Vaping

[Jules1977]

Hi

 

I know a lot of people frown upon the vaping here on this forum, but i would like to know who has used it to help there quit. I did (omg nicotine btw) but just as something to take the edge off it. I think we all know its better than smoking, and even the NHS are recommending.... just throwing it out there to open up a discussion?

 

Jules

[Doreensfree]

Hi Jules...

Ok my take on vapping..to me it's no different..it's still putting something in your mouth..puffing on it.and your poor lungs are still taking crap in..

Who knows if it's safer than cigs...somewhere along the line ,we might be told just how bad it is...

After all..cigs were OK..once upon a time...

Besides..all the bad stuff..they look ridiculous...some are that big you need a back pack to carry it.

I saw one guy..take a deep puff..and totally disappeared in a cloud of smoke..steam..whatever it was...

After 5 decades of smoking...why give myself another addiction.... No thank you..!!!!

Of course this is just MY opinion..

[Dee]

I have never used for me personally (don't want to rattle anyone) is that is reinforcing the actions of smoking. I have seen people using them and they use then more than if they smoked. Smoking nowadays has do be done out side where people are walking around everywhere vaping.... My sister in law and brother in law are now addicted to walking around carrying it everywhere. For me it makes me unsettled it reminds me of the old crack pipes so was never going to be an option for me.

[babs609]

vaping is just another way to get the nicotine in the body....

cold turkey is always my choice for quitters because there is a level of discomfort that you have to get through in order to be able to get through life smoke free.  

 

The discomfort you feel in the first hours, days, weeks and months after quitting are what mentally prepares you for the rest of your smoke free life

[NADA]

Which is more likely:

• Vaping is a benevolent tool to help smokers quit tobacco. 
• Vaping is a tool to lure more people to nicotine addiction and retain those who want to quit by simply giving them a new nicotine delivery system.  

[ChRiSpY]

If it helps you quit smoking... then go for it.  

 

Just make sure you are not addicted to the vaping as well.  But that goes for any quit add.  My aunt still chews nico gum 9 years later.  I used the gum to quit and then very easily quit the gum.

 

Do what you must... just quit it all.

[Reciprocity]

I tried vaping a few years ago, not to quit but to see what it was like because I thought it might be better than smoking cigarettes?

It hurt my throat to inhale whatever was in the little capsules that were in that thing so I threw it aside and just kept smoking cigs until I quit those cold turkey this past Jan.

 

I think the jury is still out on long term effects of vaping. Not sure it's been around long enough in it's present form to have a proper long term study done? It may be true that there are not as many chemicals as with smoking cigarettes but who knows for sure what they are putting in those capsules - I know I don't. Then the other thing is yes, if you have nicotine in your vaping capsules, then you are not getting off the nicotine are you? Also, you are reinforcing the cigarette smoking motions too. Not sure if that's a big deal or not?

 

For me personally, if I'm gonna quit cigs. I don't want to put anything into my body other than

food (and maybe beer :) ).

[Devil Doll]

There are a couple of members that used vaping to quit smoking successfully. If she is still around Sharonsiff is one person who did. I can reach out to her and see if she will post her method if you are interested. Just make sure that you use it to quit and step down and are not just replacing addiction. 'Taking the edge off' is still reintroducing the drug into your system.

[Jklnhd]

Look at how long tabaccy was used before we finally admitted it wasn't good for us.

We can look at it 2 ways; millions of years ago, man became man. Discovered fire, didn't do crap for millions of years. Or a more biblical way, God created man, man made tools, houses, cities, whatever, then didn't do crap until the 1800's save for style changes.

We have come further in the past 150 years than we did for however many years you believe we existed before that. So I give it til 2020 before we have a legit yay or nay on this.

In any case, you can get 0 nicotine "juice", it may not be good for you, but as far as we know TODAY, its at the least, not AS bad for you... if it stops you from smoking cigarettes, cigars, pipe, what have you, then I think it's a good thing and you can quit vaping too.

