I think I'm slipping. Help.

[riverwinds]

Hi. I started on ecigs Saturday before last and thought I was doing real well having only 3 analogs a day, if that. For the 1st 4 days I increased and decreased my juice's nicotine, until I felt comfortable @ about 10 to 12 mg., with minor cravings. Here it is 1 week and 2 days later and I am really craving analogs now. I've increased the mgs to 15 to 18 and still having bad cravings. I've gone as far as 24 to 26 mgs, but that just gives me a headache. I'm trying so hard not to smoke analogs, but it seems there getting the best of me. What am I doing wrong? I am smoking the joye 510, thanks to the great info on this forum. Any advise would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[SuZamme]

It is really part mental and part physical. I made it over the initial few weeks by giving myself permission to be OK with having an analog or two and not keep saying to myself that I was weak etc. for having one.
Then, the longer I vaped, the most icky and less appealing the analogs became. They fell very quickly out of favor and flavor.
I also gave my body the opportunity to adjust to the lack of those 4000 chemicals and happy with nic and "act of smoking" without the cigs.
It works. Stay with it. Also check some of the other threads on ECF about quitting and the journey.
Good job in choosing to let go of the those analogs.

 

[Windpray]

don't know how long or how much you smoked but from what I see on the forum go ahead and have one, I smoked over 47 years 1 1/2 packs to 2 packs a day so I had to play with e-cigs for awhile before I made the commitment, each one of us is different, I use 24mg nicotine and it works for me but it may not work for you once I made my mind up to just vape that it what I did but it took me 3 to 4 weeks to make up my mind. So, in short, just take your time and if you have to smoke 1 or 2 on the journey then so be it

 

[zenvita]

Its all in your head. If you really want one, go for it. But do you really need it? I'm less than two weeks too but i can't see myself going back now. I enjoy my ecig much more. the alalogs smell like AS SSS

 

[humarock]

I started Friday before last, a 40 year Marlb Red smoker, so figured this would be a 'fly by night' experience at the most....BUT happy to report I have NOT had an analog nor a craving since...I DO notice that I do get a 'hankering' for one, but the smell when my hubby is smoking drives me back...and I notice that it is a HUGE part of 'habit' that makes me crave.....you get into a 'pattern' of routines that are sometimes just a passage to the day. I found I have to change that habit or continue it. So this is what I have found myself doing. In the a.m. I will pour my coffee and go out on the deck with the hubby for our 'morning smoke' together...then off to work....vape the whole drive, still come outside for my break, come home, vaping all the way home and then once I'm settled in I started logging into here and vaping while i'm on the computer, which is NEW as we don't 'smoke' in the house, took the hubby some getting use to seeing, but he's over it....anyhow....I find that if I get that 'nagging' feeling, I grab my e-cig and go out on the deck or to the garage and it's that 'routine' that seems to keep me in check....don't beat yourself up...hey EVERYONE is different and I truly know it isn't easy! So one day at a time! And remember, it isnt' an easy habit to give up and this will be your salvation, just keep going and do what is comfortable for YOU!

 

[GiMante]

It does take some time to find your "sweet spot." For me it took quite a while. Different vendors, PV's, flavors, mg. I've also noticed that some days are much better than others. There is definitely a mental aspect to it also. When I first started, I would get frusturated because I wanted vaping to be just like smoking. And it isn't. I had to tell myself, I'm quitting the analogs and their is going to be some mental adjustments to it.

I'm at 30-36mg. but I don't chain vape at all. I take a few puffs about every 1/2 hour to an hour. I'm spot on with my mg.

I say keep at it. Smoke a few analogs if you have to. I think once you find your "sweet spot" you won't want the analogs anymore. You'll prefer vaping. That's what happened to me.

 

[TheLordWinter]

You're not alone, River. I think for me it's the triggers that are affecting me the most. I know my triggers: Mealtime, gaming, seeing someone light a cig... those are big ones for me. If I'd had the money when I bought my first 510 kit, I'd have purchased a second one to go with it. It would have helped out a lot having two units to vape with and two as standbys when cleaning time came around. It would have also helped mimic the frequency that we, as smokers, puff on an analog while we break those old routines. Gonna be getting some more 510 equipment soon, though. I hope to be able to place an order at the end of the week.

And I'm going to second what the others in this thread have already said... smoke a few analogs if you need to. This isn't about quitting instantly, I applaud those who were able to, but not all of us can do it. Use them for inspiration, but don't take their success as an indication that it's the only way to stop. There are plenty of us, myself included, that are weaning ourselves off the analogs. I'm down to 1/4 pack a day, trying to wean myself lower, but it is just tough. Keep trying, and don't interpret a slip as total failure. Reducing the harm you're doing yourself is still harm reduction, and every bit takes you closer to complete freedom from the analogs.

 

[riverwinds]

Wow! Thanks all. I guess I was sort of living in fantasy. I don't know why I had thought I was only going to vape and analogs would be over. Thanks so much for making me understand that's it's OK to smoke analogs, at least for a short while. I am a smoker of 40 years @ 1.5 to 2 packs a day. Routine does have alot to do with it, as well as my body needing the opportunity to adjust to the lack of those 4000 chemicals ( that's what my hubby keeps telling me, I just didn't hear him). OK, I'm gonna keep hitting it, one vape at a time. (Baby steps).

