My experience with vaping

[TAC]

About six months after I started smoking again, I invested in a vaping pen just to see what all the la, la was about. Initially, I was able to quit smoking cigarettes for about three days if memory serves me right but I never lost the urge to smoke real cigarettes. The coupe de gra however was that I developed a mild case of pneumonia from the vapor and had to quit. Yes, I did not heed the warning, not to drag the pen as often as a cigarette but even after I took fewer drags per hour, I still could not kick the urge to drag a cigarette here and there. 

 

My pen was finally retired and I went back to a pack and a half a day, the pen did not work for me. Here at work a large percentage of the girls and staff smoke cigarettes and do the pen but none of them has successfully quit except for yours truly.

 

In conclusion, I believe that everyone who gives up smoking eventually has to quit cold turkey, even after months of supplemental stop smoking aids.

 

Just my opinion, good luck to anyone having difficulty making the final commitment to quit:)

 

[Evelyn]

Agreed, tried that penny-bull (sorry to call it that way) it just makes people lie to themselves and you're still hooked on nicotine and often like the shisha-pen kids think it's cool and fun but they get hooked and go to smoking...

In the Netherland there's a report that says vaing is even deadlier then smoking. Didn't read it, but for one or two years vping pens and shisha pens were able to buy for kids under 16 so NOW they're on nicotine and can't 'get the vap / shihsa' so the go to cigs or fags and asking strangers to buy them for them if they're under... let me think 19 or 21?

Dunno they age things now I believe they pulled the age up to 18 for cigs and low percent alcohol and even 21 for hardcore alcohol. 

I know many 'Americans' get wired up about the use of alcohol of teenagers in Europe.. but if they start I shoot back, well at least they don't carry a gun.

I'm all pro-education and anti-alcohol (anyway) and anti-nicotine stuff.

But governments get too much effort from the products as many are aware, with taxes etc. IF we'd we able to ban acohol and smokeing / shisha-pens the governemnts would loose millions or more, which they need... two years back if you wanted to quit smoking and you'd join a programm the patches etc were free.... well as fast as it came in the security packet, the sooner it was poof gone.

If there's no alcohol use and nicotine use or WAY harder to get it, guns in the USA would be less a problem, people would not only be healthier, but also ikely the society have less problem addicted related family problems.... ad so on and on.

I refuse to drink, out of moral; I saw what it did to my parents (alcoholists) and how that 'affected me' I started smoking FOR REAL from a cig my mom gamme 

Sjeesh, the hypocrisy on all levels of society and government makes me sick, really. 

HERE in the Netherlands they legalised the USE of hash / weed and if you ask me HOW often I've seen schizofrenic or psychotic people in the mental health institues, CAUSED by mariujana often too often a first psychosos occurs due the use of drugs... softdrugs like this but also the hardcore stuff

It's so sad... Some praise the way my government arranges it, and REALLY I am lucky to live here in this wealth and with these oppurtunities ...
I know or example in France and that's in Europe the border between rich and poor, is very far away from each other...in the USA there's a small rich top, lots of democratic bull (everywhere here too) and a huge layer of poor people.
This is not meant as a judgemental post btw... but in Scandinavia, things are handled really well, nobody is really poor, the medical system is high, and don't ask me why but somehow those snowman :P do something different lol then the BIG EU lands, where Netherland drifts in between I call France, Germany uhm, and you could say the Benelux: Belgium, Netherlands and Luxemburg 

Am I giving a histiry lesson here?

I think I lost my calling, I should hve finished my collage as histry teacher :P Well this is another side of me kinda akward, an inteligent Evelyn ;)

[Evelyn]

Now people who read my previous post, don't gimme the silly look okay!!! Porky you're only alowed to reply with "I'm not able to reply as I'm chewing on my car since I'm hungry." :P

[Nancy]

Chantix worked great for me...