[Nicole Diver]

If it helps you quit smoking... then go for it.  

 

Just make sure you are not addicted to the vaping as well.  But that goes for any quit add.  My aunt still chews nico gum 9 years later.  I used the gum to quit and then very easily quit the gum.

 

Do what you must... just quit it all.

The only way I could get myself over the terrifying prospect of quitting was telling myself that I could chew the gum as long as I liked. Right, wrong, or otherwise it gave me the courage to quit. I was a much different person then. I think it was about 3 months later that I quit the gum with ZERO withdrawals. 4+ years later, I don't know who that girl was, that closet smoker that put the addiction and hiding it before all else.

 

Do what you must to quit. Vaping is so similar to smoking though, I would use extreme caution.

[bakon]

Try licking windows. Safer still. And cost less

[sgt.barney]

Tried 'em and all Sarge can say is: No.

 

Just no.

 

It's half-stepping. A half-measure. "Quitting" without *quitting*.

 

Anecdotal, but real nonetheless: the lion's share of folks who started vaping that Sarge knows ended up *more* addicted to the damned thing than they ever were with tobacco. They can suck on it anywhere, any time, and regularly & consistently up the Nicotine Content.

 

 

That being said, Sarge sucked air through an *empty* e-cig (air, not nocotine, not vapor) durine the first week because it looked cooler than sucking air through a McDonald's straw all damned day to satisfy that oral fix.

 

 

Easy Peasy

[Jules1977]

Hi, just to say, I am vaping 0mg nicotine, its not a way to get my fix just a distraction in the evening, don't even do it during the day!

[Doreensfree]

Good for you jules..zero nicotine ..sooooo your body is now clean ...

Try cutting a straw the size of a cig and taking in good clean air...

It will do the same thing...no chemicals..and cheaper too...

Get your self a ticker... You will find how ..on the top of the main board....so we know when to celebrate with you.!!!

[MarylandQuitter]

Hi

 

I know a lot of people frown upon the vaping here on this forum, but i would like to know who has used it to help there quit. I did (omg nicotine btw) but just as something to take the edge off it. I think we all know its better than smoking, and even the NHS are recommending.... just throwing it out there to open up a discussion?

 

Jules

 

The tried and true method to "take the edge off" is abstaining from nicotine and time.  This method is permanent, I promise you that.

 

Is your nicotine free electronic cigarette actually nicotine free?

Recent studies show that some electronic cigarette fluids being marketed as nicotine free actually contain nicotine. Video discusses the real danger for any former smoker who tries one of these products.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Kq-UH7-Ed0&feature=youtu.be

 

Link to articles about these studies:

 

E-cigarette nicotine labels not always accurate

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/07/160722212549.htmE-cigarette

 

'Nicotine-Free' E-Cigs Still Deliver the Juice

http://www.medpagetoday.com/pulmonology/smoking/44238

 

Videos related to other issue raised by this video:

Carrying mock cigarettes

https://youtu.be/4Jgu7Q-ZNZY"Miracle" aids for quitting smoking

https://youtu.be/AyhfRm5nev0

 

Other videos related to general electronic cigarette use:

Electronic cigarette users having a harder time when quitting smoking

https://youtu.be/fAApE5yo3Nc

 

Dual use of cigarettes and electronic cigarettes

https://youtu.be/BgqnM7e8aB0

 

E-cigs as effective as nicotine patches

http://youtu.be/M2GZJksxWP0

 

Gallup Poll: Most quitters credit cold turkey

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MM2jC0rFewk

 

Our views on the need for harm reduction

http://youtu.be/HcPcVxA_WaA

 

"Whatever you do, don't quit cold turkey"

http://youtu.be/lUSJLDzkIhs

 

Electronic cigarettes and harm reduction

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xE42iWTDomg

[Jklnhd]

The local shop mixes the "juice" on site (while you stand there and watch). They have these jugs with basically a novel's worth of warnings, that are labeled the incredibly long technical name for nicotine and other junk they mix in. Also, with nicotine, if you get a drop or so on your skin, you will likely see adverse effects (bruise, rash, sick feeling, etc) which makes sense considering a drop of straight nicotine would likely kill you.

