I've discovered the secret!

[ScottP]

Hey everybody!

First of all, I'm so glad I found this place! It's definitely going to help answer many of the questions I'm bound to have!

So, a little about myself and why I'm here:

Long time moderate to heavy smoker (39 years) and have been wanting to quit for years. Smoking lost its appeal for me long ago, but it just wasn't something I could seem to shake. I honestly thought I'd be a smoker for the rest of my life, as if the choice wasn't mine to make. I've tried various methods in the past, all with varying degrees of success, but ultimately all ended in failure. Call me weak, but we all know the power of nicotine and habit...

Fast forward to August 2018 when I was determined to do something about it and make the choice mine again. A co-worker of mine who's been vaping for the past year or so told me how he felt just like me, a slave to cigarettes. He told me how he discovered vaping and how it helped him kick his 20 year addiction. He told me of a local shop who were pros at helping people just like me get off cigarettes and replace it with a vape and a plan. I was all ears...

The next day, August 13, I head on over to the vape shop and explained to the young girl behind the counter exactly why I was there and what I wanted to accomplish. I told her I also wanted something simple and easy to use, or else I would be afraid that I wouldn't stick to it. What she suggested was an Aspire Breeze (with charging dock!) and some 36mg nic salt. This is what changed my life!

August 14 was the day that I had my last cigarette! The Breeze was working perfectly, and every time I had a craving, a couple of little puffs fed the nicotine monkey! No more cigarettes! Could this be true??

August 22, eight days later, and reaching for a cigarette has not once crossed my mind. Yesterday I went back to the vape shop and picked up a bottle of 24mg nic salt and ran that yesterday evening and all of today with no noticeable difference from the 36mg. Already I'm working on my exit strategy!

I know this is all very recent and new, but I feel like I've discovered the secret to finally kicking the life-long habit to get off cigarettes once and for all, painlessly and easily! I've already convinced myself that I will never 'need' another cigarette again as I slowly wean myself off of the evil nicotine for good.

I've since picked up a couple of mods and tanks like a Vaporesso Revenger and Innokin Proton, and I've since switched to an Aspire PockeX since I had a misfiring problem with the Breeze, but the vape shop fully refunded me and took back everything, including the accessories and extra coils I had bought for it. Too bad, because I think it's a great little setup for people looking for something simple as a tool to quit smoking. I've since learned that the auto-fire mechanism on the Breeze has been known to be sometimes problematic. The PockeX has be working out great though and it's with me all day, every day now. The PockeX holds my 'medicine', while the sub ohm vapes are for 'fun'. I only run 6mg juice in those.

Anyways, that's my introduction! If you've made it this far, thanks for reading! I hope to chat with a lot of you soon about what's turning into my new life-changing hobby!

Congrats. It is sad to think that our government wants to prevent others from discovering the same "secret".

 

[Baditude]

Over the weekend I came completely off the rails and went back to cigarettes only. For some inexplicable reason vaping became a secondary consideration which translated to smoking only, no vaping for two days. I simply don't understand it.

Sorry to read that. STRESS is usually the reason that we return back to smoking. Were you experiencing some stress?

Please don't give up. Like any addiction, we have take each day, one day at a time, especially in the beginning of a new transition period. Best of luck to you.

 

[Letitia]

@Kati Not unusual, vaping has a learning curve that can be frustrating. Maybe smoke half a cig to take the edge off then pick up your vape.

 

[Sugar_and_Spice]

Over the weekend I came completely off the rails and went back to cigarettes only. For some inexplicable reason vaping became a secondary consideration which translated to smoking only, no vaping for two days. I simply don't understand it.

You may also be addicted to the Whole Tobacco Alkaloids(WTA) that are some of the chemicals that BT adds to the process of making cigarettes. There are a few online companies that have extracted this out of the tobacco leaf and offer it as an additive to the ejuice you use. You would be surprised at how many people actually use cigarettes to self medicate. Here is a link to one of the forums here at ecf

Aroma Ejuice

It is something to consider anyways.

Good luck.

 

[madstabber]

Nothing wrong with a relapse. Very common and no reason to despair. As long as you vape you will smoke less cigarettes so that is some level of success. It doesn’t need to be all or nothing. If you need a smoke, spark it up, but continue to vape and work toward smoking less. If that’s what you want of course. I’m not telling you how to live your life, just suggesting how to do it with less smoke if that’s the goal. Good luck and keep fighting the good fight, whatever that means to you.

