Lets hope I stay cigarette free.
Hi
@nono5551212 and welcome!
@dannyv45 and the others are giving you good info. Regarding the label; I am guessing the reason there is a caution to dilute is because the company doing the labeling is using a template for the printed label and will read the same regardless of the nicotine strength. At 12mg/mL you do not
need to dilute further.
The only other advice I would offer at this point has to do with your desire to stay off the "Stinky sticks."
This advise comes solely from my own experience. My first attempt to quit with the help of vaping was a failure
because I did not have the right equipment or the right juice. This was in the early days of vaping and the only devices really available at the time were the ciga-likes that used the pre-loaded juice cartridges and produced a rather thin vapor. This first attempt lasted, off and on, for less than a month before I was back to the stinkies.
By the fact that you are able to use your own DIY liquid I am assuming that you are using more contemporary equipment and this will not be an issue for you.
Continuing with my own experience; about two years after the first attempt someone introduced me to a simple variable voltage device with a refillable tank. The difference was night and day! This time I got the dense vapor
I needed to
feel it in my lungs (something that was missing in
all the other nicotine replacements I had tried) and was able to provide an adequate amount of nicotine to hold back the cravings that I previously couldn't overcome.
This f i n a l l y
brings me to my advise to someone who is just starting their journey to quit: "Don't give up!"
If your initial efforts don't seem to be working; don't think "this doesn't work for me" and go back to smoking. Try changing up your vape instead. I was a "full flavored" smoker and the vape shop that set me up suggested I start with 18mg/mL strength liquid to start. I went back in about 5 days after I started and said that I was still off the analogs but I was getting pretty edgy and unpleasant to be around just like the other times I tried to quit. The employee said that a lot of the "addiction" isn't from the nicotine component as much as all the other chemicals that are found in analogs. His suggestion was to step up the nicotine level of the my e-liquid for a bit until the cravings subsided. So I bought a bottle of 24mg/mL of a flavor I liked and went home.
Before the day's end I was feeling much better and was
almost pleasant to be around
. I continued to vape the higher level of nicotine for about a month and was then able to go back to the 18mg/mL, a few weeks later I went to 12mg/mL, and a few months after that I was down to 6mg/mL. Now I am working at 3mg/mL.
So my take-aways from successfully quitting with the aid of vaping (
for me @ 3 years success and counting) are:
1. Use a vaping device that will provide the physical substitute that you need. (For me it was being able to feel it in my lungs, others it's the throat hit, others it's the "hands" feeling, others it is flavor. Whatever you choose to use; it must meet your physical needs, and not be too fussy that you don't like/won't use it.)
2. Don't be stingy with the nicotine in the beginning. The first step is to get OFF the stinkies. THEN you can start reducing your nicotine level. ( For you, because your DIY nicotine is at 12mg/mL, You may want to try a higher strength commercial e-liquid in the beginning, if the 12mg/mL isn't doing the trick to start. Also; it's OK to go back up in nicotine strength when you need to. I will still increase my nicotine level, from time to time, when I am feeling stressed. It is always about staying of the stinkies
first, and quitting
second.)
3. Finding the right flavor(s) matters. (
For me; I couldn't do tobacco flavors for the first six months to a year. I found that the tobacco flavors made me "jones" for an analog cigarette more. Fruits and mints were my ticket. For others; tobaccos are the
only thing that
does work. Again, if it's not working, don't quit... change it up.)
4. Build yourself a good support network. Family, friends, co-workers, fellow vapers, and vaping communities like here on ECF. Folks that understand what you are trying to accomplish and want to see you succeed can be invaluable.
Along with this I would add that being able to clearly describe what you are feeling, or what is missing, or what you want, helps other
a bunch in helping you find a solution. Especially when using a remote support base like this forum. (I have gotten into the habit of writing my post, and then proof reading it again as a whole
before posting it, and then applying any changes to make it read the way I intended in the beginning. It is amazing how often it sounds good while I am typing, but when I read it again in its entirety, it misses it's mark.
)
Anyhow, that's my
for what it's worth.
Welcome again, And I wish you success!
Vaping does work!
