Sorry for the long read...
My BF and I both just started vaping this week, with brand new M401's and a small assortment of low 7mg e-juice to ween ourselves down more than we already did on analogs. He was down to about 3/4 pack and I have mostly been at social smoker status lately. I think at this point I could have given it up completely, but I actually like it, and don't want to give nic all together... at least for now. So the low 7mg is working fine for me. My BF is ending up vaping quite a bit to manage at 7mg but thinks he can do it. YAY no more putting carcinogens and ash in our bodies! From what I have read here though most are trying to quit with e-cigs? Is it wrong of me to not have any plans of totally giving up nic at this point?
And herein lies the problem. I have a friend who has been a non smoker (except for maybe a few times over the years when offered at a party etc) She has recently been under a lot of stress and is suffering trouble sleeping due to a sleep disorder that is caused by a lack of dopamine. Reading online that nicotine stimulates dopamine production, she went out and bought her first ever pack of cigarettes... at 33 years old! She WAS on meds for this before which had horrible side effects like fainting all the time. It was suffer the side effects, or never get more than a couple hours of sleep... ever. This disorder is closely related to parkinson's in how it occurs but not at all in how it manifests. Nicotine has been shown to help diseases like Parkinson's because of it's effect on dopamine production... I tried to stop her, but it IS her choice is it not?? And she says that the nicotine seems to actually be helping!
Now,.... I KNOW that most people on here (myself included) would not recommend vaping for anyone who is a non smoker.... which she essentially is - or has been until very recently. Yesterday, she saw my M401 and asked a ton of questions about it, including how to obtain one. Since she has made up her stubborn mind about smoking anyway, do I point her in the right direction and help her get started vaping since it is much safer than cigarettes? Or do I tell her no, that vaping is only for people who have been smoking for a long time? I know that if she is going to do it anyway, I'd rather my friend chose the safer alternative.
btw she does realize nicotine is addictive, but the disorder she has is chronic and lifelong with no cure and will likely get worse over the years. It's called RLS (Restless Legs Syndrome) and is caused by a malfunction in the dopamine / iron uptake system in a certain part of the brain.... the same part that nicotine affects. If nic is giving her relief with virtually none of the horrible side effects of the 'approved' meds, and allowing her to function without the need for those, where is the harm in that? The approved meds are also addictive, to the point of causing seizures if stopped abruptly so she is not taking them anymore. She is not worried about the addictiveness of nic, since RLS is a lifelong disease, and if she can get it in a low dose and safely......
I just don't know what to do. I am on the fence! I don't want to be the one to start her on a path of a future addiction, but knowing the whole story, I really don't know what to do! And I feel like if I tell her not to get into vaping, I'd be a hypocrite, since I have no plans on quitting completely myself.
Any input?? I almost wish I didn't whip out my e-cig in her presence...
My BF and I both just started vaping this week, with brand new M401's and a small assortment of low 7mg e-juice to ween ourselves down more than we already did on analogs. He was down to about 3/4 pack and I have mostly been at social smoker status lately. I think at this point I could have given it up completely, but I actually like it, and don't want to give nic all together... at least for now. So the low 7mg is working fine for me. My BF is ending up vaping quite a bit to manage at 7mg but thinks he can do it. YAY no more putting carcinogens and ash in our bodies! From what I have read here though most are trying to quit with e-cigs? Is it wrong of me to not have any plans of totally giving up nic at this point?
And herein lies the problem. I have a friend who has been a non smoker (except for maybe a few times over the years when offered at a party etc) She has recently been under a lot of stress and is suffering trouble sleeping due to a sleep disorder that is caused by a lack of dopamine. Reading online that nicotine stimulates dopamine production, she went out and bought her first ever pack of cigarettes... at 33 years old! She WAS on meds for this before which had horrible side effects like fainting all the time. It was suffer the side effects, or never get more than a couple hours of sleep... ever. This disorder is closely related to parkinson's in how it occurs but not at all in how it manifests. Nicotine has been shown to help diseases like Parkinson's because of it's effect on dopamine production... I tried to stop her, but it IS her choice is it not?? And she says that the nicotine seems to actually be helping!
Now,.... I KNOW that most people on here (myself included) would not recommend vaping for anyone who is a non smoker.... which she essentially is - or has been until very recently. Yesterday, she saw my M401 and asked a ton of questions about it, including how to obtain one. Since she has made up her stubborn mind about smoking anyway, do I point her in the right direction and help her get started vaping since it is much safer than cigarettes? Or do I tell her no, that vaping is only for people who have been smoking for a long time? I know that if she is going to do it anyway, I'd rather my friend chose the safer alternative.
btw she does realize nicotine is addictive, but the disorder she has is chronic and lifelong with no cure and will likely get worse over the years. It's called RLS (Restless Legs Syndrome) and is caused by a malfunction in the dopamine / iron uptake system in a certain part of the brain.... the same part that nicotine affects. If nic is giving her relief with virtually none of the horrible side effects of the 'approved' meds, and allowing her to function without the need for those, where is the harm in that? The approved meds are also addictive, to the point of causing seizures if stopped abruptly so she is not taking them anymore. She is not worried about the addictiveness of nic, since RLS is a lifelong disease, and if she can get it in a low dose and safely......
I just don't know what to do. I am on the fence! I don't want to be the one to start her on a path of a future addiction, but knowing the whole story, I really don't know what to do! And I feel like if I tell her not to get into vaping, I'd be a hypocrite, since I have no plans on quitting completely myself.
Any input?? I almost wish I didn't whip out my e-cig in her presence...
