New Vaper Concern

[AdamJ]

Hello all,
Just recently got into vaping and decided to stop lurking and start posting. Before I get into the concern I just wanted to say that it is a great community here and I've been able to pick up so much just from reviewing others posts. Now, On to the point of this.

Like I was saying I've just recently gotten into vaping. I've smoked to varying degrees for 10 years. I've been cutting back the last year -1.5 years but just could not seem to kick them all together. I would consider myself a light smoker now. Since getting into vaping I've dropped the analogs completly, great right....Well here is my issue. I find myself vaping way more then I would smoke. I'm concerned I'm actually raising my niccotine dependence rather than curbing it. This issue leads me at ask a few questions.

I've been using 12mg juice, approximitly how much juice would equate to an analog? Has anyone had success/good experence with 6mg juice, dont see any people who talk about likeing it. Has anyone else had similer concerns and found a solution? I hope someone might be able to give me some feedback. Thanks to all in advance.

Adam

 

[Desi74]

Hello, i seem to vaping more than I smoked too. And that thought has crossed my mind also however I guess I rather that then smelling like a ciggarette lol I started at 18 and quickly went to 11mg VG only because I couldn't handle the pg at all. Last time I bought one 11mg and 1 6mg and mixed it. Seeing now my cravings are, next time I'll go strictly to 6, then do the same mixing 6 with 0. I am really hoping to be weened off of it altogether by the time I go on vacation in June. I know non of this helped you but I know how you feel

 

[T0rtitude]

From what I understand, the body will absorb 30 or 40% of what you vape. So if you're vaping 12mg that is per ml, and you'd absorb less than half of that. As for tobacco, I don't know how much they contain or how much is absorbed. Each cigarette or pack varies. I don't know how much would equal an analog. Someone else will probably come along soon who can answer your questions.

I know for me personally, it doesn't matter if I vape 12mg or 1mg. It's all the same to my body. The only time I notice is when it's 0mg, because 0mg tends to have no throat hit regardless of whether it's PG or VG. Other people are way more dependent on nicotine and will notice a difference when they don't get enough. The only way to know if you'll have a good experience with 6mg juice is to try it. Plenty of people vape 6mg and are satisfied with it.

 

[Jackpotideas]

Hello all,
Just recently got into vaping and decided to stop lurking and start posting. Before I get into the concern I just wanted to say that it is a great community here and I've been able to pick up so much just from reviewing others posts. Now, On to the point of this.

Like I was saying I've just recently gotten into vaping. I've smoked to varying degrees for 10 years. I've been cutting back the last year -1.5 years but just could not seem to kick them all together. I would consider myself a light smoker now. Since getting into vaping I've dropped the analogs completly, great right....Well here is my issue. I find myself vaping way more then I would smoke. I'm concerned I'm actually raising my niccotine dependence rather than curbing it. This issue leads me at ask a few questions.

I've been using 12mg juice, approximitly how much juice would equate to an analog? Has anyone had success/good experence with 6mg juice, dont see any people who talk about likeing it. Has anyone else had similer concerns and found a solution? I hope someone might be able to give me some feedback. Thanks to all in advance.

Adam

Hi Adam,

First of all, congrats and welcome to the forum an to the world of vaping. There is a whole world of information regarding your questions / concerns on the web, just keep doing web searches and you will find most of the answers to the questions above. The way I understand it is this:

12mg juice is 12mg of nicotine per 1ml of juice, (at least that is what it is supposed to be and should be). So, if you vape 1ml, you should expect to receive about 12mg of nicotine. This amount is estimated to be about 10 cigarettes of 1.2 mg / cigarette in strength (10 x 1.2 = 12). So that 1 ml of liquid vaping, would be like the equivalent nicotine of smoking 10 "analog" cigarettes of 1.2mg / analog cigarette.

Now, as I also understand, nicotine is not the "bad guy" per say, when it comes to health risks unless you are pregnant or nursing or have a sensitivity to it.

I've found when first switching, vaping is so much more enjoyable, and able to be done in so many more situations, that you do tend to vape more than smoke, at least it appears that way. Whether you believe that no matter how much you vape, within reason, it is better than inhaling smoke, I think is the main point in my case. Also, experiment and find your set up. What I mean is, find the right equipment and the right flavor / concentration of juice and then adjust your vaping accordingly. It really hard to measure as compared to smoking analogs, but then again I never actually thought about how much nicotine I was taking in while smoking them. Personally I went with high nic, 24mg, and after a while I find now that I only need to take a vape break here and there, and I'm good throughout the day. Don't stress it too much, you'll find your way. Hope this helps you and others going forward.

