I've been on 18mg since late October, next month I plan on dropping it down to 16mg, will I notice a difference? I'm worried about cravings.
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Lowering nicotine
- Thread starter leftyandsparky
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Well, that's the beauty of this whole process: If a nic level drop is a problem you can always change it back.
In the general scheme of this issue, don't make yourself crazy 'forcing' things to a zero nic level as soon as possible. I know a lot of people get hung up on that "monkey on my back" self-perception, but if you drop your nic level too quickly, and then jump right to quitting vaping, it often backfires.
A smoking addiction is a lot more insiduous than most people give it credit for. Even with vaping the sudden cravings for a smoke can still pop up years into vaping. Nicotine via vaping isn't the big scary health issue, tar from burning processed tobacco is what has the big potential to do you in.
In the general scheme of this issue, don't make yourself crazy 'forcing' things to a zero nic level as soon as possible. I know a lot of people get hung up on that "monkey on my back" self-perception, but if you drop your nic level too quickly, and then jump right to quitting vaping, it often backfires.
A smoking addiction is a lot more insiduous than most people give it credit for. Even with vaping the sudden cravings for a smoke can still pop up years into vaping. Nicotine via vaping isn't the big scary health issue, tar from burning processed tobacco is what has the big potential to do you in.
No. I stepped down from 24mg the same way last year. If I need a little more more in the evening the tanks are there and ready to vape. It may take a few months to step down this method but I will never be stuck with to low a nic level.
I still crave a cigarette when I smell one burning, or my hubby comes in from outside after smoking one.
For some folks that's a lot tougher than the rest of us. I was one of the fortunate many where smoking went real gross, real fast, once I started vaping. Within weeks I couldn't stand the smell of cigarette smoke any more. You bet after three decades of smoking I never saw that coming.
So... has hubs given any serious consideration to taking up vaping?
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He's not ready yet. When he get the mind set to do it,he will.For some folks that's a lot tougher than the rest of us. I was one of the fortunate many where smoking went real gross, real fast, once I started vaping. Withing weeks I couldn't stand the smell of cigarette smoke any more. You bet after three decades of smoking I never saw that coming.
So... has hubs given any serious consideration to taking up vaping?
Don't put any pressure on yourself or set deadlines. If might take me a month or a year to step down all the way. I put no pressure on myself. The big benefit is the nic I have now will last 25% longer.
I made goals hoping that I could at least be at 10mg by my 1 yr vape...
Thats not happening, I know that now. I'm just happy that I'm still smoke free.
Thats not happening, I know that now. I'm just happy that I'm still smoke free.
I didn't crave at all. I was/am rather disgusted by my smoking. I think it affected a good number of things, even without really knowing it. Anyway, there is a "want" to getting away from cigarettes. Consider making a list of reasons why getting away from cigs is good. May give you a boost.
On lowering nic, I took a step down about every 2-3 months. I was a little lazy about it. I started at 24mg, then to 18mg. That IS a 25% drop. (I'll come back to that) For the first week, or two, I vaped a bit more. I kept my vaporizer out of eye sight, so I only went by physical urges. There was no "casual" vaping for me. Anyway, after a week, or so, just living constraints got in the way. It was hard to vape at work or I put it off until I finished a chore, etc. Like I said, I was rather tired of the whole dependency issue. But, I didn't rush.
Going back to the percentage thing, from 18mg to 12mg, which are common vendor levels, it is a 33% drop. from 12 to 6mg is 50% drop. Pretty big drops. What someone told me was to buy both a 24 and an 18mg or the same brand/flavor and combine them. Then when comfortable with the 21mg, drop to the 18mg. Then combine the 18mg and 12mg, etc.
It worked for me; I wanted it.
Hope helps.
On lowering nic, I took a step down about every 2-3 months. I was a little lazy about it. I started at 24mg, then to 18mg. That IS a 25% drop. (I'll come back to that) For the first week, or two, I vaped a bit more. I kept my vaporizer out of eye sight, so I only went by physical urges. There was no "casual" vaping for me. Anyway, after a week, or so, just living constraints got in the way. It was hard to vape at work or I put it off until I finished a chore, etc. Like I said, I was rather tired of the whole dependency issue. But, I didn't rush.
Going back to the percentage thing, from 18mg to 12mg, which are common vendor levels, it is a 33% drop. from 12 to 6mg is 50% drop. Pretty big drops. What someone told me was to buy both a 24 and an 18mg or the same brand/flavor and combine them. Then when comfortable with the 21mg, drop to the 18mg. Then combine the 18mg and 12mg, etc.
It worked for me; I wanted it.
Hope helps.
I have said it often, when it comes to vaping you have permission to play! There are no hard and fast rules regarding how you switch to vaping, and what you do with it once you quit smoking. Each person gets to decide how to switch, and then what to do with it from there.
A lot of us come from years if not decades of ACS quit smoking literature and all those ineffective rules: "Pick a quit date! Eat carrot sticks!" Yeah - how did that ever work out? It can be hard to shake off that rigidity.
The whole beauty of vaping is all the flexibility. For me to effectively & completely quit smoking I had to use two different nic levels for the first 4 months. I used a higher nic level for those major withdrawal fits during my switching - early in the morning and for some reason I had big problems late at night. Try swapping patches around in customized nic levels - doesn't work so well.
All I'm saying is: give yourself permission to play. Try a lower nic level, try alternating two different nic levels, move it back up if you feel like "wanna cigarette" cravings are becoming too much again. We don't rate failures here and there is no wrong approach.
I guess I just got worried, remembering what it was like the 1st month of vaping, if I was going to go through withdrawals when I lower my nicotine.
Actually, breakfast coffee included an attie with a step higher nic at times. I kinda needed it because I just didn't have much time in the early AM. I used a leftover bottle from the previous level.
I DIY now and I still make it with 1.5-2% nic. It does a minor amount of relaxing, or so my brain says. I know that I need to sit out on the porch and relax at times. I enjoy the DIY part and I enjoy the porch part. And, that low of nic doesn't give me unwanted urges when I don't need them.
Just me, everyone has their own path. Just don't smoke.
I DIY now and I still make it with 1.5-2% nic. It does a minor amount of relaxing, or so my brain says. I know that I need to sit out on the porch and relax at times. I enjoy the DIY part and I enjoy the porch part. And, that low of nic doesn't give me unwanted urges when I don't need them.
Just me, everyone has their own path. Just don't smoke.
I don't think you will see anything that compares to that. This was never about simply replacing nicotine with nicotine. If that is all you get out of smoking then none of us would experience quit smoking withdrawal symptoms when switching to vaping.
All those thousands of chemicals you get from smoking set up a complicated addiction process - including trace amounts of MAOI's (antidepressants) found in cigarette smoke. With time, the further you get away from a former smoking addiction the less "serious" what you get from plain nicotine in vaping becomes. So if you drop your nic level at this point and it's too much of a drop too soon - the end result will most likely be chain vaping to compensate for the lower nic level. But not a relapse into all the symptoms you experienced during quit smoking withdrawal.
With such a little drop you should hardly notice. You may vape a little more to compensate.
I still have some 24mg ready to go and could have 36 if i needed it in minutes. I haven't had the need.
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