Phycology of quitting analogs
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The first day vaping my cigs declined from 25 to 5 and stayed there. It was magic. I decided to leave it at that and get used to vaping. 6 weeks later I stopped smoking. I started my brother vaping a month later. It took him 9 months to finally stop smoking. If you don't stop vaping you will stop smoking. The day I stopped smoking I got a more powerful rig for lung inhales and used that exclusively for several months. May be that helped. Then I drifted back to MTL. What I telll people is don't worry about smoking, just vape and vape some more and see what happens with the smoking. Pressure can be counter productive.
Okay, I found and downloaded the kindle version. Will see how it goes. It only $2.60. I've been slowly upgrading the gear.
Trying to find the balance a vape I love and compulsive upgrading is proving to be a fine balance...
Cheaper than a pack of smokes, but so much more valuable. But you have to read the book with an open mind and no preconceived notions.
I wish you good luck, and I look forward to hearing your thoughts about what you read. Don't worry about the smoking, but do keep vaping.
I was a heavy smoker for 45 years when I started vaping. I still have my pipe and tobacco but it's a year old and probably would not taste good. I stopped smoking a year ago on christmas day when I started vaping but for the first month I chain vaped 24mg nicotine juice and gradually cut back as the cravings diminished.sometimes going a little overboard with the nicotine can kill the cravings until you brain substitutes vaping for smoking. just my 2 cents worth.good luck and keep fighting. you will beat it eventually
Hey Mudvaper, I wish you luck, we all go on our journeys via different paths.
I was a smoker for 50 years. Had two strokes when I was 35 the neurologist said due to smoking, it didn't make me quit. Had a severe gum disease at 50 and lost all my teeth and didn't quit.
51 weeks ago I took up vaping because my son said I could vape in his house while I was on a visit and immediately fell in love with vaping. I guess fortunately I can say I'm a wacko, extremist and when I like something I go all out. In my one year of vaping I've made financial commitment and if I went back to smoking my wife would drag me out of the house by my short and curlies.
But to me it's a hobby, I'm now retired so I make my own juice, wick, coil and whatever else I can do to fill my time.
There's another group that I belong to and they call this state of euphoria 'the pink cloud syndrome'.
I hope you get it. Good luck!!
I was a smoker for 50 years. Had two strokes when I was 35 the neurologist said due to smoking, it didn't make me quit. Had a severe gum disease at 50 and lost all my teeth and didn't quit.
51 weeks ago I took up vaping because my son said I could vape in his house while I was on a visit and immediately fell in love with vaping. I guess fortunately I can say I'm a wacko, extremist and when I like something I go all out. In my one year of vaping I've made financial commitment and if I went back to smoking my wife would drag me out of the house by my short and curlies.
But to me it's a hobby, I'm now retired so I make my own juice, wick, coil and whatever else I can do to fill my time.
There's another group that I belong to and they call this state of euphoria 'the pink cloud syndrome'.
I hope you get it. Good luck!!
None of the scary stuff ever worked for me either, not even seeing my dad fighting the respirator in the ICU when he was dying of lung cancer. Got diagnosed with asthma when I was 24, doc says I gotta quit smoking.. I just laughed at him. 30 yrs later I was still smoking. But vaping worked when nothing else ever did.
My husband said if I want to smoke again, I'll have to get a job and buy them myself. Well good lord, I don't wanna do THAT, so I'll just be vaping.
Andria
I never 'wanted' to quit, i just couldn't afford smoking anymore. i stopped it cold turkey, after 30+ years (rolling in the last few years). If it wasn't for a tight spot money-wise, i'd be still smoking - even though i had those lurking "what if" thoughts of mortality in the back of my head more often, i haven't experienced any acute ill-effects so i wasn't much perturbed by the health aspect.
I think what made it so very easy for me was that instead of "stopping" one thing, i took it as "starting" something else. I went into the local, little vape shop (which i purposefully ignored until then - well, i purposefully ignored vaping in general), they very kindly explained the basics, i took one puff for the first time in my life, and thought "hmmm i could handle that actually..."
Then went home, looked online for something a bit less expensive (shop had only £60+ kits), ordered the thing, and by the time it arrived i was already 'wanting' to vape instead of smoking. I made up my (lizard)mind, in short - sure in those last 2 days i was freaking the hell out in advance by the prospect of not smoking ever again, and i was very surprised how smooth it went after all.
It was in mid-October, since then i had an "ok, but what now??" spot of ennui for a few days at around 3 weeks in; also just last week a sudden strong craving for a good old f•g, stink & all. Both passed, without giving in.
I only wish i did the swap many years ago.
I think what made it so very easy for me was that instead of "stopping" one thing, i took it as "starting" something else. I went into the local, little vape shop (which i purposefully ignored until then - well, i purposefully ignored vaping in general), they very kindly explained the basics, i took one puff for the first time in my life, and thought "hmmm i could handle that actually..."