 

[SimpleSins]

I wasn't able to just quit when I first got my eGo. I drastically cut back, but there were a couple a day that I just couldn't shake, and every now and then a random "need" for a cigarette would hit me. What finally got me over that was a bump in the voltage. While a LR atomizer or cartomizer isn't really feasible with a straight 510, you might want to try a 5V USB 510 passthrough, which would use the same atties and carts you have. The increase in amount and warmth of the vapor was enough to push me off the plateau where I had been stuck. I have found that I cannot use the higher voltage on a regular basis, but I credit it with getting me completely off cigarettes. I use the 5V or LR attie/cartos now only if I get one of my increasingly rare cigarette twinges or if I feel I need to bump the flavor in a weak juice.

 

[CaptJay]

Its true - give yourself a break - your smoking habit didn't establish itself overnight either did it?
I smoked less n less over about the first 10 days after I got a PV , although I didnt INTEND to give up my goal was to reduce the amount of cigs I was smoking. I ended up quitting because I found myself on one a day and that just seemed stupid lol.
If I really want one even now, I go ahead - I might get through 3 puffs before I want to throw up.
Never deny yourself, its a sure fire way to make sure you don't succeed (if youve ever been on a diet you'll understand this lol).

 

[trouble2k]

Please remember, this is not the same ol' cold turkey, gum, or lozenge quit smoking method most of us have tried. I told myself when I first started vaping that if I wanted to smoke a cigarette, then I could. Some days I would only smoke a few, others, a lot more. Just be content with knowing that whenever you are vaping instead of smoking, it's one less cigarette that you didn't smoke.

Don't beat yourself up because you want to have a cigarette. For most of us, it's second nature.

 

[scratchm]

9 days is a little short, but could it be that your atomizer is starting to perform less well than when you started? Are you getting a good amount of vapor from it? It's not just about the nicotine levels, there is also the feeling you get from the cloud of vapor in your lungs and the sensation and appearance of it when you exhale. For me, I failed and went back to analogs several times and only in hindsight with some experience now do I see that it was probably because my atomizers were getting clogged up.

So I guess what I'm saying is try a fresh atomizer and see if that helps at all.

 

[BlueMoods]

I never saw getting an e-cig as quitting. I tried gum, patches, lozenges, ihalers, Cahntix, you name it all to no avail. I went into vaping as a new way to smoke,evolving to e cigs rather than lighting up is all. Don't beat yourself up over having an analog but, if you light one and decide two puffs later to put it out, put it out and go vape a bit. I think you'll decide the cleaner taste of your PV is much nicer and better than an analog. Just give yourself time to adjust is all.

 

[SnowDragon]

+1 CaptJay

Don't let all the stories of "Got my kit and quit", not saying it doesn't happen...but I think you are more the norm, than the exception.

 

[Migley]

Don't punish yourself, it takes time ..before you know it, you will be dropping the butts. I find I can smell people who are smokers, at one time I couldn't, and I will have to say ..they stink, did I smell like that? Sure I did. So think of that.

 

[Denrock316]

I've been vaping for 4 days short of 2 months. I was a 1 1/2-2 pack a day guy Pall Mall red box kings. For most of the time I have been vaping I have only had 1-3 cigs a day, I have only just now been cigarette free for the past 40 hours. I have had some urges that is for sure and been a little cranky. Chain vaping like a mad man at times really seems to help. Yesterday I felt really itchy most of the day (a tobacco withdrawal symptom) which was driving me nuts but today other than being a little short tempered I'm doing better. I sold my last full carton of cigs I had to some neighbor I don't know (I live in a large apartment complex) and had my wife hide the last pack I had. Not having that last pack on my desk where I can see it seems to be helping. I think the only way I will ever actually quit is to make myself get through the first 3 days. After those initial 3 days I think it will be a lot easier.

 

[riverwinds]

Ya know, it's been 4 days since I started this thread and you guys have been absolutely fantastic. I'm taking it a little easier on myself now, I'm still smoking 3 to 5 analogs a day, but it's OK. I think one problem I'm having is I'm trying to vape like I use to smoke (a whole cig @ once) and the cart is not wicking fast enough. After my 3rd or 4th puff, I don't get anymore vapor for a while and it bothers me. Any solutions out there? I've already bought the 510 mega cart / atomizers and it does the same. Thanks.

 

[vincentk18]

Atomic Cinnacide (from Tastyvapor) @ 24mg.

Problem demolished.

 

[FireHorse]

I had the same problem with not getting enough vapor and constantly having to refill/readjust/wait... What worked for me to change all that was to ditch the poly fill that comes in the carts. I made my own fill using teabags. You can find videos on youtube about how to use the teabags as a fill. Since switching to the teabag method, I'm getting great vapor, I don't have to refill as often because the teabags absorb a lot more juice and I'm not pulling as hard as I was to get even a slight vapor to happen. I hope this helps!

 

[pizza2me]

Ooh! Ooh! I can hopefully help with this one too! I'm new at this as well and have had my days of struggling not to have an analog. But, (and I'm stealing this from somebody that helped me! Hope he don't mind! But, it helped me tremendously!!!

Vape all you want, smoke when you have too, and one day you're going to wake up and realize you haven't had an analog!! That's the beauty of vaping!!! NO STRESS!! If you feel you need a cig, have one!! And, as others have said, you'll probably find that they taste nasty and not nearly as good as what you can vape with the right strength/flavor.

I'm still searching myself for the best TH, flavor, strength, but knowing that I always have an analog nearby. (don't have it in your pocket... put it in a drawer or briefcase, etc.. so you don't automatically grab it... but know in you mind that if I want one, I can have one.. That greatly took the stress out of it for me. Sometimes I have 1 a day. some times I go for 3-4 days without one. ) Some day I'm going to wake up and realize, "I haven't had an analog in ## weeks!!!)

Hang in there! Don't stress it!!!