Hypothesizing about nicotine addiction

[RubenX]

Every time I'm having a group conversation about nicotine addiction, there's always some smart guy saying "I smoked for xx years and one day I decided to quit and I did. It's that easy, if I could do it, anybody can".

Personally I could never understood how comes some people say "it was easy". I have tried so many times myself, and failed miserably. In fact, after every quit attempt, I went back to analogs with a vengeance, effectively INCREASING my PAD count.

Some could say I just lacked the will power. But I suspect that's not it. I started cycling in 2008 and by mid 2009 I was able to ride all the way from Connecticut to New Hampshire. It takes some serious will power not to call a taxi after the first few miles.

So I started thinking. It is no secret that different people have different reactions to the same substances. Some people can even die from drinking some milk or eating some peanuts. So, what if nicotine has a stronger effect on some people and not so strong in others? What if, for some people, the need for nic is so strong that they just can't help themselves. Could it be possible that my cravings are a lot stronger than those of successful quitters? If that's the case, what was easy for you, might not be easy for me, or even possible.

 

[captiancd89]

Everyone has different levels of addiction. For some people its much easier to quit then others. Personally I dont think I will ever be free from nicotine. All I can do so try to find the safest way to ingest it.

 

[BigMikeInNY]

yes our chemical tolerance i would say.....well we dont have to go cold turkey...now we have something we can use to step down nicotine strength from the highest to zero nicotine over the course of time... same concept as the patch but we actually get to curb the physical addiction as well its the best of both worlds ....good luck and stay positive

 

[DeeLeeKay]

It all depends on weather or not people "Need the nicotine" for undiagnosed medical conditions or not. There are benefits to nicotine that many are unaware of. My daughter has ADD(attention deficient disorder) and tried several times to quit. All to no avail.

So, there maybe reasons some can quit while others have an impossible time.

 

[GrimmGreen]

yeah, it's not JUST the nicotine though, it's the motion, the hand-to-mouth , the inhale and exhale, the social aspect , these are things that non smokers, and ex-smokers tend to forget. I know many zero-nic vapers, who vape simply for the motions. ... well and the flavors i guess

 

[Juicehead]

yeah, it's not JUST the nicotine though, it's the motion, the hand-to-mouth , the inhale and exhale, the social aspect , these are things that non smokers, and ex-smokers tend to forget. I know many zero-nic vapers, who vape simply for the motions. ... well and the flavors i guess

This!!! I've quit cold turkey before.... for a month until I went out drinking with friends and EVERYONE was smoking. Its about the motion, the habbit, the excusing yourself outside for a cig. Its A LOT more than a chemical addiction.

 

[Jennie O]

yeah, it's not JUST the nicotine though, it's the motion, the hand-to-mouth , the inhale and exhale, the social aspect , these are things that non smokers, and ex-smokers tend to forget. I know many zero-nic vapers, who vape simply for the motions. ... well and the flavors i guess

Yes, I think I'm in that category, and I love vaping more than I ever loved smoking...the feel, the inhale, the exhale, the taste.

And so what if I'm addicted to the nicotine too, I'm not addicted to cigarettes. I have to have my caffeine in the morning, I don't see nicotine as being any more harmful to me. I gave up cigarettes, that's all that matters to me, no matter what anyone else thinks.

 

[Timothy Cullen]

ive never had a problem stopping back when i smoked certain places like friends houses and such wouldnt allow me to smoke so i just wouldnt for like 3 or 4 days. idk i never had a problem with addiction i just like certain things. i dont have to have them. just enjoy the nic fix or rush. now that being said i feel im in the minority becuase alot of people dread going an hour without a puff. and i dipped, smoke box ciggs, rolled my own, smoke a pipe ocassoinally (never invested enough money for a good one), and even tried snus, and stonewall dissovable tablets all for different reasons. i dont get caffeine with drawls either. so idk its a little mind power but def body chemistry. i have given some thought to this becuase some people just have an genetic tolerance for things. like people of certain heritages handle alchol better or some people just cant touch the stuff. some people cant eat what ever they want and not gain a pound while other constantly watch what they eat and still gain weight. so why couldnt some people not be bothered by the addicting qualities of nicotine while others and genetically more susceptible ya know? just my 2 cents

 

[Girl4givn]

I got my Inferno in and never looked back. Bought an extra atty and I was using the pass-through from the kit and my husband was using the 1000 mah battery. Then, this weekend, he decides its just not doing for him, so starts smoking analogs, albiet less frequently and outside. I saw him standing outside with that thing, and let me tell you, I was like a fly to a pile of poo. It was nasty, tasted like I had licked the bottom of an ashtray. Did that stop me? NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Everytime he went outside, I was following him like a puppy, even though I would sit there, realizing how nasty it tasted, something in my demented little mind was being satisfied by it. I would come in, use my PV, and think, WTC? It just tastes sooo much better!

Anyway, I feel like I'm starting over from scratch again. It makes me mad. Everytime he has quit cold turkey, I have smoked like a freight train around him and he doesn't flinch. It's just not fair.

