I'm fairly new to vaping (2 months) and old (40+ years) to smoking. I would LOVE to be able to switch over completely, it is so much better all around, but I will admit, it isn't easy. It was impossible for me before, so this is still magnitudes better, but after smoking for so long, the habit is so ingrained! If you have successfully switched, CONGRATULATIONS!!! and find a better thread. LOL I guess I'm writing this for me and others who can't seem to do so.
In the begining of my vaping journey, I just assumed I'd swap vaping for smoking, like the stories I'd read. When that didn't pan out, there was a period of giving up, followed by guilt, trying again, more guilt, back and forth, back and forth, until I decided it didn't have to be all or nothing...I could do both. Not really, cuz I would cave into smoking. But why when I KNOW how rotten it is??? Why do I need to keep a pack of cigarettes here or I feel panicked? Too many whys, but no obvious answers. So I really started some serious introspection. I know this won't apply to everyone but for what it's worth... when I get an urge there is that habitual repetition of a very particular sequence that I don't even think about, but I want a cigarette, sooo... (bear with me here) I look for the pack, I reach for it, open the box, take one out, grab my lighter, put the .... in my mouth, torch it up, etc. etc.etc. I'm expecting a particular weight to it, feel,flavor, the instant gratification, yadda yadda. Then there is the smell of it, the smoke spiraling up, the ash to flick. Even now, I want to be disgusted, but it makes me want to light up. Sorry, that isn't my intention! My point is...it is a mindless, spontaneous occurance, not an iota of thought goes into it, and the longer you've done it, the more ingrained and expected it is. Then, the scenario changes...you get the urge for a nic fix, sooo.... you automatically look to grab your pack, hmmm, not there, then, oh yeah, the PV. Now you are ripped back into a conscious behavior, you have to think about the sequence to follow... and the wee brain isn't happy with that. It wants it the way it is used to, the mindless mode that satisfies with every little tactile association, knowing what the outcome will be, that feeling of reward. No matter how much we hear or tell ourselves smoking is bad, our minds are made up...we don't want to change...not "now", later!! We want our crappy woobie! Everyone is happy that vaping is so similar to smoking, and that includes me, but because it is still a conscious effort, some of us are likely to still want that damn cigarette! Yes, we crave the nicotine, but that is only a fraction of it as I demonstrated above. I've quit involuntarily, when hospitalized on at least 4 occasions, and was well over the nicotine addiction. Unpleasant? Sure, but not brutal. The brutal part was living without fufulling the habitual behaviors and the lack of the "reward" you get every time you light up. So many people say they don't even like smoking, they just are addicted to them. I don't get that cuz I have always loved them, and if not, why the hell would I smoke them? But we are all different. My point is, even with the substancial help of PV's, smoking is a tough habit to break until you get it all together in your head. I don't personally know anyone outside the family who vapes, so not a good survey, but we all smoke too. I don't know for sure but I'd imagine we all tried vaping hoping it would be better for us and a painless way to quit smoking cigarettes, I know I did. I mean it doesn't make any sense to do both, and yet we all are, no matter what our aspirations were in the beginning. Why? all of the above and the simple fact that it is uncomfortable, maybe even painful to "kill" such an old "friend" who promises us relief for us the instant we reach for it. I know that sounds stupid and extreme, but so is addiction. And I'm not talking about physical dependency, I mean the psychological issues.
Thinking about all this made me even more determined to try harder, so ironicaly, I decided to give myself permission to smoke, BUT only if vaping and self talk didn't work, so it has to be a conscious decision, and I have to remove myself from whatever I am doing. (No more cooking or computing or other busy hands work with the cig hanging out of my face! I always found that revolting, but did it anyway!) I figure eventually vaping will become as ingrained as smoking, as long as I do it more often, and it brings more satisfaction than those few cigs I do decide to smoke in isolation or when I would rather be doing something else too. At least that is my intention. I do need to find some more good juices, but it worked well today, I just hope I can stay motivated and conscientious. My motivation? My grandchildren! I love them so much and if I focus on those little faces whenever I am weak, I hope that will snap me back, I want to be around them as long as possible! Wish me luck, and the same to you! I hope something I said rang a bell and keeps you trying! This forum is wonderful!
