I am frustrated and need help please

[VapRon]

I feel you Cheryl.
I was a smoker for 40 years. I had the same thoughts with the cigarettes and the first week I went with both.
I was all nervous and not knowing what nic level and when would I get off the darn cigarettes. Well, it went better then I thought it would.
In the first week I went down to 3 cigs a day. The morning, after dinner and before bedtime ones. And now I am total free as I recognized hey there is no more desire!!!!!!

I started with 24 mg nic but found out very soon that was too much for me. (1 pack a day smoker)
I then went to 18mg and that was kinda ok but still a little strong.
Now for the first hits in the morning I use 12mg and during the day 8mg. If I feel the need for more I go back to 12mg.

As said before you will get the hang of it and in no time be smoke free. If you have the time you could also look into DIY liquids. That gives you a whole new world of combinations of flavors and nic levels.

It seems like a jungle of information here but with all those great guys around the path will be found
Just yesterday I tried a cigarette from a friend just to see how I would react. I took 3 puffs and was disgusted. I never ever have before thrown one away but thats exactly what I did this time. I am sure you will have a similar if not the same experience.
With the dripping (what I also do) I drip only 2 drops and that seems to be better. Just the first time on a new atty I drop 3 to 4 drops slowly to get the wick primed. After that only 2 drops and for overnight I put 1 drop of PG to keep it wet.
If that is any good I don’t no but it works so far.
I just started cartomizers and what I do is after I used them for the day I refill them also to keep it wet overnight.
I also refill after each use. I hope I could help a bit and am sure you will enjoy it soon

 

[fright88]

Don't be to worried about oding you will feel jittery and probably a little sick long before that happens. I vape 11 mg constantly and it is no problem. Also on 14 mg patch sometimes. As for taste you probably won't find a juice that tastes much like analogues. Most of that taste is burning chemicals tobacco paper ect. Instead I would recommen ordering a bottle of something you like a lot. Coffe Coke Vanilla Cherry any flavor that you don't mind tasting a lot. I vape Monster energy flavored juice my mom vapes Cherry. As for where to order that is personal prefrence only 2 places carry Monster so I order my juice from vaporpro my mom gets hers from myfreedomsmokes because of their large variety and the ability to get extra flavoring.

As for cartomizers or atomizers I got my first pack of cartos in the mail today filled it according to the videos and don't like it as much as my atomizers. The LR attys I use seem to have a slightly cooler vape then the lr cartos. The Cartos seem to have more flavor but for some reason the slightly less flavor and the cooler hit resembles Monster more and I am a person that would drink 5 or 6 a day if it wasn't so damned bad for me.

As for the draw use a slow and steady draw. E cigs take much longer then analogues to get a good hit. I tend to puff or drag on a analogue for 1/2 to 1 second per hit on e cigs I have to go 2-5 seconds depending on battery juice and all the other varriables.

Anyways good luck and you found a great place for support. Don't hesitate to ask any questions the only dumb question is the unasked one.

 

[dormouse]

Sorry - I have not read the whole thread

The atomizers usually come with nasty harsh primer on them which can can try to blow out and then use dripping,waiting for it to soak in, and vaping without inhale, blow out, repeat... to get rid of

If your Egos came with LR attys then those are hotter and can make the hit harsher (some people like that). Standard resistance atomizers are less hot.

Prefilled carts and possibly the juices you have may be 100% PG base juices and PG lets through the most TH and irritation of nicotine, the most flavor, and makes wimpy visible vapor.

Good juice vendors usually offer a variety of PG/VG blends. For cartomizers I recommend 20% VG or less (use the Boge standard resistance cartos for the softer hit, and the LR ones for a hotter hit). For dripping and carts you can use any PG/VG ratio (like 50/50 gives a softer vape w/ thicker vapor).

One vendor to try is FreedomSmokeUSA - Their Specialties are 50/50 only and their other juices are any PG/VG ratio.

And even if you have everything perfect for you, it does feel weird in your throat at first. It will make a world of difference to have some nice juices with some VG in them. But it is still weird when you start. Your throat should get used to it pretty quickly if you low nic juices though mornings may be rough until you get some smoother juice. And 16-24mg nic in 100% PG can be harsh - a bit of VG helps those a lot.

If you want, you can get Humco Glycerin from the Walmart pharmacy or Wilton's glycerin from the cake decorating section of Michael's crafts - those brands are both 100% vegetable. And add a bit into your current juice. It will weaken the flavor and nicotine per ml but it should make it smoother to vape with even 10% VG (vegetable glycerin).

