Vaping after a heart attack or with heart disease?

[Koula60]

I am 54 yr old and had bypass heart surgery in 2008. I finally switched to ecigs last April and i felt a difference immediately on energy etc. My cardiologist was esctatic and encouraging. My personal suggestion is not using very high nicotine and a joyetech ego c twist with a kanger protank mini II for a new vaper. Good luck and good health!!

 

[downInTn]

If 24mg isn't doing it you should look into getting some WTA juice. AKA; Whole tobacco Alkaloid. There are other things you are craving other than nicotine.

 

[Lurch]

I had a triple by-pass in 1998. At that time I quit smoking and stayed off cigs for a little over a year. I was in a very stressful career and starting smoking again. For the past 14 years or so I was smoking small cigars (like they were cigarettes) any where from 4 -10 per day. A little over two weeks ago I quit smoking all together and started vaping. I started on 12mg nic and my last purchase I got some 8mg (I found a local shop that adds the nic to your liquid when you buy it so you can tell them exactly how much you want). I can tell you that in this short time period I feel better already. I am having a pacer/internal cardiac defib placed the first week of May. When I told my doctor that I had stopped smoking and switched to vaping he was trilled! I plan to continue to decrease my nic intake over time. I will probably continue to use my vape, just without the nicotine....
Good luck...

 

[2legsshrt]

Well I got my order of 0mg. The taste is great but there is no throat hit at all. I was only using 3mg. I don't notice a difference except for the throat hit I hope I can handle it. Like I say the taste is great as always from Heathers but I miss that little bit of throat hit. I am letting it steep with the cap off. They offered to make me some at 1.5mg but I went with 0. If I can't handle it I will order the same amounts with 6mg and mix them. We'll see. I am still switching off between the 0 and the 3.

 

[cags]

Well I got my order of 0mg. The taste is great but there is no throat hit at all. I was only using 3mg. I don't notice a difference except for the throat hit I hope I can handle it. Like I say the taste is great as always from Heathers but I miss that little bit of throat hit. I am letting it steep with the cap off. They offered to make me some at 1.5mg but I went with 0. If I can't handle it I will order the same amounts with 6mg and mix them. We'll see. I am still switching off between the 0 and the 3.

I felt that way when I went from 12 to 6. but I got used to it, so give it a little time, maybe you will too

 

[2legsshrt]

You know what? I let it steep overnite with the caps off and it made a big difference. I have a little bit of the 3 mg left in all the flavors and I think I will add it to the 0mg bumping it up to maybe .5mg. I don't think that will hurt me any.

 

[GPC2012]

Two heart attacks, two stents. the first in 2006 the second in 2009. Smoked until Jan. of this year, My cardio. Was such a .... that he quit me because I wouldn't quit smoking. Now I know I should have quit, but had other issues that smoking helped me deal with, better than becoming and alcoholic or drug addict. My family Dr. is kind enough to monitor my cardio meds. He also wanted me to quit, and when I told him about vaping and how much I had cut down back in January right after we got out units for Christmas, he was very happy. We saw him again in March, I took my SVD with me and showed it to him, explained a little more in depth how it worked, what was in the E juice and how much nicotine I was using at that time we were on 9 to 12 mg. We now are mostly on 6. His opinion was that the nic. alone was a whole lot better than all the other chemicals we were getting in analogs. He even tried my SVD, I had peach cobbler in it at the time, he was amazed at how good it tasted. He's all for me vaping even with the heart condition. I also am an epileptic and have a chronic pain issue that I take meds for. As well as being a little overweight. Needless to say I'm not the normal guy next door. Vaping has been perfect for me. I have lost over 30 lbs, my BP is lower, my LDL went down, it wasn't real high, but always a concern when you have a cardiac condition. Stick with it, go to your dr. explore your options for lower nic levels and PG/VG ratios.

Good luck, and I think you'll do better when you feel safe enough to toss the analogs.

 

[bobbyk45248]

Hi All,

I found this forum while googling: 'ecig vasospasm'. There is a thread here called:Vaping After a Heart Attack / After Heart Disease Diagnosis but as a new member here I apparently can not post on that thread yet, so I thought I'd post my experience here to see if other have experiened anything simular.



