I'm outside of the house. I'd probably get a lot more done if I vaped inside, I've found it really helps my concentration with my ADD.

 

[scratchtheweasel]

I liken nicotine addiction to having a bad knee. If you have a bad knee you might walk with a cane. Most folks will not be proud of their canes, but they serve a purpose and they acknowledge that having one and needing it is better than needing it and not having it.

Yes we are "addicted", but addictions are born out of necessity. You can call it weakness too if you like, but there is some belief that nicotine can help treat Schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, anxiety, and depression.

It appears to activate a class of what we call receptors, [which are] important for regulating a whole variety of brain functions. And so we think that nicotinic receptors are important for things like attention, for behavioral strategies, for what we call executive functioning, which is the ability to make decisions and evaluate information, we think it’s important for memory, and so that has led us to thinking about what particular disorders might be helped by stimulating nicotinic receptors with nicotine or with something else.

- Paul Newhouse M.D., Center for Cognitive Medicine at Vanderbilt

Source: Freakonomics » How to Make People Quit Smoking: A New Freakonomics Radio Podcast

If someone is depressed or struggles with anxiety (like me) I wouldn't be quick to recommend starting a nicotine habit, but if someone has a nicotine habit I wouldn't look at that person like they should just man up and drop the habit. People need what they need, and each person is their own best judge of what helps them.

I am lucky to have a family that supports my harm reduction and to have good friends here on ECF that support me as well. I am also lucky to have a work environment that does not require hiding it, but I think everyone gets that there are industries like Soignee's where it won't fly. I may not be proud of my cane, but for me I don't need to hide it.

At the end of the day everybody's gotta do what they gotta do. Do it how it feels right to you.

 

[Pictor]

I work at home, and have done so for 25 years - as such, I don't go out as frequently as others need to, especially for longer periods of time.
I've never used even a cig size outside yet - always have one with me or something smallish - I have a 3" Evod battery, and also recently got some iSticks, but so far haven't used anything outside home.
Not saying I won't, but on occasions where I have been out for a few hours, have managed to not want anything! (which surprised me). I think I'd be likely to use it in a quiet bathroom or a quiet corner outside if I did.

I have to say, I've never encountered anyone using them outside yet ..or indeed anyone else anywhere full stop

I liken nicotine addiction to having a bad knee. If you have a bad knee you might walk with a cane. Most folks will not be proud of their canes, but they serve a purpose and they acknowledge that having one and needing it is better than needing it and not having it.

Yes we are "addicted", but addictions are born out of necessity. You can call it weakness too if you like, but there is some belief that nicotine can help treat Schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, anxiety, and depression.



- Paul Newhouse M.D., Center for Cognitive Medicine at Vanderbilt

Source: Freakonomics » How to Make People Quit Smoking: A New Freakonomics Radio Podcast

If someone is depressed or struggles with anxiety (like me) I wouldn't be quick to recommend starting a nicotine habit, but if someone has a nicotine habit I wouldn't look at that person like they should just man up and drop the habit. People need what they need, and each person is their own best judge of what helps them.

I am lucky to have a family that supports my harm reduction and to have good friends here on ECF that support me as well. I am also lucky to have a work environment that does not require hiding it, but I think everyone gets that there are industries like Soignee's where it won't fly. I may not be proud of my cane, but for me I don't need to hide it.

At the end of the day everybody's gotta do what they gotta do. Do it how it feels right to you.

That paragraph you posted by Paul Newhouse is interesting.
I know we're encouraged to think of ourselves as ex-smokers, but to me, it's similar to alcohol addiction, or indeed any other - there's still the potential to fall off the wagon, and as such continuation to resist needs nurturing

Much as I want to carry on gradually reducing my nicotine content, I'm finding the 7 months lacking in concentration & focus increasingly hard to ignore in the hope it rights itself - forcing myself to stick with a piece of work may produce a result, but I've made myself very tired and exhausted over the past few months.

I have a few things to try, but I'm also wondering if I should step up my use of WTA, or perhaps buy one stronger nicotine liquid to use intermittently through the day. Neither appeals to my sense of achievement, but perhaps I need to try it.

