Hi Everyone,
I am another newbie that has been lurking around....
I got my EVOD starter kit yesterday in the mail and could not wait to start vaping. I tried off and on all night but every time I did, I would end up coughing and my throat and chest would hurt for a few minutes. I have started out with 18mg nicotine juice since I smoke 2 packs a day of Marlboro Special Blends. I do not cough when I smoke the analogs and it does not hurt.
Am I doing something wrong or possibly the wrong juice? Is this a normal part of starting?
Thanks for any advice.
Definitely read the inhalation article YKruss pointed to (
[url]http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/ecf-library/337017-inhalation-technique-e-cigarette.html[/URL]). First time I vaped anything, I like to coughed up a lung.
If you've ever smoked a cigar or pipe or know people who do and how they "puff", not inhale (at least not much), try it that way. With vaping, seems most of the nicotine absorption is in the mouth and nasal passages. A deep, lung inhale like a cig isn't necessary and could be kind of pointless. Smoke particles are tiny things and can get down into the bits of the lungs that do the gas exchange with the blood stream (you know, get the oxygen in, take the carbon dioxide out, stuff like that). But vapor is basically water droplets and they're bigger (in relative terms of course). You probably get some of the nicotine if you inhale into your lungs but it's not like a cigarette where you get almost all of the nic in the lungs.
Also, water vapor is water and lungs get irate over having water in them.
Now, having been at this a bit (eight months now), I can inhale deep as I want without a hitch. But since lungs have no taste buds, don't really see the point. I do an inhale of drawing into the mouth, exhaling through the nose (mostly, sometimes I blow "smoke" out my mouth like smoking... nostalgia maybe?
).
Let taste be your guide. Seems the best inhales for getting the nic are also the ones where you get the most taste (smell is very involved in taste so a nasal exhale picks up extra flavor and nic... for example).
As smokers, we got into the habit of deep inhales, get the nicotine in the lungs and into our blood streams fast. Vaping is... more relaxed. Enjoy the flavors and the nic absorption should follow. Don't rush it.
The other thing that occurs to me is nic levels seem never to be what you'd expect. I was a 2 PAD smoker too. So I thought I need to start with higher nic levels. Turns out, I was wrong. I don't go over 12 anymore. I even have 6 around for the evenings (I found that I tend to "chain vape" when I watch a show and nic is a bit of a stimulant and I had trouble falling asleep... like I'd drank coffee right before bed or something).
On the other hand, I ran into a guy here on ECF whose smoking habits had been very similar to my own who went the other direction. He never goes below 24 and often uses 36. Even some 48. Which made my eyes bug out lemme tell ya.
I never cared for "throat hit" even as a smoker. I liked a "smooth" smoke. And menthol most of my smoking years. High nic will irritate my throat which can get me coughing even now. For me, it was lower the nic and vape more often.
Not a lot of "hard and fast" rules in vaping. You have to do some experimenting. See what works for you...