In the begining of my vaping journey, I just assumed I'd swap vaping for smoking, like the stories I'd read. When that didn't pan out, there was a period of giving up, followed by guilt, trying again, more guilt, back and forth, back and forth, until I decided it didn't have to be all or nothing...I could do both. Not really, cuz I would cave into smoking. But why when I KNOW how rotten it is??? Why do I need to keep a pack of cigarettes here or I feel panicked? Too many whys, but no obvious answers. So I really started some serious introspection. I know this won't apply to everyone but for what it's worth... when I get an urge there is that habitual repetition of a very particular sequence that I don't even think about, but I want a cigarette, sooo... (bear with me here) I look for the pack, I reach for it, open the box, take one out, grab my lighter, put the .... in my mouth, torch it up, etc. etc.etc. I'm expecting a particular weight to it, feel,flavor, the instant gratification, yadda yadda. Then there is the smell of it, the smoke spiraling up, the ash to flick. Even now, I want to be disgusted, but it makes me want to light up. Sorry, that isn't my intention! My point is...it is a mindless, spontaneous occurance, not an iota of thought goes into it, and the longer you've done it, the more ingrained and expected it is. Then, the scenario changes...you get the urge for a nic fix, sooo.... you automatically look to grab your pack, hmmm, not there, then, oh yeah, the PV. Now you are ripped back into a conscious behavior, you have to think about the sequence to follow... and the wee brain isn't happy with that. It wants it the way it is used to, the mindless mode that satisfies with every little tactile association, knowing what the outcome will be, that feeling of reward. No matter how much we hear or tell ourselves smoking is bad, our minds are made up...we don't want to change...not "now", later!! We want our crappy woobie! Everyone is happy that vaping is so similar to smoking, and that includes me, but because it is still a conscious effort, some of us are likely to still want that damn cigarette! Yes, we crave the nicotine, but that is only a fraction of it as I demonstrated above. I've quit involuntarily, when hospitalized on at least 4 occasions, and was well over the nicotine addiction. Unpleasant? Sure, but not brutal. The brutal part was living without fufulling the habitual behaviors and the lack of the "reward" you get every time you light up. So many people say they don't even like smoking, they just are addicted to them. I don't get that cuz I have always loved them, and if not, why the hell would I smoke them? But we are all different. My point is, even with the substancial help of PV's, smoking is a tough habit to break until you get it all together in your head. I don't personally know anyone outside the family who vapes, so not a good survey, but we all smoke too. I don't know for sure but I'd imagine we all tried vaping hoping it would be better for us and a painless way to quit smoking cigarettes, I know I did. I mean it doesn't make any sense to do both, and yet we all are, no matter what our aspirations were in the beginning. Why? all of the above and the simple fact that it is uncomfortable, maybe even painful to "kill" such an old "friend" who promises us relief for us the instant we reach for it. I know that sounds stupid and extreme, but so is addiction. And I'm not talking about physical dependency, I mean the psychological issues.
Thinking about all this made me even more determined to try harder, so ironicaly, I decided to give myself permission to smoke, BUT only if vaping and self talk didn't work, so it has to be a conscious decision, and I have to remove myself from whatever I am doing. (No more cooking or computing or other busy hands work with the cig hanging out of my face! I always found that revolting, but did it anyway!) I figure eventually vaping will become as ingrained as smoking, as long as I do it more often, and it brings more satisfaction than those few cigs I do decide to smoke in isolation or when I would rather be doing something else too. At least that is my intention. I do need to find some more good juices, but it worked well today, I just hope I can stay motivated and conscientious. My motivation? My grandchildren! I love them so much and if I focus on those little faces whenever I am weak, I hope that will snap me back, I want to be around them as long as possible! Wish me luck, and the same to you! I hope something I said rang a bell and keeps you trying! This forum is wonderful!