I'm a 46 year old male smoker. I've had several heart attacks over the last six years and have had 5 coronary stents. The last 2 were done in January and I have to have another one done early next month. The cardiologist also told I need a treble bypass soon.

As you can imagine, I really, really need to stop smoking! I gave up for 4 years when I was in my 20s, so I know I can do it. But the stress of quitting now is paradoxically having a really bad effect on my health, including making me tachycardic, increasing my blood pressure and even causing sub-clinical hypomania. So I'm in a bit of a catch 22 situation.


After reading Allen Carr's book; The Easy Way To Quit Smoking, a few years back, I've been of the general opinion that the only way to quite an addiction is just to make the mental decision the quit and just stop - rather than substitute one thing for another, such as tobacco for ecigs. However, I've spoken to friends and associates, who have tried ecigs, about their experiences and many of them are positive, so I recently decided to try quitting smoking using ecigs.


My first attempt was with the type that looks just like a cigarette, however, despite being of the higher strength, it was utterly useless. I could puff on it all day but I did nothing to relieve my need to smoke. In fact it made me feel annoyed and frustrated because I could not get a 'hit' my body was looking for and it actually made my need to smoke more intense!


I then tried the more epensive vaporiser type. This was much better, although the second day I had it I noticed it would not quell my first morning's craving, but at least I was smoking less for the rest of the day. Then a day later I noticed a sharp pain in my chest that did not seem to be cause by any physical excursion. I noticed it again later that day and then again the following day, and it soon became clear these pains were occurring when I was 'vaping' more than usual.


I spoke to my cardiac rehab team about it and they tell tell me nicotine can cause vasospasms and its entirely likely I was personally ingesting more nicotine by vaping than I was smoking. Therefore I'm now applying the acid test of leaving the vaporiser off for a week then trying it again. If I experience the same sharp pains again I will, unfortunately, be throwing it in the bin.


I will keep you informed of what happens but would love to hear if anyone has any similar experiences.

All the Best,
Paul

I do not have time to read every post that has been made, but the first thought that came to mind is that you may be allergic to PG (Propylene Glycerin)

I have no idea what type of eJuice you were/are using, but you may want to try a 100% VG (Vegetable Glycerin) and see how your body handles that.

If the spasms you talk about stop, then you've found the culprit! Good luck with your vaping and with future surgery. Hope all goes well and you can finally rid yourself of nasty tobacco!

 

[Saintscruiser]

I was one of those smokers that had steel barricades around my habit. If you discussed my quitting, I'd let you know how I felt about that in a New York second! In 2009, my mom died of lung cancer from cigarettes. In 1999, when my mom had triple by-pass, her pulmonologist told her she had to quit smoking or he wouldn't even talk to her anymore. Her cardiologist told her if she didn't quit smoking, he didn't think she would live longer than another 5 years. (She lived 10.)She quit for 3 months then went back to them. My father and I smoked outside for awhile. That didn't last very long. Mom loved her cigarettes and they comforted her like a friend. I felt the exact same way. So when she started smoking again, how could I tell her no when I wouldn't do it myself.

Daddy died in 2007 and she died, like I said, in 2009. The way I see it, it's her life and her choice...period. After her death, I was out of control with my smoking. There are so many burn marks on the carpet, on my side of the bed. (I've left them there as a reminder.) I'd become dangerous. I knew I was doomed to follow her footsteps. I had a coughing spell that sounded like my mom's. I didn't even know about e-cigs, but saw a commercial. I asked my husband to check it out for me. He is the one who found this website, Praise God for ECF! I kept reading where people put down cigarettes within days. What a miracle! Could that work for me? I'd smoked 42 years! I was smoking up to 2 1/2 packs a day. I prayed for help for the 1st time in my smoking career. When I got my kit......blagh!!! I had ordered Salem flavored liquid. IT WAS NASTY! NOTE TO NEW PEOPLE - supposed tobacco liquid IS NOT THE SAME! Smoking and vaping are not the same. I smoked a cigarette that first night I got my kit every hour. The next day, I smoked every 2 hours. The third day, I smoked 2. I'd always said "hey, if I only smoked 2 cigarettes a day, might as well quit!" Well, I did. It wasn't as easy as I had hoped, but I kept re-committing myself to quitting. I haven't smoked a cigarette in 3 years, 9 months. I don't want to smoke one. I don't want THAT HEAVY SMOKE in my lungs anymore! At rest, my O2 sat level is 98%. After 42 years, my chest x-ray is NORMAL, PRAISE GOD! I vape at the doctor's office, in a hospital.....anywhere I want! My nicotine level is high, but that's where I want it. It is my choice, and I choose not to smoke. I tried to ween myself down on the nic amount, but haven't been successful as yet. I am disabled and it's almost the last pleasure I enjoy. My family couldn't believe it, my doctor's couldn't believe it, my dentist couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe it. I am so thankful. The ECF was such great support. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE! You have played such a great part in my success.