 

[oblivyan]

Cheryl, I also switched to ecigs with a 6mg/ml liquid and I hardly knew it was there. I tried some 12mg/ml and it was too strong lol. I started mixing the 6 and 12 and it's right on. When I'm feeling a bit too stressed I use the 12 only, but not too often. I smoked lights before and the 9 seems good for me on most days. Happy hunting, I hope you find the right balance.

 

[db13berry]

The harshness you experienced is probably because you didn't have enough juice in there. A dry atty tastes terrible and will burn your throat. Put 5 drops in a new atty and let it sit for about 5 minutes so the wick soaks the juice up well. Blow it out and add 3 drops. You wont have to do it this way forever, just try it that way with a new atty. You want the atty to be wet. Not flooded or dry.

Don't be afraid of the devices. Remember, you have been playing with fire for 37 years!

Also, don't be afraid of the nic. 18mg isn't that high. To me that is closer to medium strength and you will start feeling a bit sickly before you could ever OD.

You will do great! Hang in there and keep trying. Don't worry about how many cigs you smoke right now. Just get to vaping!

 

[Skypea]

Awww you're going to do just fine. I know exactly how you feel. I just started with vaping about a month ago. On an ego like you. All these folks here are right on with what they're telling you. I'm just a little bit ahead of you in this, so I know. I puff on mine almost all day long. I kid you not. I found some super sweet cotton candy juice that I mix up with more sweetener and a little vanilla and cream. It's around 15mg or so. I can't say exactly cause like I said I mix it up with other juice. But I love it. It's sweet and warm and not harsh on my throat. You got to find the right juice and you'll be set. I smoked for years like you and vaping tates so much better. I had a few marlboro lights when I first got my PV, but honestly I really like the vaping way better. I wish you all the best. You will get lots of support here. Your post really painted a picture of how it is when you first start. Made me sorta giggle to picture you in your chair with the ego on one side and the analogs on the other. We've all been there. Hugs, Sky

 

[webgeek]

No one's pointed this out, but if your smoking is partly driven by stress, getting bothered about the ecig is a sure way to need a smoke. I've been vaping for months and am still not completely off the analogs. I have, however, noticed that of the two or three analogs I smoke a day, I'm often not smoking the entire cigarette. At this point, the analog is just a security blanket, and I'm pretty sure I'm ready to go off them entirely.

As others have said, you'll feel it before you get in a bad place with nicotine overdose. So experiment with some higher nic juice, take long, gentle drags and don't worry too much. You'll have a better chance of giving up the analogs if you're not stressing over the ecig.

Good luck, and if the information overload gets to be too much, just post. This is one of the most genuinely helpful forums I've ever come across.

 

[cheryl58]

Hi! Thank you all so much for your comments and help! Honestly, the reason I got interested in vaping in the first place was because a while back I stumbled on this site and started reading. It was the knowledge, encouragement and true conviction that I found here that made me think that I could do this. I am not ready to give up yet. Maybe I need to start taking notes so I know how many drops for atomizers and cartomizers and how many hits you can take, etc.
I think I did get some good juice. I got 5 from Backwoods Brew (Virginia, Hunters Blend, 555, Cherry Tobacco, and Waffle ... all 18 mg/nic). I also got 2 from Vaperite (VR4 and Boysenberry..both 6 mg/nic. The Boysenberry is all VG. It smells really strong just sitting in my "juice box"...I haven't tried it yet. I have a couple more questions for you all:
1. Do I always have to have the Ego sittiing with the battery down when not in use (so juice does not settle toward the drip tip)?

2. If I drop 2 drops on my atomizer, how many puffs can I take before I have to drop more on?

3. The Boge LR cartomizers arrived today (the standard did not arrive yet). Around how many drops does it take to fill this the first time? Is this supposed to look like a slushie when I am done filling (like I have read)? Can anyone just estimate how long this cartomizer will last before I have to put a fresh one in? Do I top this off during the day (again until it looks like a slushie)?

4. If I filled 2 cartomizers with 2 different flavors for use for the next day, would that last me? Do I top them off or keep puffing until they need a full refill?