Good Luck and congrats again!!!

 

[lulu836]

After 53 years of smoking 1.5 PAD I started vaping @ 12mg/ml @ 80/20 PG/VG, then I started DIY and dropped to 10mg/ml @ 70/30. Now I mix 6mg/ml @ 70/30. If the FDA drops the hammer on us I have enough supplies to totally wean myself off of ecigs and I'll be done with it.

 

[cyberwolf]

I was formerly a pack-a-day smoker. I started with 24mg, went quickly to 18mg and then stayed on 12mg for a year or more. I've now been vaping 6-8mg for over a year and am satisfied to stay at that. I feel it gives me enough nic now, but it would not have been sufficient to make an easy transition from a pack-a-day habit. For a light smoker, 6mg may be fine, just understand that at that low nic level you are not going to get the immediate satisfaction that comes with smoking a cigarette.

 

[stacee jaxx]

Hello all,
Just recently got into vaping and decided to stop lurking and start posting. Before I get into the concern I just wanted to say that it is a great community here and I've been able to pick up so much just from reviewing others posts. Now, On to the point of this.

Like I was saying I've just recently gotten into vaping. I've smoked to varying degrees for 10 years. I've been cutting back the last year -1.5 years but just could not seem to kick them all together. I would consider myself a light smoker now. Since getting into vaping I've dropped the analogs completly, great right....Well here is my issue. I find myself vaping way more then I would smoke. I'm concerned I'm actually raising my niccotine dependence rather than curbing it. This issue leads me at ask a few questions.

I've been using 12mg juice, approximitly how much juice would equate to an analog? Has anyone had success/good experence with 6mg juice, dont see any people who talk about likeing it. Has anyone else had similer concerns and found a solution? I hope someone might be able to give me some feedback. Thanks to all in advance.

Adam

..................Hey man!.

I vape for about 14 hours everyday using 4.5mg or 3.6mg nicotine fluids. I have no doubt i am using more nicotine vaping, than i ever did smoking. I hear quite a few people on this forum say they vape a lot more than they smoked. I get the 4.5mg fluid from a vendor that says the reason they sell a ready made nicotine solution so high is because they expect users to take fewer puffs. It doesn't work out like that for me though. I'm still hitting it as hard as i ever did !. When i smoked i couldn't get enough. But i feel much better now i am a vapist because it is healthier than smoking. And i have no intention of cutting down my nicotine consumption.

You use a 12mg nicotine solution which is quite low. I'd say your nicotine consumption is probably the same as it was when you smoked. If it wasn't you'd be using a stronger solution by now. But try the 6mg if you're worried. Better to go lower than higher right ?.

I think people will vape until they feel like they've had enough nicotine. I expect that is what you've been doing. So if your idea was to start vaping to give up smoking then cutting down on nicotine is the way to go. But not everyone wants to cut down.

 

[cocacola31173]

Im just hoping the if they do try to regulate the nicotine that they still allow sales of 0 nic juice. I could get by on that cause its the act of vaping that enjoy not just the nic hit.

Cause with 0 nic you are just looking at glycerin and flavorings right?

 

[AdamJ]

Yup, 0% is just pg/vg and flavors.

 

[boipayn]

Hi!! When I quit analogs I had a pack a day habit for 20 years - yuck. My goal was to quit smoking altogether so I started with 24mg liquid and when I felt ready cut it down to 18, then 12 then 6 and eventually 0 - but 0 didn't work for me. So I jumped back up to 6 and that's where I stay. I don't understand about mixing but I do vape alot more - basically chain vape - but its blueberry and it taste so GOOD!!!! I feel better, can breathe better, smell better, and for me - that's all that matters. I know I'm healthier. That's the way YOU have to decide where your vaping fits for YOU.

 

[SRusackas]

I think that those who are coming off of a strong cigarette habit should SLOWLY taper down the nicotine. Friends who try to go to zero over a month or so seem to start sneaking stinkies again. Give it time, enjoy vaping without desiring a cigarette and let your body wean itself slowly. I think you might have better success that way.
Also nicotine by itself has been shown to not be anywhere nearly as dangerous as a cigarette. Addictive, yes, but about as dangerous as caffeine. Which is also addictive by the way.

