Maintaining nicotine's stimulant effect with vaping?

[sovereign110]

Hey team,

So I have a pretty technical question that probably involves a variety of different factors, so I thought I should just throw it out there and see what people think 8)

First, a little background: I started smoking about a month ago, but it was only one and a half weeks before I picked up an e-cig and started vaping (I got an eGo AIO, which I read is a pretty solid and simple choice for beginners). Currently I both smoke and vape; that first cig in the morning gives me a bit of a headrush that wakes my ... up, and if it's a day that I work, I'll smoke one on break. But the rest of the time, it's vaping.

I started doing all this because I was interested in nicotine's stimulant effects. Now, I assumed it was like other stimulants such as Ritalin or Adderall, where the more you consume the more potent the effect (to a degree) and you have to at least maintain it by taking it a couple times or more throughout the day. I have daytime sleepiness, depression, and ADD symptoms (not on a stimulant for it though) that I'm working with my doctor to figure out a treatment, so until then I'm relying on nicotine and, to a lesser extent, caffeine.

Anyway, despite my assumption that nicotine's potency depends on the same factors as other stimulants, smoking more often and eventually (and especially) vaping seemed to make me even more tired than usual and lazy. So I was confused until I caught this on Wikipedia:

Studies suggest that when smokers wish to achieve a stimulating effect, they take short quick puffs, which produce a low level of blood nicotine.
....
Nicotine is unusual in comparison to most drugs, as its profile changes from stimulant to sedative with increasing dosages, a phenomenon known as "Nesbitt's paradox" after the doctor who first described it in 1969. At very high doses it dampens neuronal activity.

Well (PLEASE DO NOT EVADE THE FORUM CENSORS), suddenly my relatively strong-... cigarettes (American Spirit menthols) and fairly strong e-liquid (24mg nicotine, 70/30 VG/PG) might not be ideal after all?

So my questions then become, what sorts of nicotine levels do I need to maintain for the stimulant effect? What's the best way to do this while vaping (e-liquid strength, any particular e-cig, frequency of vapes, mouth-to-lung or not, etc)? What's the vaping equivalent to a smoker taking "short quick puffs"? Does anyone else have the same desired nicotine effect, and how have they been able to maintain it without taking in too much to cross the stimulant/sedative threshold?

Like I said, I know it's pretty technical, and can depend on quite a few things, like my nicotine tolerance (which I doubt is very high, despite recently taking up stronger-nicotine cigs/liquid; I haven't even been doing it for a full month yet). The best sort of "test" I can think of with the things I currently have is to dial-down my e-liquid strength and start trying out the 6mg stuff I have for awhile instead.

Thanks in advance for your replies and for reading the long post! It's somewhat important to me cause nicotine has already proven itself to help me focus a bit more at work and not get so anxious and scatterbrained, but I seem to need to dial it down to some unknown degree during my time off so I don't become a sleepy, uninterested zombie (which makes it harder to pay attention and engage in hobbies/social affairs! (PLEASE DO NOT EVADE THE FORUM CENSORS)....)

 

[Asbestos4004]

Not at all technical.....Simple, really. You'll get nauseous and sweaty before you get wired. Drink a 5 hr energy and be done with it.

 

[ppeeble]

As a 35 year smoker and 5 year vaper i cannot recall ever being stimulated by nicotine....
Maybe when i first started smoking it may have happened but i cannot recall it. I think the effects of nicotine on the body (and mind) are just too subliminal to register.
It's a good question though. Maybe others can describe the effects of nicotine - for me it was smoke and feel normal or don't smoke and feel aggresive.....

 

[Grimwald]

Cigarettes and vaping are different. First burning cigarettes have a lot more chemicals (carbon monoxide etc) and much smaller particles. Enters you blood stream very quickly (a few seconds).

Vapor has less chemicals and larger droplets. Might take several minutes (30-40 minutes) to get the same effect.

Vaping is more of a maintenance thing where you maintain a nicotine level thru the day rather than have quick highs and lows.

In my opinion (I'm not a Doctor) you also have some liver action going on. If the liver is busy with nicotine and many other chemicals in cigarette smoke, it might not be as efficient with caffeine and sugars. Balance is important.

 

[SteveS45]

When I smoked many times it wasn't to get stimulated it was to relax or calm down. Anyone else remember it the same way as I do?

 

[ChelsB]

When I smoked many times it wasn't to get stimulated it was to relax or calm down. Anyone else remember it the same way as I do?