 

[TheProphet]

Additionally, I can lose my job if they catch me smoking OR vaping. It is simply not allowed. I work in an 'at will' state and can be fired for any reason at any time. For that reason, I keep it stealthy at work my friends.

You mean Vaping on the job or if you run into your boss on the street and you're vaping? Where I work, vaping is not allowed, but my boss knows full well that I have one as he's seen me use it at concerts and such.


Unless I'm at work, I usually let it fly. There are places I will try to minimize my cloud, if I'm at a fast food joint or in a small grocery store, but at concerts, home, and while driving I just let it rip. My entire immediate family (my parents and my brother) know I vape, as does my uncle. I have kept it from my grandparents and the entirety of my mothers side of the family. They weren't happy when they knew I smoked. Should make the trip for my cousin's graduation a real joy.

 

[Megan Kogijiki Ratchford]

I vape in my car without concern. I vape outside at work in the outdoor kiln yard where people smoke without worry. I vape in the studio when there is no one around. Everyone knows I vape as every time I bring a new bit of gear in I have to show it to everyone, especially the smokers.

I do not vape where smoking is not permitted because if a smoker sees my clouds they would light up thinking they can.

I agree that you should not vape around your kids so they will not get that habit ingrained in their mind. However I think if they start to pick up on your vaping you need to talk about it with them.

I started smoking because my mother and grandmother both smoked inside since I was born till I was 18 then they both quit using the gum. I was suddenly without nicotine after being a second hand smoker from their 6 packs a day combined from the time I was an infant and I had no gum, I went right out and started smoking.

I've smoked outside trying to be stealthy when visiting a friend when I thought her boys were busy at the arcade. Well right after I lit up they all came to find me so we sat outside and I smoked after my friend said, "No, no, it's okay, keep smoking." And it was a great chance to talk to her boys about how the smoking thing is evil and it's the addiction that makes me do this and they were very appreciative to have this chat with me because they never had anyone do this and they were curious why I would want to stink so bad. Kids know what is going on, far more than you know. If kids are over 6 or 7, they know. Better to talk with them honestly about harm reduction and addiction than have them in Middle School and try vaping "Because dad does it..." and they are curious.

 

[KurrptSenate]

I hide it from no one, but I am respectful about it

my wife wanted me to hide it from church and its related functions. I told her that wasn't going to happen either (she vapes as well)

 

[pennysmalls]

I vape in my car or in my house when my kids aren't home and when they are home I sneak down to the basement to "check the laundry". I never smoked around my kids, they never saw me with a cigarette once in their lives and when I switched to vaping things stayed the same. My two oldest know that I vape (17&19) and have said they think it's better than smoking but I still won't vape around them. My 17 year old asked why I'm like that and I told him that for me it's just a carry over habit from when I smoked, I just didn't want to expose other people, especially my kids, to something that's bad for them. I always felt that stigma that had become attached to tobacco users (smokers don't care about themselves or the planet, they have no will, are weak and so on), and I didn't want my kids associating that with me. I do believe that stigma is now associated with vaping as well because it looks exactly like smoking.

At work I vape in my car before and after work and I vape whenever I'm driving as long as I'm alone. I'm home now and vaping like a freight train cause the kids are in school/work, I love working a split shift! The late mornings/afternoons are my time to vape to my heart's content. I will sometimes sneak a few vapes in a stall in a public restrooms if I'm desperate but that situation doesn't come up to often.

I do believe the stigma that I mentioned is alive and continues to be projected onto vaping, and until that stops I will continue to not vape around others who seem like they would be offended. I don't believe that getting others to open themselves up to the idea of vaping should be done in an in your face type of way, education/information is what's needed and we just don't have enough of it yet. Until then I will continue to respect the misguided beliefs of others in regards to vaping, because truly....they just don't know any better and it's not their fault, at least not in most situations. The average person has zero knowledge about vaping and that's just a fact.