[IndigoChilde]

A friend of mine actually quit on ecigs and then quit the ecigs. I don't know how he did it, but apparently it can be done. I was put on bupropion, but my psychiatrist is taking me off of it for side effects.

[Evelyn]

What's the other name of bupropion?

I was prescibed Nortryptilin / Nortrilin, more of a antdepressivant... back then I made it a huge deal quiting with 'that and valerian' Valerian is in some tea's too but I used high dosises. Crappy stuff, The Nortrilen never worked for the quiting, the mindset was wrong then yet, after 5 months around september I was on the right dosis. I don't allow anyone touching my meds since the last add / change in October: I'm on a rocket now. 
Even with sh*t months I manage well ;)
Oh quit back in 2014 around Christmas, cold turkey, you know the turkey ran outta the oven :P
No, I SWAER if you have the right mindset you can quit CT, if you don't no patch vape or pill will make you quit ;)

[IndigoChilde]

Bupropion is Wellbutrin/Zyban

[beacon]

One of the best things about quitting all together  is the freedom from having to get a dose of  the devil nicotine all the time or else. That means no more going crazy on planes or in nonsmoking cars,  spending most of your time  outside smoking, late night rides to the store, smoking butts from the ash tray, etc, insert your addiction story here.  

[johnny5]

During my last year or so as a smoker, I went through about 3 short periods of time when I tried to quit by vaping.

I went back to tobacco after a couple of weeks every time.  For some reason, I still missed the feel of smoking even though I liked not smelling like cigarettes.

I also started to realize that I was actually vaping more than I was smoking.  I really believe that I was taking in more nicotine when I vaped than when I smoked.

I believe vaping lulls you into a false sense of security and is a horrible way to quit.  Cold turkey or doctor approved nicotine replacement therapies are the way to go.  Just my opinion.

[sgt.barney]

Sarge always wondered why do it the hard way - Why quit twice? (Cigarettes, then Vape?)

 

Do it the easy way. Only quit once.

 

 

 

Easy Peasy

[Evelyn]

I did the weird dance on Zyban, no good combi ;)
Barney you're so right :D

[Evelyn]

Tried Chantix, think 4 or 5 years back; only inhenced the dreamy-state / dissocation during the day and when I lowered the dosise it still happened funny I believe your blood gets a certain constand level but only after a week of 4 / 5 /6 and THEN I threw the chantix outta window because I was 'sleepwalking' during the day ;)

 

No need to mention I relapsed VERY soon after that. Got hooked on patches BIG WARNING NRT can be addictive too-- especially the spray kinda makes you wanna use it more often and higher dosis then when you start with it it's with djumbo and the elephant, I ALWAYS needed a bloody feather, once the feather was gone i fall down. 

Chantix / Nortrilen / Zyban are options I'd easier recommend then NRT. Especially when you're having an addictive nature, not just for smoking but in general.... i'd say cut the crap and throw all nicotine outta the window (the magic feather) and believe in your own ability and your commitment the feather expression I lovingly steal from Barney but it's true...

 

Also true, why quit 2?

Sometimes, the hard, the tough ways seem like an unclimable mountain but when you have right tools: education, support, commitment etc there's nothing holding you back. Nothing!

 

[Still winning]

I quit once on patches but started smoking after a year due to a story which boils down to, I will always be an addict. I do believe the patches helped me though.

 

I tried many techniques the last time, was quitting and relapsing at an epic rate! But then champix did work for me and I quit on that, I'm still quit at almost 2 years. 

 

So I don't think using a crutch is a bad thing. I believe that everyone is different and for sure I trust that I wouldn't have made a cold turkey quit from where I was mentally. To have told me it was the only way would have been to leave me a smoker in honesty. I believed there was a "thing" I needed to support me. 

 

Just adding a different perspective :)

 

x

[bakon]

Anyone try the head in a bucket of water method?

 

Can't light them that way

[El Bandito]

Yep. But overtime I stood up, my pants got wet and I couldn't see where I was going.