 

[2legsshrt]

Well I'll have to say the 0mg isn't as hard as I thought. It's been a long battle. I started out at 36mg 5 years ago and at that time the vaping instruments were pretty crude. Now I have 5 VV devices. 1 Provari that my wife uses and the rest are mine. I have decided to keep 1 of them set up with some 3mg tobacco flavor and the rest are 0mg. They taste damned good too. My Kayfun arrives today and going to fill it to the brim with 0mg Monkey Mango. If things get hectic I take a quick vpe off my old Vamo with the 3mg Shadow. I have to thank Heathers Heavenly Vapes for mixing such delicious juice and customizing it to exactly how I want it. Great place, natural fruit and tobacco extracts and customer service you never would expect in this day and age. So hopefully my heart with the leaky valve will keep on ticking a few more years. I really don't know what the plan is, if they are going to have to do another open heart surgery or what. Well keep up the good fight.

 

[100sFakeSupreme]

Wow. after that much abuse I can't believe smoking still is apart of your life. crazy the dangers of cigarettes and how addictive they can be even if your life is at stake.

 

[Mirza]

Why not try a lower nicotine strength?

 

[Bontasia]

My grandma smoked her entire life and in her 70's she was diagnosed with lung cancer.

She had surgery where they removed all of one lung and 1/4 of the other and in the hospital after her surgery she threw such a huge fuss that my aunt wheeled her outside so she could smoke. She continued to smoke 2+ packs a day with her remaining 3/4 lung until she died a year later. Smoking killed her, plain and simple.

I'm not usually a conspiracy theorist but I honestly, 100% believe that there are chemicals that are purposely added to cigarettes to make them INSANELY addictive.

I'd offer several suggestions to you were it not for your medical history.

I don't believe nicotine is evil. It has had positive effects on several issues I have including anxiety and depression.

That being said, one of my dearest friends almost lost her leg due to complications with diabetes and the effects of nicotine constricting blood flow. She quit smoking cold turkey with nicotine gum but she has struggled daily with it and over 2 years later she still struggles.

I smoked the same amount of time as her, roughly 30 years and I picked up a vaporizer about a month and a half ago and I instantly quit smoking. Didn't want one and still don't. I started at 36mg and I'm on 12mg now. My next batch of e-liquid I order will be 6mg. There have been a handful of times that I've "wanted" to smoke but it was a desire for the routine, it was habit. Like putting my fork down after a big meal. My mind would go to "Ok, now we grab our lighter and we smoke" but it wasn't a desire for a cigarette. I pick up my vaporizer and I'm good to go.

I don't say that to gloat or rub my success in your face. I have some health issues for sure but mine aren't as critical as yours.

Were it not for your medical conditions, I'd have several pieces of advice for you - things to try. But what you NEED to do is listen to your doctor. You have to somehow stop smoking.

The only advice I can even think of would be to try a ZERO nic e-liquid. Maybe at least having the hand-to-mouth action and the vapor will help. For me, I honestly believe the habit of smoking was far more embedded in me than the physical addiction to the chemicals.

If it were me I guess I'd start making myself picture a grave and my friends and family being sad if I died - just anything to quit. Most of us have the luxury of that being at least a little bit of a far off prospect. I'm very sorry if I'm being morbid I just feel for you. And I wish SOOO bad that vaping would have been an option for my grandma. Maybe it wouldn't have done anything but I know what it's done for me.

 

[choochoogranny]

Bontasia, tobacco companies DO put chemicals in their tobacco to enhance the addictiveness of nicotine which in of itself is very hard to get addicted to!

I too had grandparents who smoked all their adult lives. They decided to quit in their early 80's because of heart issues. Grandma would occasionally "bum" a cig from me. They lived until their late 80's. How I wish this vaping gear was around then.