Absolutely! I definitely used cigarettes as a relaxation tool. That's probably why when I was more stressed than usual, I'd smoke more


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[BlueMoods]

Yes, I smoked, and now vape for enjoyment and relaxation. I drink coffee or take 5 Hour Energy for a mild stimulant effect.

Have a vape to calm the nerves, have a coffee or Red Bull to wake up.

 

[pdib]

this is interesting, because it's got me looking at my own vaping (and used-to-be smoking) habits. I guess I use nicotine for both purposes (aside from the addiction, that being the third . . .. or first). I definitely vape to relax; and when I do so, I vape more in a short period of time. Say, 10-15 toots in 10 minutes. Conversely, there are times when I'm designing something, and really cooking the ol' peanut with a lot of fast imaginative/creative/spatial-relations/math type thinking. During those times, I def. see that I'm using nic to increase brain function and to stimulate. At those times, I'd say I take 2 (or max 3) back to back puffs every 20-30 minutes or so.

So, large doses to facilitate relaxation,
and small doses at regular extended intervals to promote focus and mental who'sawhat'sit.

 

[Katcandoo]

How old are you? I ask this because most people who vape are either trying to quit a long-term smoking habit, or are starting out trying nicotine through vaping instead of smoking.

You say you first started smoking cigarettes a month ago, but after a week and a half, you also started vaping. And now you're a dual user. That happened pretty fast. Why did you start smoking in the first place? For the mental/physical stimulation?

As others have said here, people who are long time users of nicotine - whether through smoking or vaping - are benefiting by its calming effect; not its stimulation.

I'm a parent of a child with ADHD and autism. He takes 54 mg of Concerta a day (basically legal methamphetamine); the effects of the meds calm him down based on his chemistry.

If someone else took one of those pills for the purpose of a stimulant, they'd be tweaking for days.

So, if you recently started smoking and/or vaping for a stimulant, then you're barking up the wrong tree.

 

[CagedSpam]

A high quality B complex and vitamin D are good for energy IMO.

 

[Oomee]

Possibly more to do with the breathing than the nic/ciggies.
Rapid short breaths causes hyper-ventilation, a bit too much oxygen in the blood, high heart rate and sometimes anxiety.
Long deep breaths (intercostal breathing) increases the CO2 in the blood and lowers heart rate, relaxing the body.

 

[Eskie]

When I had to work exceedingly long hours, it was coffee and cigarettes that got me through. Maybe it was just the caffeine, more likely the combo with nicotine (also kills you appetite). Of course, by the time I no longer needed to work those hours I was already hooked, and stayed that way until vaping got me off. Smoking cigarettes for therapeutic purposes like sleepiness is a really bad choice which you will regret down the road. If you insist on nicotine as a solution, and vaping doesn't do it, go try some nicotine gum or something. Anything other than tobacco.

 

[sovereign110]

Well I'm back to report in with some interesting results....the very day after I switched down to the 6mg liquid from the 24mg, I notice a marked decrease in lethargy and actually stayed up all night that's pretty hard for me to do considering I take trazodone and it usually makes me real drowsy.

Since then I've been sticking with the 6mg. Although the stimulation is fairly mild, the fact I'm not so groggy also helps with focusing and such.

How old are you?

You say you first started smoking cigarettes a month ago, but after a week and a half, you also started vaping. And now you're a dual user. That happened pretty fast. Why did you start smoking in the first place? For the mental/physical stimulation?

I'm 30, and yes I wanted to reap the benefits of nicotine. I switched to vaping because I discovered I could get the nicotine without the clusterf*** of compounds/synergists/carcinogens found in cigarettes. Seemed safer 8)

I'm a parent of a child with ADHD and autism. He takes 54 mg of Concerta a day (basically legal methamphetamine); the effects of the meds calm him down based on his chemistry.

If someone else took one of those pills for the purpose of a stimulant, they'd be tweaking for days.

Actually, Desoxyn is legal methamphetamine, but good luck finding a psychiatrist who'll prescribe it these days; it's only used when the patient doesn't respond well to literally any other option

Concerta is just extended-release Ritalin. Not even part of the amphetamine class (I think the drug is called methylphenidate).

Anywho, because I have ADD and used to be prescribed Adderall but have since stopped taking it for awhile, I'm quite familiar with the benefits a stimulant can give. And since prescription stimulants won't be an option for awhile, I'm trying any OTC stimulants I can find.