5. I know that vaping is different from smoking. I guess where I am having a problem is knowing "the end". If I take a couple puffs on my Ego, it does not seem like it is enough for my brain to register that I have "smoked" so it just seems like something "extra" that I am doing and I am still looking for an analog. How do you vape so that it is closer to smoking. (I know this probably does not make sense to anybody but me...LOL...I just am not sure how to get "in the habit" of vaping.)

6. I have probably only taken about 15 puffs so far (dripped 3 times of 2 drops each time), and I feel like I have a little bit of a sore throat. Is there a period where this happens or does it have something to do with the way I am using it, do you think?

7. Do you wash your hands all the time after you drip, etc. I have a cat that I pet a lot and I am afraid of getting something on his fur.
Again, thank you all for your help, encouragement and kind words. I know that I will (probably...haha) be able to do this because I will have the help of everyone here, but it does help to hear that a lot of people had a bit of a difficult time in the beginning. The good news is that I am not quite as afraid of it as I was this afternoon

Thanks again!
Cheryl

 

[swedishfish]

You're a cigarette smoker.. don't be afraid of the nicotine. You need it to get off the cigs. You pet your cat when you smoked, right?

I only use cartomizers, hate the carts. This is how I fill them.

Pop off cap. Drip about 10 drops in. Shake like a thermometer. Add 5-10 more, shake repeat (about 30 drops in all) until the carto is full. Avoid the center. Don't let the carto get too dry or it'll burn.

Two cartos vaped dry is about 2 ml. And you don't vape them dry. I'd say have at least three full cartos or plan to top them off. Most people vape from 3-5 ml per day.

 

[swedishfish]

BTW, I was joking about the cat. You could wash your hands if you want to be on the safe side. It's not like your handling nuclear waste or anything. I'd make sure not to let the cat get into the juice.

 

[swedishfish]

I spilled almost 1/2 a bottle of juice today. I squeezed it too tight and the dropper came out and juice splashed all over me and the table. My poor dog was under the table and I screamed and scared her and she went running. I felt her fur to see if I splashed any on her. I didn't thank goodness. I think I felt a little tweak from the nicotine, but I was too upset to think about it because I lost 1/2 a bottle of my good juice.

Cheryl, make sure your cat isn't around when you fill cartos if you're as clumsy as I am.

 

[bobsyeruncle]

Well, I hope your cat is ok. Otherwise you just got yourself a newly addicted vaping buddy.

 

[VapRon]

I’ll give it a shot at #2 and #5 but I am a Noob also just keep that in mind.

2: I get 3 to 4 puffs out of 2 drops.
I like dripping in the evening because with that there is more opportunity to taste different flavors that I have created.

To #5 Just keep in mind that there will be some withdraw symptoms from the goodies beside nicotine that our friendly tobacco company provided us all those years. My experience before with all the available options was very negative. With the vaping it turned out quite easy compared to the failures before.

With 2 options of nic you are almost there

 

[brittanyNI]

I'm with swedishfish in the "don't be scared" camp. It takes a bit of fiddling to figure out what works for you.

The analogs I smoke are 120s. There is also a 100mm version with the same FTC nicotine content of 1.1 mg per cigarette. Yet, when I smoke the 100s, I actually smoke more of them. I counted, and I get 14 drags off a 120 and 10 off a 100. It seems as though its not just the nicotine content, but length of time associated with the fix. I usually smoked about 25 of the 120s daily.

So, I was thinking, how do I get the equivalent with cartomizers? What should the nic level be? There are two parameters: total daily nicotine intake and number of drags per fix. Though there are problems with the FTC numbers, I used those as a starting point in saying my daily nicotine intake was 27.5 mg. Also, I take 350 puffs per day.

I usually use an 808d-1 system. The cartos with that system are good for 200-250 puffs. A little math shows the 18mg carto to be just right -- 1.5 cartos daily gives 335 puffs and 27 mg nicotine. Now, in my case, I am still 30% using analogs; but what the calculation showed me is the concentration of cartridge/e-liquid I should be using to match my smoking style.

My original inclination was to go with lower concentration cartos and liquids and was that ever a mistake because I hardly noticed the stuff. I needed 18mg when using a manual battery and 24mg when using the automatic in order to achieve satisfaction sufficient to forego the analog being replaced.

Swedishfish is right -- don't be afraid of the nicotine. Treat it with respect of course, keep out of reach of children you like, etc., but don't be afraid of the nicotine because that's the stuff that helps you smoke fewer analogs. Within reason, if anything, it is better to have a bit too much than not enough imo.