I smoked for 53 years until last Aug. The hand to mouth habit with vaping satisfied, the inhaling and exhaling vapor satisfied, and my 9 mg nicotine satified me. Wasn't until 3 days later that I realized I'd quit smoking when I didn't intend to! What was part of the HABIT/ritual that took a week to break was sitting down at the computer and.....grabbing for the ashtray and cig pouch to sit them just so by the keyboard.

I also used that ashtray for more than butts. Seems I'd wind up with lint, crumbs from the table, and stuff picked up from the floor in my hand looking for the ashtray! I now have check pockets before doing laundry.

I do believe we are not only addicted to the nicotine but the ROUTINE of smoking as well. Vaping mimics the visual (vapor)and physical (hand to mouth) habit, and gives us the nicotine at our level of addiction which can be adjusted as needs be. Perfect for getting off the tobacco cigarettes!

 

[FireDragon1138]

If 24mg isn't doing it you should look into getting some WTA juice. AKA; Whole Tobacco Alkaloid. There are other things you are craving other than nicotine.

For some people the issue is not that their nicotine level is too low, but that they are craving something else in tobacco. Esp. if you have heart disease, going higher nicotine could be problematic as it forces the heart to work harder, and you could still be left with cigarette cravings.

I could vape 18mg all day and still feel something is missing. That goes away completely when I add just a little bit of WTA to my e-liquid. And yet, there's more to quitting smoking and transitioning to e-cigs, or a less harmful tobacco alternative, than just getting the equipment right. You have to really find reasons to quit.

 

[Bontasia]

What was part of the HABIT/ritual that took a week to break was sitting down at the computer and.....grabbing for the ashtray and cig pouch to sit them just so by the keyboard.

I STILL do this. I reach for my ashtray that's not there anymore. I also find that when I get to my car after work, I get in, put on my seat belt and reach over to the side for my cigarettes. It doesn't happen every day but a few times a week. I wonder if that will go away?

 

[Michelle F]

Nicotine is a stimulant. Too much can effect anyone's heart. My father also has heart conditions. He kept 2 clearomizers, one with nic and one with zero nic. He puffed on 0 nic until he had a craving then swapped and satisfied urge then back to 0 nic to avoid an excess of nic but enjoying his vaping to the fullest. Something like this may work for you. he is now vaping nic free and has been cig free for 9 months. Very proud of Dad and hope you are successful as well!

 

[Michelle F]

I had never heard of WTK before? Is it not a common thing then?

 

[ukeman]

I had never heard of WTK before? Is it not a common thing then?

whole tobacco alkaloids i think...

 

[ukeman]

Vaping is an obsession all its own that is related to smoking.
I've been smoke free for around 4 years now, and I vape twice as much as i smoked... both addictively.
There's an addictive mentality, and physiology to begin with, and although nic (and/or additives to cigarettes) are addicting physically, i think the reason they say its more difficult to quit smoking than ......, is because its a behavioral thing.

Vaping has become a hobby/obsession and when you consider nicotene is in the mix, its a powerful thing.

RE the grandperson who continued smoking 2paks a day with half a lung, I recall the 12 step saying about the definition of "insanity": doing the same thing and getting the same results (connsequences) that you don't want. I remember vaping when i was sick with bronchitis first thing in the morning, and continually through the day pushing the envelope.

I started sub ohms vaping a couple years ago because it is the most satisfying, and for a year now, I know I am hurting my lungs for the shear volume of low nic vaping i am doing. I can feel it. I used to have asthma as a kid and whenever I get a flue or cold it kicks up and unless i put down the APV I will have a hard time kicking it and twice it has turned into a pneumonia.

We are in the early stages of vaping still and the full health results are not known.
I should up my nic and try to control the volume as in the last couple of years I've kept a green light (Go) on my habit... easily 10ml a day of 3-4mg nic juice.
My flavors are likened to favorite sweets (which are deadly as well)... maybe going with a good tobacco vape which i have avoided as i don't like the taste, would be the thing to do.
I've heard that tobacco flavor development has resulted in flavors that are less than appealing, but lately someone tipped me off to a better tobacco flavored juice line.

I'm saying there is more to addiction than substances like nicotene.