 

Some folk have found aids helpful. I'm with the Sarge. Quit once.

 

To me, the danger of 'aids' is that they encourage the idea that smoking is fun (but bad for you) and we can find ways of smoking healthily. I don't believe that. I believe that was nothing is fun about smoking - our addiction to nicotine and some smart marketing guys made us believe that smoking is fun. It isn't. At all. 

 

I look at people vaping and ask myself "Why on God's earth would you do that?" - then I remember nicotine...

[Glenn In PA]

I tried to switch to vaping a couple of times and that did not go well at all for me.  I definitely bought into the idea that it is healthier and believed that I would enjoy it.  I figured I  could still have the pleasure/crutch of smoking without feeling like crap, stinking like an ashtray and killing myself in the process.  For me, vaping made me feel worse than smoking.  They do say some percentage of people have a reaction to Propylene Glycol (PG) the primary ingredient in vape juice.  The also make it with Vegetable Glycol (VG) and all other kinds of variations.  Whatever, besides the fact that it gave me a tingling sensation that felt like something was definitely not right, I just didn't like the flavors and it did not give me the same experience as smoking which I was used to.  To each his own I guess. Some people smoke cigarettes some people smoke cigars, some people chew tobacco and now...some people vape.

 

I do have this feeling that at some point down the road, there will be the same kinds of movies about the vaping companies as there are now about the tobacco companies. 

[beacon]

For me it was important to get over wanting to suck something into my lungs.  This was something I "missed" right in the beginning. About a week after I quit my lungs felt like they were opening up and that I could suck in lots of clean air without coughing. 

[Doreensfree]

I know for certain if I had tried vapping... I would have been back to smoking...

I needed to remove all the similarities... No hand to mouth..puffing..smoke...puffing it out...

When my feet were threatened to be sawn off...I had to give myself the best chance ever...

Lungs were only meant to have good clean air...my junkie brain understands that now...

[brainiac100]

I was a pack-a-day+ smoker for nearly two decades. What started out as something I would do here and there when I was out drinking, turned into a full-blown addiction. I was at a point where I would light a cigarette in bed the moment I opened my eyes. It was absolutely disgusting, and took a toll on me physically and mentally. I hated myself for smoking, but simply couldn't stop.

 

I tried the patch, but that didn't work whatsoever for me. I then tried the gum, thinking it would also offer some sort of relief for my oral fixation. That was unsuccessful as well. I tried the inhaler, which was also a complete failure. At one point, I was desperate and even tried hypnosis.

 

One day, a friend of mine introduced me to electronic cigarettes. It had worked for him, so I decided to give it a try as well. I started with those disposable ones you buy at the gas station. I was absolutely blown away at how effective they were. Admittedly, I was initially vaping half of the time, and smoking the other half; however, I could see that the ecig really worked. Gradually over the next few months, my smoking lessened more and more until I was having one or two cigarettes a day.

 

Around that time, I was turned onto rechargeable and refillable ecigs, which worked much better than the disposables. I bought an inexpensive one to start, and gradually tried various products until I found the one that best mimicked cigarettes. I have stuck to that, and I have now been smoke-free for nearly 2 years! Boy does it feel good to say that. T

Edited September 25, 2016 by MarylandQuitter
No links promoting ecigs allowed.

[Frezflops]

Not always and only if you are using it to quit all things and not continue with ecigs. If not it is just trading one addiction with another. In other words of ecigs are used to quit fine but you need an end date for the ecigs also.

[...]

I don't think Brainiac100 is real.  

[Frezflops]

I don't think so either tiffany.....BTW glad to see you here

[sharonsiff]

Yep. But overtime I stood up, my pants got wet and I couldn't see where I was going.

 

Some folk have found aids helpful. I'm with the Sarge. Quit once.