 

[Timothy Cullen]

hey we cant all be iron walls of willl. and i felt personally you if at first you still gotta smoke a little then its ok its about getting off the ciggys. the problem isnt the nicotine fix. you get taht with eciging. the problem is the 40,000+ other chemicals included many that make nicotine hit the brain harder and faster than normal nicotine does by itself. most people are either addictied to the sensation of smoking or the chemicals. its a billion dollar industry and they already got caught once genetically modifying tobacco plants for more nicotine. so trust me if in the end you end up just straight vaping then the journey was worth it.

 

[Zal42]

Addiction is an extremely complicated thing, involving many factors, and it can (and does) manifest very differently from person to person, even if the subject of the addiction is the same.

Some people can casually smoke -- smoke cigarettes at a party, say, but not become addicted at all. Some people are hopelessly addicted on the first try.

There are many things we lump together and call "addiction", but we usually coarsely divide things into two types: physical and behavioral. Physical addiction the easier one: if you withhold something that you are solely physically addicted to, then your body will become sick. You won't have an urge for the substance, as such, you simply want to be well again and don't care how that happens.

Behavioral addiction is a real ballbuster, and overcoming it is really not a matter of willpower alone. The most willful people in the world will fail if theyalso lack the psychological tools and the environment necessary.

Also, there are consequences to the process of breaking behavioral addiction, and they aren't always good. The pleasant alcoholic who becomes a cruel sober person is a trope because it actually can and does happen. There is a common, but often unstated, belief amongst addiction researchers: that an addiction should only be treated if it is causing enough harm to be worth the risk of addiction treatment.

A huge problem with addiction is social: it's viewed as a weakness and people who have addictions, especially certain ones, are ostracized to one degree or another. That adds to the harm that addiction causes, and sometimes adds a lot. However, society is wrong. Addiction is not a result of some character flaw. People who cannot escape it are not weak, they are unfortunate.

 

[n2xe]

I'm coming to the conclusion that nicotine isn't addictive. I've found that I don't vape first thing in the morning--unheard of when I smoked. I go for 4 to 6 hours at work without vaping and it doesn't bother me. I have my one good vape session in the evening and that's it, no fix just before bed as I would with a cigarette. I vape 18 and 24mg liquids and I do feel the nicotine buzz but it's a different animal than smoking was. It's more like having a beer or a glass of wine. It comes on slower. It's satisfying but I can function without it if I so choose. When I was smoking, an hour without a cigarette and I was ready to poke my own eyes out (or someone else's).

There does seem to be a point (everyday and usually only once a day) where I get a sense of frustration--for whatever reason. I vape a little and all is well. Is it nicotine addiction? Not sure, maybe I'm self medicating and maybe that's why I smoked in the first place. If the e-cig wasn't a reality, that's the point where I would fail and start smoking again. Maybe that's why the quit rate is so high with e-cigs. Without it at those bad moments, it's right back to cigarettes. That's how I see it anyway--I can completely understand why the quit rate on patches, gum, Chantix, etc is only 7%. In other words, the e-cig user has a completely satisfying, non-tobacco smoke means to get through anything life throws at him(her). With any other (except Snus) NRT, you don't.

I truly don't think I'm addicted to Nicotine but I am subject to fits of frustration and always have been. Tobacco used to cure it for me now the e-cig does.

 

[DC2]

Here is some of the work of Elaine Keller (our own Vocalek) that you should read...
The Elephant in the Living Room? « Tobacco Harm Reduction: News & Opinions

 

[DC2]

And I guess I should add...

I don't think I am addicted to nicotine at all, and in fact, I don't think I ever was.
Even though I smoked, on average, around 3-10 cigarettes per day for over 27 years.

For me it was always about a number of other factors...

One of them was taking a break from work, because without cigarettes I would never take a break.
Another one was the opportunity it afforded to have a ready excuse to escape an uncomfortable situation.

And many times, it was just a way for me to get away for a few minutes and be alone with my thoughts.
I solved many unsolvable problems within minutes of lighting up.

But I could go all day without even thinking of a cigarette sometimes.
And I could also smoke an entire pack during a night out drinking, without seemingly increasing my need for nicotine.

And now that I have been vaping for 19 months, nothing seems to have changed.
For instance, just last weekend I didn't even vape until my before dinner drink at 6pm, just because I didn't think about it all day.

 

[n2xe]

...And many times, it was just a way for me to get away for a few minutes and be alone with my thoughts.
I solved many unsolvable problems within minutes of lighting up....

Nicotine users have saved the world many times over. It would be nice to get an occasional thank you from our government rather than a stick in the eye...

 

[MrSmith99]

There is nothing easy about quitting tobacco. I tried for 20 years to quit. I even made myself physically sick trying the last time, right before I went to vaping. I did switch instantly to vaping though. But even that is hard for some.

 

[kabonk]

when I was a smoker I couldn't sit any where for an more then an hour or 2 without looking for a way to sneak out for a smoke, now that I vape I can go all day without nic and it doesn't seem to bother me