Vocalek,
Depression is so frightening. Terrifying at times. I'm glad you're finding solace in wellbutrin and good old vaporized, atomized, deliciously flavored nicotine.
My last smoking bout, from somewhere in the mid sixties until 1988, i eventually ended up doing the light cigarette thing. butts piled up in my ashtray. i'd light one and prop it in the ashtray to find there's one already there, lit and smouldering away. Ah, the good old days of darkness and ignorance.
My second bout was different. I went with a fine tobacco from a tobacconist and hand-rolling. I chose this route because I didn't want all the crap cig manufacturers were putting in their cigarettes. I also liked the kick of no filter. I developed a pattern. I'd go out to smoke, have 2 puffs, and that was enough. I did that every hour or so while at work. At home, it came close to chain smoking, at times. But still, only one or two puffs at a time, and then set it down, prehaps to pick it up and relight it 30 seconds later. Being pure tobacco, when I set them down in the ash tray, they'd go out pretty fast.
Ah, nicorette. I discovered that prilosec is also required with nicorette. It helps with the tummy stuff.
The 12 years of horror involved many shrinks who identified and even explained to me the whole nicotine-dopamine connection and it's relation to depression. It became a meme of my life. The thing is, I started smoking at 17 to self-medicate my, at that time, undiagnosed and unacknowledged depression. It worked really well for decades. I could function. I didn't even know I was clinically depressed. I just felt that i had really bad days.
Anyway, all those shrinks gave me a base from which I could explain my situation to other docs, if the need arised. I think my current GP reacted to my vaping the way he did because he was very aware of my nicotine/depression issue. He was there the last time it hit, back in 88. He recognizes my need for nic with total disregard of it being addictive. Who cares if it's addictive, eh? It doesn't hurt anything, and it works.
I think that area of knowledge is growing. That nicotine is something that can really help people and, if it can be administered and absorbed safely, then it becomes medicine. I hate the chantix ads where they insinuate that nicotine addiction is bad because it is an addiction and addictions are bad. It's the way they say "addiction"-loaded with negativity.
Some of the posts here indicate that things are changing for the better. Doctors are responding positively. With hope, I see vaping becoming more and more ubiquitous and acceptable. Yet, currently, I do not know one vaper, personally. I have a friend who has a friend, but that's it.
There's also the educational aspect, which is currently our jobs. I still go out to vape with the smokers at work. They're fascinated with my results but hesitate to take that leap. I don't blame them. I never imagined something could work so well. It took deep desperation for me to give it a shot. I will also bend anyone's ear as much as they'll let me should they ask "what's that?" when they see me vaping.
Another problem is the confusion the newbie encounters. For one, there are the ecigs that are terrible, deliver little nic with a vapor that's barely there and a has a weird taste. Should someone trying to quit stumble on these cheapies, they may never give it another try.
Then there's the other side of the issue. Overwhelming complexity. I lucked out as it was indicated exactly what I needed to do. But, as I look around this site, I see that all of the information is there, but it's often occluded by extensive acronyming (I still get lost and an amazing variety of solutions that are all over the place. what PV do i initilly get? what liquid do I get? What extras will I need? What will wear out? How much nic will I need? How do I get it close to analogs so I don't miss them? Questions that can baffle a newbie. But, once one dives in, tend to answer themselves, eventually.
The information is all here. Some of it's even organized very well. But finding this site and finding the specific information a newbie needs can be a little involved. It was for me.
Depression is so frightening. Terrifying at times. I'm glad you're finding solace in wellbutrin and good old vaporized, atomized, deliciously flavored nicotine.
My last smoking bout, from somewhere in the mid sixties until 1988, i eventually ended up doing the light cigarette thing. butts piled up in my ashtray. i'd light one and prop it in the ashtray to find there's one already there, lit and smouldering away. Ah, the good old days of darkness and ignorance.
My second bout was different. I went with a fine tobacco from a tobacconist and hand-rolling. I chose this route because I didn't want all the crap cig manufacturers were putting in their cigarettes. I also liked the kick of no filter. I developed a pattern. I'd go out to smoke, have 2 puffs, and that was enough. I did that every hour or so while at work. At home, it came close to chain smoking, at times. But still, only one or two puffs at a time, and then set it down, prehaps to pick it up and relight it 30 seconds later. Being pure tobacco, when I set them down in the ash tray, they'd go out pretty fast.
Ah, nicorette. I discovered that prilosec is also required with nicorette. It helps with the tummy stuff.
The 12 years of horror involved many shrinks who identified and even explained to me the whole nicotine-dopamine connection and it's relation to depression. It became a meme of my life. The thing is, I started smoking at 17 to self-medicate my, at that time, undiagnosed and unacknowledged depression. It worked really well for decades. I could function. I didn't even know I was clinically depressed. I just felt that i had really bad days.
Anyway, all those shrinks gave me a base from which I could explain my situation to other docs, if the need arised. I think my current GP reacted to my vaping the way he did because he was very aware of my nicotine/depression issue. He was there the last time it hit, back in 88. He recognizes my need for nic with total disregard of it being addictive. Who cares if it's addictive, eh? It doesn't hurt anything, and it works.
I think that area of knowledge is growing. That nicotine is something that can really help people and, if it can be administered and absorbed safely, then it becomes medicine. I hate the chantix ads where they insinuate that nicotine addiction is bad because it is an addiction and addictions are bad. It's the way they say "addiction"-loaded with negativity.
Some of the posts here indicate that things are changing for the better. Doctors are responding positively. With hope, I see vaping becoming more and more ubiquitous and acceptable. Yet, currently, I do not know one vaper, personally. I have a friend who has a friend, but that's it.
There's also the educational aspect, which is currently our jobs. I still go out to vape with the smokers at work. They're fascinated with my results but hesitate to take that leap. I don't blame them. I never imagined something could work so well. It took deep desperation for me to give it a shot. I will also bend anyone's ear as much as they'll let me should they ask "what's that?" when they see me vaping.
Another problem is the confusion the newbie encounters. For one, there are the ecigs that are terrible, deliver little nic with a vapor that's barely there and a has a weird taste. Should someone trying to quit stumble on these cheapies, they may never give it another try.
Then there's the other side of the issue. Overwhelming complexity. I lucked out as it was indicated exactly what I needed to do. But, as I look around this site, I see that all of the information is there, but it's often occluded by extensive acronyming (I still get lost and an amazing variety of solutions that are all over the place. what PV do i initilly get? what liquid do I get? What extras will I need? What will wear out? How much nic will I need? How do I get it close to analogs so I don't miss them? Questions that can baffle a newbie. But, once one dives in, tend to answer themselves, eventually.
The information is all here. Some of it's even organized very well. But finding this site and finding the specific information a newbie needs can be a little involved. It was for me.