 

[stols001]

I relapsed shortly after my 1 year anniversary. I accidentally reduced my nicotine some (long, dumb story) but STRESS was a huge part of it. Everyone told me to up my nic by a FAIR amount in some of my setups and to use them when I wanted to smoke. It took a bit, but it worked, eventually.

I had no idea I was a stress smoker because I smoked so much (3 ppd) that I kind of figured I was an "everything" smoker. As I transitioned to JUST vaping, I discovered via falling of the wagon early on, that stress played a MAJOR role. And yes, WTA CAN help, but so can a lot of things. Including feeling so guilty about relapsing, it makes you want to smoke.

Good luck to you, and I'm sure you'll climb back on the horse. However you attack the cigarettes, just KEEP vaping.

And I wish you all the luck in the world. You're still engaging in harm reduction just keep on doing it.

Anna

 

[United States]

One day at a time.

Those dastardly darts are so dang efficient. It's not as easy as breathing in heated nicotine from a steamer for some.

I have my good days, and some bad ones. But on average the overall smoking is way down. Sounds like yours is too Kati.

Now that I've been vaping about 6 weeks I reach for that device more often and cigarettes less often. One day last week I had a day where I smoked my whole day supply (of 20) before lunch time. It wasn't stress per se' but was nervousness that stirred up some old habits.

Many people here have told stories of quitting instantly. Many set a goal of stopping in time. Just relax and figure out which is best for you.

Took me two years between the day I chose sobriety and the day I was actually sober for good. Days I swore I'd never drink again at times were the drunkest I'd been in years. Then one day a switch flipped to off. My goal was "someday"....

My goal with smoking tobacco is "someday be a former smoker".....

I work with lots of ex-smokers. Most are still raging for nicotine. Former smokers are ones you'd never know ever did. Some vape, some don't. But all say it happens one day at a time until the day arrives that they stopped for good.

First thing I did was figure out triggers. Habits was next. You cannot always control the triggers, but if the trigger comes from a habit like say with coffee, after a shower etc those can be changed to other habits.

One habit/trigger that surprised me was lighting up before brushing my teeth. Every single day I'd light one, set it in an ashtray, brush my teeth and smoke. Another was to switch to cold tea in the morning, or decaf coffee.

Anyway, take your time and enjoy the journey while you figure out what works best for you.

 

[gerrymi]

You may also be addicted to the Whole Tobacco Alkaloids(WTA) that are some of the chemicals that BT adds to the process of making cigarettes. There are a few online companies that have extracted this out of the tobacco leaf and offer it as an additive to the ejuice you use.

Thread that got me interested in WTA...My Experience With Wta

The "Gold Standard"...but a little expensive...Whole Tobacco Alkaloid WTA Eliquid Ejuice

One-Third the cost of Aroma...I, personally, find it just as pleasurable...TasteMaker - precision crafted WTA e-liquid


..

 

[Punk In Drublic]

Quite amazed at all the supportive comments. You are all good people (group hug!!).

@Kati – I can’t add anything that hasn’t already been mentioned. But you have made the investment into vaping, don’t give up on it just yet. Perhaps you just need to find your groove. Stronger nic level or even nic salts. There is literally thousands of flavours out there, you just need to find one that has your name on it. Actually found a juice called Katy Peary (not implying this is the juice for you…just a little humor!). Have fun with vaping, experiment. But keep in mind that sometimes the journey can be just as fun as the destination. Wish you all the best (another group hug!)

@cyantist – Big congratulations on kicking the habit. You found an awesome forum. Lots of friendly and knowable people here. From one new member to another, welcome aboard! (ok, another group hug!!)

 

[Old Greybeard]

@Kati

I would make a substantial bet that you have probably been battering yourself about this since then, which if you are anything like me, just reinforces the "emotional" relationship with cigarettes. Are you back on the vape now?

I realised a long time ago I will go to my grave a smoker. It is just another human weakness, unfortunately a very visible and misunderstood one. Show me a man or a woman without flaws, and I'll show you a paper tiger. If we are honest about ourselves, it is our weaknesses that actually make us human.

Choosing not to smoke cigarettes is a process, and despite all bravado shown by the "grit your teeth and use your willpower" brigade, you are in reality fighting on multiple fronts. Nicotine addiction, the emotional relationship you have with cigarettes and just daily habit and routine all play a part. I realised that a while back that cigarettes were not only my "friend", but I used them to hide behind. I coped quite well with NRT patches, but as soon as I came off them I was vulnerable and deeply unhappy, and back on the cigarettes I went. So for me, I found out that while I could cope well provided I had nicotine, there was an additional dimension to contend with as well. That's when I got it, it wasn't just the nicotine, it was the reasons why I smoked. I needed a friend that I could trust, who I could relate to, and for want of a better phrase, "make my own".