 

[gopher_byrd]

If I'm @home, in my car or a rental car, in my hotel room, or outside it let it rip. At work I go outside, but I don't hide it. My boss and coworkers support my vaping, they think it's cool that I have given up the smokes. I don't generally vape where smoking is not allowed, the exception being airports. I spend 8+ hours in airplanes and airports on travel days and when I don't have enough time to go outside and deal with TSA I will find someplace where I can stealth. My kids are grown and I don't have grandkids yet, I'll deal with that when it happens.

 

[healy9804]

depends on where i'm at. places like my work frown upon doing it indoors.

 

[daleron]

I treat it the same as smoking.

 

[taki1203]

I have 3 children and a Wife.

About 5 years ago I quit smoking using Chantix. I had no side effects except for awesome vivid dreams which I enjoyed. Unfortunately the vast majority of people who use/d Chantix do/did not experience the same results I did. Therefore I do NOT recommend it to anyone.

I started smoking again about 2 years ago and hid the fact from my children but not my wife. We made a mutual decision that my smoking was sending the wrong message to our children. I endeavored to quit until I happened upon e-cigs. E-cigs work for me, haven't smoked a cigarette since the quit date in my banner.

My wife is aware and supportive of this. I still hide my vaping from my children and will continue to do so until I quite them as well. For me it is harm reduction and eliminating nicotine addiction (NT has made this a flavorful plan and I may stretch my addiction out a bit though).

As a parent, I PERSONALLY believe that my actions are directly transferred to my children. It's simple monkey see, monkey do. So I have chosen to not let them imitate me, whether immediately or somewhere 10 or 20 years down the road.

Additionally, I can lose my job if they catch me smoking OR vaping. It is simply not allowed. I work in an 'at will' state and can be fired for any reason at any time. For that reason, I keep it stealthy at work my friends.

In my car, around town. PFFFT! GFY! It's legal, not hurting you, so get over it.

Friends, I actively try and educate about harm reduction and support their efforts to quit.

What's ya'lls take on vaping around your kids, family, work, synagogue or while you are out riding your favorite dune buggy in public?

Keepin' it stealthy?
Lettin' my freak vape fly?

That sucks you have to hide it while at work, pretty lame actually. I vape openly outside at work and everywhere else smoking would be permitted. My general thought is don't be a douche and at least have the decency to respect others.

 

[hammer of the gods]

I drive for a living, sometimes I have others in the vehicle with me, when I do ask them if they mind, most of the time they don't in fact many of them also vape and are glad I do so they can also. when not at work I try to hide my puffs if I'm someplace where smoking is not permitted, I was at the dentist office the other day and sneaked a few puffs in while waiting.

A couple months ago I went back east and stayed in a hotel I was vapeing in my room, apparently there was vapour coming out of the room and someone "reported" me for smoking. Security came and insisted I was smoking in my room (it was pretty cloudy) even after explaining I was vaping and showing them my mod they still insisted I was smoking. I asked them if they could smell smoke they said no, and after calling another person up to the room they reluctantly let it go, but said I couldn't vape in the hotel either.

 

[ricks]

I vape everywhere, Period. I don't hide it at all except at my kids schools. I have never had one person say anything negative about my vaping. I say vaping is harmless to me and people around me. I even vape at my Doctor visits. He is amazed with my vaping.

 

[Megan Kogijiki Ratchford]

I drive for a living, sometimes I have others in the vehicle with me, when I do ask them if they mind, most of the time they don't in fact many of them also vape and are glad I do so they can also. when not at work I try to hide my puffs if I'm someplace where smoking is not permitted, I was at the dentist office the other day and sneaked a few puffs in while waiting.

A couple months ago I went back east and stayed in a hotel I was vapeing in my room, apparently there was vapour coming out of the room and someone "reported" me for smoking. Security came and insisted I was smoking in my room (it was pretty cloudy) even after explaining I was vaping and showing them my mod they still insisted I was smoking. I asked them if they could smell smoke they said no, and after calling another person up to the room they reluctantly let it go, but said I couldn't vape in the hotel either.

I vape in the bathroom in hotels. I figure if anyone says anything I can say, "WHAT?? I was taking a shower!" I figure the smoke detector won't go off and the vapor could be seen as shower "vapor" Plus with the vent fan on it is moving out pretty fast.