Then went home, looked online for something a bit less expensive (shop had only £60+ kits), ordered the thing, and by the time it arrived i was already 'wanting' to vape instead of smoking. I made up my (lizard)mind, in short - sure in those last 2 days i was freaking the hell out in advance by the prospect of not smoking ever again, and i was very surprised how smooth it went after all.
It was in mid-October, since then i had an "ok, but what now??" spot of ennui for a few days at around 3 weeks in; also just last week a sudden strong craving for a good old f•g, stink & all. Both passed, without giving in.
I only wish i did the swap many years ago.
I didn't want to quit -- I wanted to be a non-smoker without having to endure the quitting. That's pretty much what vaping gave me. I'm no longer smoking... but my "habit" doesn't really know that; it's like a blind troll that only gets mad and stomps his hairy feet if he doesn't get what he wants; with vaping, he gets what he wants, so he doesn't open his eyes and see that he's getting something totally different now.
Andria
That was hugely important to me -- I never forbid myself from having a real cig if I wanted one badly enough. I just haven't wanted one badly enough to actually smoke in about two years now. Yes, it's toughest when I'm around other smokers, especially since fresh smoke still smells good to me. But I also know from the one time I tried having that I'd regret it before I finished it, so thanks, but I'll just vape and remind myself how much better I feel physically due to not smoking.
Mind you, I didn't start vaping with the intent to quit, I was just curious if I could maybe use it to cut back my 2 PAD habit some. The other thing that helped me was the advice I received here the day I joined: Don't be down on yourself for still smoking some, instead, celebrate all the ones you have *not* smoked.
Yes, you need backups. If you really want to not smoke, or even just smoke less, don't let equipment loss or malfunction or running out of any consumable item become a rationalization to smoke.
Like some others have said , you MUST reach a point where you will do most anything to stop , if you are not hell bent on quitting it's going to be a much more difficult to succeed .
If you have tried cigalikes and it has not done it for you do not give up , they don't work for the overwhelming majority either.
Make sure you have a decent setup with a juice you like and if you are a heavy smoker "do not" go light on the nicotine , it's perfectly acceptable to vape 24 mg and there are some who vape up to 36 mg at first , not all vendors offer 36 of course.
Proper nicotine dosage is critical , especially when first starting.
If you have tried cigalikes and it has not done it for you do not give up , they don't work for the overwhelming majority either.
Make sure you have a decent setup with a juice you like and if you are a heavy smoker "do not" go light on the nicotine , it's perfectly acceptable to vape 24 mg and there are some who vape up to 36 mg at first , not all vendors offer 36 of course.
Proper nicotine dosage is critical , especially when first starting.
I was on 20-30 smokes a day before I got my first device (15 ish years). It was a little generation 2 Evod. That got me down to 10 a day, but it wasn't enough. The second or third week of this I picked up an Ego One and started vaping 18 mg/ml in it. The large volume of dense vapor was clearly delivering much so much more nicotine to the point that it killed my cravings almost dead (a pang maybe once per day) and I never touched a cig again.
I wouldn't have been able to quit on an older device tbh, also I seem to be the only one who really didn't like Allan Carr.
Treat yourself to a more powerful device and a nice tank though You need a new main rather than a backup, and up your nicotine.
If you're craving to the point where you still need to smoke, It's more you haven't got the right setup yet / too low nic levels than it is anything wrong with your mind in my experience.
Best of luck.
I wouldn't have been able to quit on an older device tbh, also I seem to be the only one who really didn't like Allan Carr.
Treat yourself to a more powerful device and a nice tank though
You need a new main rather than a backup, and up your nicotine.If you're craving to the point where you still need to smoke, It's more you haven't got the right setup yet / too low nic levels than it is anything wrong with your mind in my experience.
Best of luck.
That would be awesome!
You know, a huge part of my motivation is financial - some math on the back of an envelope one day showed me that a lot of things I wanted to do but couldn't afford would be totally doable if I wasn't spending so much monthly on smokes.
In the past two years, I've saved several thousand bucks and was able to do some traveling, put extra into my retirement and even helped my daughter buy her first new car. Before, I couldn't seem to get ahead to save a dime for very long.
Could have done much better without the backsliding, lol. Part of why I could save so much is the fact that I invested really heavily in my old gear and basically didn't replace anything but clearomizer heads and mix my own juice from a bulk buy.
Now that I've started investing in gear again, its eating into what I was saving, but that should subside in the next few months, especially if I don't buy tobacco and invest wisely in quality stuff that will last and can be rebuilt.
It is true that when I've had malfunctions, etc. I went back to smoking and it seems when I returned to vaping, it took longer to be satisfied enough to put a good dent in smoking.
The addicted brain can fasten on ANYTHING to try and rationalize what it wants -- when I'd been vaping only a few months and got those terrible swollen feet and legs, I realized just how easy it would be to say "well this never happened from smoking, so I'm going back to it!" I was determined not to let ANY *circumstances* stand in the way of vaping, because vaping was the first thing in 39 yrs that had ever allowed me to very happily NOT smoke. That relapse after my appendectomy scared the hell out of me, but I didn't stop vaping thru the whole month that I smoked, and then got some WTA to help after I finally laid 'em down again.