 

[muzichead]

Hello all,
Just recently got into vaping and decided to stop lurking and start posting. Before I get into the concern I just wanted to say that it is a great community here and I've been able to pick up so much just from reviewing others posts. Now, On to the point of this.

Like I was saying I've just recently gotten into vaping. I've smoked to varying degrees for 10 years. I've been cutting back the last year -1.5 years but just could not seem to kick them all together. I would consider myself a light smoker now. Since getting into vaping I've dropped the analogs completly, great right....Well here is my issue. I find myself vaping way more then I would smoke. I'm concerned I'm actually raising my niccotine dependence rather than curbing it. This issue leads me at ask a few questions.

I've been using 12mg juice, approximitly how much juice would equate to an analog? Has anyone had success/good experence with 6mg juice, dont see any people who talk about likeing it. Has anyone else had similer concerns and found a solution? I hope someone might be able to give me some feedback. Thanks to all in advance.

Adam

I think you will find in your vaping journey the same thing I have in my 2+ yrs so far. I started with 24mg liquid and now use a 24mg PG mixed with 18mg VG 50/50% so it averages to around 20mg. When we were on analogs, (1.5 PAD 40+ yrs for me), the way I have looked at it is on average when smoking an analog was about 8-10 mins, 2-3 times per hour, ymmv... When you look at that i'm sure your thinking, wow 16-30 minutes per every hour smoking!!! That is just about what it averaged for me... Now when I vape, I take 2-3 vapes every 15-20 minutes and put my APV back in my pocket. It is enough for me to curb any desires I have. It did take some time to get to where i'm at now where at one point I was vaping every 5-10 minutes, but have since cut back. I vape on average of 2ml per day now as opposed to 4-5ml when I first started out. What has contributed to the cut back was advancing from the cig-alike to an APV. Each step I made along the way effected how much I vaped. Once I got the idea out of my head that I had to vape something that looked like an analog, it got easier. Granted when I am busy working or doing something constructive, I rarely even pick up my APV at all. It is when I am doing nothing that I just have to have it in my hands, hence vaping more so I try to stay busy when I can.

As to your question of how much liquid equates to an anolog, you might try the research section of the forum for that answer. I don't think there is a definitive answer for it though, or at least I haven't found it yet. I only know what works for me and keeps me off analogs. I do feel now I could probably put them down and stop at anytime whereas once upon a time I couldn't.... It is just exchanging one addiction for another....

 

[subversive]

Most people vape a lot when they first start. It's something new and different, and they are not used to having a somewhat infinite "smoking" experience. A cigarette has a clear start and end. Over time, you'll get used to it and the newness will wear off. You will actually put your PV down, and it will become natural to you.

A cigarette contains 10+mg of nicotine, but we only absorb around 1mg of nicotine from a cigarette. That's why cigarettes will have information such as "1.2mg nicotine." A light would be more like 0.8mg.

If you vape 1 ml of 12 mg liquid, you are not absorbing all of that. We don't absorb all the nicotine in nic gum, lozenges, and patches, either. It just doesn't work that way. I have my ideas from posts and from my own vaping that tell me we are absorbing 20-30% of the nic in our liquid at most. It is slower, and it is not easily absorbed by our lungs. Most of it happens in the mouth and nasal passages - just like NRT. I personally have used as high as 45mg liquid but currently use 24mg. When my nic is too low, I crave cigarettes. I used 12mg to 36mg when I first switched, and I figured out pretty quickly that I needed to vape the 36mg. I was a 2.5 PAD full flavored smoker. Just listen to your body and realize that you will adjust to not having a finite, burning cigarette in time.

 

[AdamJ]

Appreciate all the feedback. I guess I just don't want to feel dependent on a PV either. From what I'm hearing its the better of the available choices though. I will try playing with 0% through parts of the day as well and see how that plays with things....

 

[kelli]

well, i get confused about how bad nicotine is for you. i mean, i hear that it's no more toxic than caffeine (which i use a lot of too), but then i read smokeyjoe's warnings about how toxic nicotine is to work with. you damn near need a hazmat suit to handle it, according to him. so what is the true story? or does anyone know? ♥

 

[AdamJ]

I assume the risk has to do with the fact it is a concentrated stimulant that can be absorbed through the skin. You could probably give your self a heart attack by improperly handling caffeine at extreme concentrations.

