This is mostly conjecture, I am neither a medical doctor nor a mental health professional. But I think there may be some psychological basis which may explain the behaviour of many vapers (including myself) at least on a subconscious level.
Those of us who are ex-smokers (which is likely the majority) are simply not being satisfied by e-cigs. Let me explain:
As much as we may try to replicate the whole smoking thing via electronic cigarettes, and despite the fact that we know consciously that e-cigs cannot (as of yet and probably never will) deliver the exact same experience and satisfaction that cigarettes did, subconsciously our brains are still seeking this satisfaction and experience. And even though we are still getting nicotine in many cases, our bodies and minds are deprived of the thousands of other chemicals we became accustomed to while smoking.
So our brains are in deprivation mode so to speak. We feel incomplete, like we are missing something. We have a hard time being satisfied with vapor volume, throat hit, flavor, etc. And even when we think we are satisfied, something happens that proves we are not. This extends to devices as well. How can we account for the "vape mail" phenomena? Which reduces vapers to a near childlike state of anticipation?
For instance, I promised myself on several occasions, that I was satisfied with the equipment I had, but then something new comes out, and I find myself buying something else. Or a new vaping fad arises and I want to know more about it and feel I am missing out on something if I don't get in on it. Psychologically, our subconscious minds may be trying to fill this void/gap left after we quit smoking and switched to e-cigs a and our bodies and brain, were no longer getting the thousands of chemicals we were accustomed to.
As an individual with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) I see some parallels here that I think are interesting. For many with OCD, there is a similar feeling of "incompleteness", "wrongness","dissatisfaction". ect, which is brought on by intrusive/unwanted thoughts. This compels the person with OCD to seek some relief from the anxiety which these thoughts and feelings create which leads to compulsions (also known as rituals) as a means of seeking relief and achieving satisfaction and completeness/correctness. But the complusions are only a temporary fix and actually serve to reinforce this behavior. I believe, therefore, that a similiar process is occuring within the minds of vapers who were ex-smokers. So the seemingly endless pursuit of larger/thicker vapor clouds, greater throat hit, the best flavor, the hottest vape, the best device, the latest trends, etc. is a function of our subconscious brain's feeling of deprivation. There are also elements of perfectionism, which is observable in both cases.
Any thoughts? Comments?
Those of us who are ex-smokers (which is likely the majority) are simply not being satisfied by e-cigs. Let me explain:
As much as we may try to replicate the whole smoking thing via electronic cigarettes, and despite the fact that we know consciously that e-cigs cannot (as of yet and probably never will) deliver the exact same experience and satisfaction that cigarettes did, subconsciously our brains are still seeking this satisfaction and experience. And even though we are still getting nicotine in many cases, our bodies and minds are deprived of the thousands of other chemicals we became accustomed to while smoking.
So our brains are in deprivation mode so to speak. We feel incomplete, like we are missing something. We have a hard time being satisfied with vapor volume, throat hit, flavor, etc. And even when we think we are satisfied, something happens that proves we are not. This extends to devices as well. How can we account for the "vape mail" phenomena? Which reduces vapers to a near childlike state of anticipation?
For instance, I promised myself on several occasions, that I was satisfied with the equipment I had, but then something new comes out, and I find myself buying something else. Or a new vaping fad arises and I want to know more about it and feel I am missing out on something if I don't get in on it. Psychologically, our subconscious minds may be trying to fill this void/gap left after we quit smoking and switched to e-cigs a and our bodies and brain, were no longer getting the thousands of chemicals we were accustomed to.
As an individual with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) I see some parallels here that I think are interesting. For many with OCD, there is a similar feeling of "incompleteness", "wrongness","dissatisfaction". ect, which is brought on by intrusive/unwanted thoughts. This compels the person with OCD to seek some relief from the anxiety which these thoughts and feelings create which leads to compulsions (also known as rituals) as a means of seeking relief and achieving satisfaction and completeness/correctness. But the complusions are only a temporary fix and actually serve to reinforce this behavior. I believe, therefore, that a similiar process is occuring within the minds of vapers who were ex-smokers. So the seemingly endless pursuit of larger/thicker vapor clouds, greater throat hit, the best flavor, the hottest vape, the best device, the latest trends, etc. is a function of our subconscious brain's feeling of deprivation. There are also elements of perfectionism, which is observable in both cases.
Any thoughts? Comments?
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