That's why I'm determined that the FDA is not going to stop me from vaping -- I prevailed over every CIRCUMSTANCE that actually happened or that my brain could dream up; no self-important bureaucrats are gonna stop me at this point!
Andria
Smoking is just a habit.
Vaping becomes a habit. Vape long enough and one habit replaces the other. I hope all you guys get there.
Vaping becomes a habit. Vape long enough and one habit replaces the other. I hope all you guys get there.
Over the years on Pipe Smoking Forums I've helped many heavy cigarette smokers shift to pipes ( I was at one time a heavy cig smoker myself) and finally having myself shifted to vaping full time now, here's a few thoughts that might help.
1) Firstly set up the scenario for a Truly Enjoyable Memorable Vape. These are important words which is why they are in capitals. You need to sit down calmly and just enjoy the vape, taking time over it, watching the vapour circulate in the air, focussing on your device to the point of obsession about how lovely, well made and great it is, while also concentrating on the flavour enjoyment of, and satisfaction you are getting from your e liquid.
2) Commit that good experience in mega detail to your mind, so that it becomes a happy memory and offers a place you want to return to. This then becomes your fortress and bastion of defence. You absolutely know this experience works and you can return to it.
3) when vaping always concentrate on the activities of it - you want to become expert at it so that you can do it on auto pilot...but never to the point that you omit noticing those activities - you are imprinting these activities onto your brain instead of the activities of smoking.
4) Never be without vaping kit; have back ups for your back ups - you do not then need to panic about running out and you have no excuse that allows you to buy smokes ( and there is a sneaky bit of the brain that does look for excuses " oops forgot me vape/fell out with the wife/had a bad day at work/deserve a treat/one won't do me any harm etc etc" )
5) Do not allow yourself to go into mourning about the Dear Dead Smoking - Enjoy Consciously the Vaping.
There are a whole lot of other tricks and I'm sure others will offer you better advice - but these do work - they did for me a 50+ year Smokin' Man.
Good luck
1) Firstly set up the scenario for a Truly Enjoyable Memorable Vape. These are important words which is why they are in capitals. You need to sit down calmly and just enjoy the vape, taking time over it, watching the vapour circulate in the air, focussing on your device to the point of obsession about how lovely, well made and great it is, while also concentrating on the flavour enjoyment of, and satisfaction you are getting from your e liquid.
2) Commit that good experience in mega detail to your mind, so that it becomes a happy memory and offers a place you want to return to. This then becomes your fortress and bastion of defence. You absolutely know this experience works and you can return to it.
3) when vaping always concentrate on the activities of it - you want to become expert at it so that you can do it on auto pilot...but never to the point that you omit noticing those activities - you are imprinting these activities onto your brain instead of the activities of smoking.
4) Never be without vaping kit; have back ups for your back ups - you do not then need to panic about running out and you have no excuse that allows you to buy smokes ( and there is a sneaky bit of the brain that does look for excuses " oops forgot me vape/fell out with the wife/had a bad day at work/deserve a treat/one won't do me any harm etc etc" )
5) Do not allow yourself to go into mourning about the Dear Dead Smoking - Enjoy Consciously the Vaping.
There are a whole lot of other tricks and I'm sure others will offer you better advice - but these do work - they did for me a 50+ year Smokin' Man.
Good luck
You make a lot of sense, especially the "vaping happy space."
Thanks MudVaper - in the original James Bond Books there was a lady who so loved her Players Cigarettes in the old style package that she invented a story about "Hero" the sailor who was featured - I was once equally taken with my Senior Service cigs and have got many a laugh with friends over the years while partaking of Adult Refreshments by taking the mickey out of my Addict Persona slavering over a packet of such cigs and closing my eyes while describing the look if the packet in mega detail, its feel, the sound of the slide out opening, the rustle of the silver paper being crushed etc etc.
For me I had to get myself to the same stage about vaping as I used to be with firstly cigs and then pipes. I truly say if I can do it, anyone can...but it can take work to get that "bad Side" of the brain shifted...its a Cunning Old Devil that side is!
For me I had to get myself to the same stage about vaping as I used to be with firstly cigs and then pipes. I truly say if I can do it, anyone can...but it can take work to get that "bad Side" of the brain shifted...its a Cunning Old Devil that side is!
Surprised no one's asked, unless I skipped by it - but what kind of nic strength are you using?
I agree - better gear WILL help you find a more satisfying vape. And if it's satisfying, your crave may diminish or disappear.
When I started vaping, it was little cigalikes, then egos - and I stopped smoking easily, as it no longer TASTED good, and vaping was just overall a better experience. All it took was a flavor I enjoyed. I was at 24 mg...
I agree - better gear WILL help you find a more satisfying vape. And if it's satisfying, your crave may diminish or disappear.
When I started vaping, it was little cigalikes, then egos - and I stopped smoking easily, as it no longer TASTED good, and vaping was just overall a better experience. All it took was a flavor I enjoyed. I was at 24 mg...
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