 

[SRusackas]

Originally Posted by kelli

well, i get confused about how bad nicotine is for you. i mean, i hear that it's no more toxic than caffeine (which i use a lot of too), but then i read smokeyjoe's warnings about how toxic nicotine is to work with. you damn near need a hazmat suit to handle it, according to him. so what is the true story? or does anyone know?

There's several threads about it, but here's a bit from one.

Originally Posted by SRusackas

Post about some dangers of DIY juice. [/URL] the real danger is in pure nicotine. The forum rules against discussing it other than to mention the serious dangers of it, are good and in place for a reason. Fumes as lethal as cyanide gas. Seriously. Don't get any. Ever. I wouldn't reccommend buying explosives and making your own fireworks either. Same ballpark. Saving some money on E-juice isn't worth killing your entire household in a toxic waste disaster!

With that said, the unflavored nic juice you CAN buy is formulated at MUCH lower and safer levels. You don't need hazmat suits, fume hoods, chemical licenses and permits etc. This is a good starting point. Add your flavors and have fun!

Thank God you can't buy the pure stuff without special licenses anyway!

 

[kelli]

thanks for pointing that out, SR. ♥

 

[othelloperrello]

Yeah, I've noticed that I vape more often than I smoked. But they're not really equal fruits to compare. For one thing, it doesn't taste nasty and make me feel horrible so I want to do it more! But I do kind of feel like a fiend sometimes puffing away while I do everything or nothing. I think about the dosage thing, how cigarettes were a kind of feast-and-famine of nicotine every hour or so. I definitely don't think I take in as much nicotine as I would with a cigarette, but I do it more often. Usually I only take a few puffs before I get that full feeling, and I like to quit while it's still satisfying. But I still consider myself to be quitting cigarettes, even though it's been 4 months, and I look at it as normalizing my dosage in a more even way. It seems to help cravings.
I've recently started lowering my nicotine strength. I went from 12mg to 10mg which has been easy. 6mg is still way too weak for me but we'll see in a couple months.
Peace

 

[calan]

...
12mg juice is 12mg of nicotine per 1ml of juice, (at least that is what it is supposed to be and should be). So, if you vape 1ml, you should expect to receive about 12mg of nicotine. This amount is estimated to be about 10 cigarettes of 1.2 mg / cigarette in strength (10 x 1.2 = 12). So that 1 ml of liquid vaping, would be like the equivalent nicotine of smoking 10 "analog" cigarettes of 1.2mg / analog cigarette. ...

While I understand that everyone is different, these "accepted" generalizations for vaping and smoking equivalency don't hold up for me at all. I've come to the realization that in the two weeks I've been vaping, I've overdosed on nicotine several times...at only 12mg levels.

I was smoking ultra-light cigarettes, with .4mg tar each. While that number sounds very light, it was actually even less once I started thinking about it. For one thing, very few people actually smoke an entire cigarette; for me, 2/3 of it's length was more common. Second, of that 2/3 length only a portion of that was inhaled, since I usually stood around standing and talking more than smoking. . Finally, what did get inhaled was usually about 10 somewhat shallow drags passed through a filter.

So with all that said, my actual nicotine intake was probably much lower than what it would seem at first glance. A little conservative number crunching puts it closer to .15 mg per cigarette. Assuming I was smoking a little less than a pack per day depending on how much I slept, I came up with about 6mg of nicotine inhaled in a 48-hour period on average, through 400 drags. (10 drags per cigarette... 40 cigarettes * .15mg each = 6mg).

For a comparison, I monitored my vaping over a 48 hour period, and ended up at about 400 drags (coincidence?) and 1ml of 12mg juice used. So I was vaping about the same as far as drags and the physical aspect, but the over-simplified math shows that I was taking in twice the amount of nicotine.

My body's reaction supported that theory. I had headaches and a general feeling of something just not being right. Not to mention, after the first few days I was "needing" to vape more often than I "needed" to go have a smoke. I believe that was my body starting to react to the higher nicotine levels.

Since I now mix my own juice, I'm cutting to 6mg or less; I may even try 3mg and see how that works.