That's why I've thrown myself into vaping, and made a major financial commitment to get it right kit wise. It has got to absorb you and comfort you emotionally to the same or greater extent than burning tobacco, otherwise whatever placebo you use will always come second place and you'll risk going back. Maybe some day you'll be able to vape without nicotine, but for me personally, I think that is unrealistic. Maybe I'll be able to stop smoking entirely, I would like to think so, but my current plan is to cut down as much as I can, take each day a step at a time, and see how far I can push it.

On the chemical front, another thing I only recently found out is that cigarette manufacturers also add anaesthetic to the tobacco, so goodness knows what effect that has.


@cyantist, it sounds like you've managed to get everything aligned the way you need it. Well done, the longer you stay that way, the easier it gets.

 

[DaveP]

Over the weekend I came completely off the rails and went back to cigarettes only. For some inexplicable reason vaping became a secondary consideration which translated to smoking only, no vaping for two days. I simply don't understand it.

It's the cigarette habit with smoke being a factor and the addictive chemicals that are added to the tobacco mix to create the satisfaction from smoking. Keep smoking when you need to and use the vape most of the time. I quit my 2 PAD habit quickly once I started vaping, but smoked at the critical points with coffee and after a meal for the first year I vaped. One day I decided I didn't need the smokes anymore and just finished a pack and didn't buy any more.

When you get the urge just vape like a fiend for a while and the craving will subside. 18mg nic is supposed to be the magic mix for quitting smoking, but I vaped 24mg for a couple of years before tapering down.

 

[Kati]

Well, I'm back on track, but, dear me, I'm hitting the vaping hard both in terms of frequency and depth of inhalation. I finish a vaping session (I usually try to limit myself to five "hits" [I'm fairly certain that isn't the right term. Still trying to learn vape-speak.]) and within a few minutes I am longing for more. I keep thinking I will turn the corner and a sense of proportion will eventually settle in, but at the moment I keep looking ahead and no corner is in sight.

 

[Letitia]

Well, I'm back on track, but, dear me, I'm hitting the vaping hard both in terms of frequency and depth of inhalation. I finish a vaping session (I usually try to limit myself to five "hits" [I'm fairly certain that isn't the right term. Still trying to learn vape-speak.]) and within a few minutes I am longing for more. I keep thinking I will turn the corner and a sense of proportion will eventually settle in, but at the moment I keep looking ahead and no corner is in sight.

Vape as much as you want. Never did understand limiting your vaping or nic the first few months. I still chain vape sometimes and don't worry about it a bit.

 

[WillyZee]

well done cyantist ... these stories never get old.

 

[Old Greybeard]

I keep thinking I will turn the corner and a sense of proportion will eventually settle in, but at the moment I keep looking ahead and no corner is in sight.

At the risk of becoming one of these sanctimonious, holier than thou ex-smokers or a rabid, bulging eyed, drooling advocate for vaping [open invitation to ECF members, please take me outside and shoot me if that ever happens], I disagree.

You have turned the corner, according to Public Health England, vaping is 95% less dangerous than smoking. Worse case, even if you became a vape addict, you will have reduced the health risk from the other nasties in tobacco. Nicotine is a natural occuring substance, found in vegetables. Both PG and VG are benign substances. While the jury is still out as to exactly how "dangerous" vaping actually is, logically it has got to be a fraction of the risk of traditional cigarettes. You are looking at inhaling maybe 50 chemicals versus > 2000.

NRT [and I would class vaping in the same category] is one of the most successful methods of getting off the wicked weed. So the very fact you have started along that path is a major victory .

 

[gerrymi]

I finish a vaping session (I usually try to limit myself to five "hits"

From Spinfuel:

There is something, some truth that is spoken about in e-cigarette forums dozens, maybe hundreds, of times a day that for the most part all Vapers know to be true but others, non-Vapers, do not know. It is this; Vapers vape a lot more than smokers smoke.

We all know this to be true. Hell, if I counted the number of puffs/drags I take everyday from my e-cigarette and applied that number to tobacco cigarettes I would be in the category of a “4+ packs a day” smoker.

I’m a chain Vaper, like tens of thousands of others, I vape all the time. Why not? It’s safe. Harmless even. Hell, maybe even beneficial to lung health. And cheap. There isn’t a single reason that I can see for not vaping anytime I have the urge. I call it ‘pacify vaping’

..