I have personally had two drags off of analogs in the over 2 months since I have quit. Mostly out of curiosity. And I dont consider those two drags failing.
Both times they tasted like utter crap and I had to rinse my mouth out right afterwards.
Is trying or even having a smoke every now and then failing if you go right back to vaping? When most of us smoked a pack, 2 packs, heck I used to be up to 3 packs a day if I was out drinking? I dont think so.
It just affirms how well vaping is working for me.
That said, I am a drinker. I like to go out and drink. And most of the bars I hang out in down here are smoking bars, so I made a point not to hide from drinking and meet it head on. You have to face it at some point, so make sure your vaping gear is working in good order and have a good backup, go out to a bar with a friend or relative and drink and vape. If it gets too hard....leave, but try to stick it out for your own knowledge that you can face the situation.
Part I bolded is one I'm most compelled to respond to, though I'll undoubtedly touch on all of this.
Smoking after giving up smoking does not equal failure. IMO, that ought to be a very strong no for all vapers who at any point, in their lives, felt a draw to keep on smoking. The psychology at work to equal a relapse to failing is interesting, even understandable, but IMO, is misguided. While it is characteristically a human weakness of willpower to relapse, it is, at most, a blip on the radar and at least, a way for a nicotine user to keep things in check.
In the scheme of things, vaping for sure, and even smoking are really really tame compared to most substances humanity engages in. This thread deals with alcohol which in my understanding simply can't even be put on par with nicotine/smoking. Yet, for very odd reasons, nicotine is magically deemed far more socially unacceptable than alcohol. Then there are a whole bunch of substances which ECF won't allow us to talk about but are easily far worse, take a more drastic toll on the human body/mind. Then there are legal substances which are arguably worse, such as sugar. IMO, isolating smoking/nicotine as 'the big bad guy in the room' while denying the umpteen hundred other things on this planet that vast majority of humans engage in, plays into the misguided thinking that permeates nicotine use/abuse.
But users, especially vapers, I think get this first part. I think it is important to keep things in check with regards to any addiction. What that means, exactly, for me isn't perhaps what it will mean for another user, but in general, I think it is about the same. At one point there was desire, and not obsessive compelling nature, to enjoy the item. Your mind knows this very well, and is feeding on that more than the compelling nature. For in that desire leads to an opportunity to judge one's own self. "What am I in relation to this?" And if the answer is, "I'm a failure" for doing this, the part of mind that relishes in self sabotage is, how you say, pleased.
Yet, for a number of vapers/ex-smokers, the keeping things in check works out as: a) wondering what is it that I'm missing from not smoking. Then b) have a smoke, and voila, holy crap do they taste nasty (now), which leads to c) stronger conviction to not do that again. IMO, that's a pretty good way to keep things in check instead of having a festering thought that keeps wondering and nudging you to consider, 'no really what are you missing?'
As one who has quit smoking for a long, long time, and is now happy to be a moderate smoker, I get that smoking tastes nasty when you haven't done it for a little while. IMO, it always was an acquired taste, though I realize there are some amongst us who liked it from the very first moment they tried it. But the reality is, you have to want to smoke to keep smoking, and not want to smoke, to maintain quitting. Vaping provides a great alternative to those who do want to keep smoking, which is how I see things. While I get that vaping provides a wonderful path to those who don't want to keep smoking. And is a significant reason why vaping is so darned popular - as it is one of the best, if not the best, aids in cessation from smoking. As long as vaping and smoking are around, I think the cessation thing will always be with us.
I just continue to wish that some vapers, who are now ex-smokers, didn't go all ANTZ in their quitting by vilifying smoking and equate usage of it to terms like failure, dangerous, worrisome, etc. I'll grant those types that it is stinky, but after that I draw a line. Moderate smoking ain't like abusive smoking. In fact, it takes that whole weakness thing, and turns it upside down.