 

To me, the danger of 'aids' is that they encourage the idea that smoking is fun (but bad for you) and we can find ways of smoking healthily. I don't believe that. I believe that was nothing is fun about smoking - our addiction to nicotine and some smart marketing guys made us believe that smoking is fun. It isn't. At all. 

 

I look at people vaping and ask myself "Why on God's earth would you do that?" - then I remember nicotine...

 

To be fair lots of vapers vape nicotine free... I know plenty.

 

Those people vape nicotine free due to breaking their day up, or after a meal.

 

I am pro vaping as a tool, it worked for me, but only works if you take cigs completely off the table.

[MarylandQuitter]

First, ecigs are not safe whether they contain nicotine or not.  If you use these things for just another form of nicotine delivery to feed your addiction, it needs to have an expiration date.  For those who vape without nicotine, why?  What's the point?  I don't need to inhale chemicals through a high school science project to rationalize quitting.  Is it to look cool, fit in or to remind you of the fond memories of your cigarette, your friend?  I don't need that kind of reminder.

 

Electronic Cigarette Users Are Having A Harder Time Quitting Smoking

Why users of electronic cigarettes may be having a harder time emotionally with their quits over the longer-term.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAApE5yo3Nc

 

My Cigarette, My Friend

How do you feel about a friend who has to go everywhere with you? Not only does he tag along all the time, but since he is so offensive and vulgar, you become unwelcome when with him. He has a peculiar odor that sticks to you wherever you go. Others think both of you stink.

 

He controls you totally. When he says jump, you jump. Sometimes in the middle of a blizzard or storm, he wants you to come to the store and pick him up. You would give your spouse hell if he or she did that to you all the time, but you can't argue with your friend. Sometimes, when you are out at a movie or play he says he wants you to go stand in the lobby with him and miss important scenes. Since he calls all the shots in your life, you go. Your friend doesn't like your choice of clothing either. Instead of politely telling you that you have lousy taste, he burns little holes in these items so you will want to throw them out. Sometimes, he tires of the furniture and gets rid of it too. Occasionally, he gets really nasty and decides the whole house must go.

 

He gets pretty expensive to support. Not only is his knack of property destruction costly, but you must pay to keep him with you. In fact, he will cost you thousands of dollars over your lifetime. And you can count on one thing, he will never pay you a penny in return.

 

Often at picnics you watch others playing vigorous activities and having lots of fun doing them. But your friend won't let you. He doesn't believe in physical activity. In his opinion, you are too old to have that kind of fun. So he kind of sits on your chest and makes it difficult for you to breathe. Now you don't want to go off and play with other people when you can't breathe, do you?

 

Your friend does not believe in being healthy. He is really repulsed by the thought of you living a long and productive life. So every chance he gets he makes you sick. He helps you catch colds and flu. Not just by running out in the middle of the lousy weather to pick him up at the store. He is more creative than that. He carries thousands of poisons with him which he constantly blows in your face. When you inhale some of them, they wipe out cilia in your lungs which would have helped you prevent these diseases.

 

But colds and flu are just his form of child's play. He especially likes diseases that slowly cripple you - like emphysema. He considers this disease great. Once he gets you to have this, you will give up all your other friends, family, career goals, activities - everything. You will just sit home and caress him, telling him what a great friend he is while you desperately gasp for air.

 

But eventually your friend tires of you. He decides he no longer wishes to have your company. Instead of letting you go your separate ways, he decides to kill you. He has a wonderful arsenal of weapons behind him. In fact, he has been plotting your death since the day you met him. He picked all the top killers in society and did everything in his power to ensure you would get one of them. He overworked your heart and lungs. He clogged up the arteries to your heart, brain, and every other part of your body. In case you were too strong to succumb to this, he constantly exposed you to cancer causing agents. He knew he would get you sooner or later.

 

Well, this is the story of your "friend," your cigarette. No real friend would do all this to you. Cigarettes are the worst possible enemies you ever had. They are expensive, addictive, socially unacceptable, and deadly. Consider all this and NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF!--Joel