Anyway, I bought a $30 time occupier, if I'm absolutely restless and bored stupid, I will pace back and forth with it in hand. It's been a week, I have not charged it, nor have I refilled it. I think I used it maybe 3 times including the how to demo in store. 0 nicotine, non tobacco flavor.

I'm not promoting it, it's a crutch, I know that. So is the single cigarette and lighter that's been at my desk for almost 3 weeks unsmoked (yay!) It's there if I need it, and I don't need it. Individual results may vary. You may vary well get hooked on vaping, personally, I think it looks stupid and OCD (legit, I've been evaluated) will not allow me to vape in front of people, cuz it looks like your chewing on a pen, or kids walkie talkie depending on what you get, and that looks freakin stupid.

[Doreensfree]

I think X amount of years down the line..we will hear just how bad e cigs are...

After all we were all told how safe and good for us cigarettes were..and we all fell for that..

To me..Freedom means free of smoking full stop....

[sgt.barney]

So is the single cigarette and lighter that's been at my desk for almost 3 weeks

 

Uhhh ...

 

 

 

Easy Peasy

[Reciprocity]

^^^ Ummmm .... yeah, missed that one.

 

You are simply not committed fully to the extent you need to be for a permanent quit if you have smoking material at the ready. Sooner or later, you will light that one up and then, many more after it. Do what you like but we are just passing on what we know to be true from our own quits and others who have gone before us. There's no short-cut; no skipping any steps and no cheating. It's just you against a very powerful addiction. Choose your methods carefully if you're serious about quitting.

[MarylandQuitter]

Carrying Cigarettes

Video discusses the pitfalls of keeping and carrying cigarettes after you have quit smoking.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9XCzfX4ee8&index=20&list=PL4F05C03D0F9B86DB

 

Finding Cigarettes

Suggestion on how to deal with the situation of having other smokers in your home leaving cigarettes behind after they leave the house.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brveK9MYgEw&index=27&list=PL4F05C03D0F9B86DB

 

There Is No Legitimate Reason To Relapse

Video explains how that under any conditions, even those of catastrophic stress or loss, there is no real legitimate reason to take a cigarette.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCm_5b144XE&index=37&list=PL4F05C03D0F9B86DB

[joe]

I'm not promoting it, it's a crutch, I know that. So is the single cigarette and lighter that's been at my desk for almost 3 weeks unsmoked (yay!) It's there if I need it, and I don't need it.

Really?

 

Do you think Russian Roulette is a good idea because the odds could be considered to be in your favor?

 

When you give in and smoke, remember that you set yourself to fail...period...there is absolutely no reason to keep a cigarette and lighter around...

 

I dont get it.... You have every option available to set yourself up to succeed at breaking this addiction, yet you chose to set yourself up to fail at it....in a weak moment you WILL justify lighting it up...it will only be a matter of seconds later before you regret it, but by then it's done... Do not make accessing cigarettes and a lighter part of your quit...the more time it takes to go out and buy some the better odds you have of talking yourself out of it...

[Devil Doll]

I am going to post my unfiltered opinion in this topic once and that's it.

 

If you are puffing on something as a crutch then you are not serious about actually quitting. If you are puffing on something because you are bored then you are not serious. There are a thousand more constructive things to do than puff on something that creates a substance that goes into your lungs. Lastly, if you keep a cigarette and lighter around then you are not serious about quitting. We have seen that scenario so many times, "I am keeping it to show my strength" (or whatever b.s. reason is given) and then, wham relapse.

 

Take up a hobby and lose the juices, vaporizer, and cigarette laying around if you are actually serious about taking your health back.

 

Sorry (not sorry) for stepping out of my calm, gentle realm of posting but this scenario is no good and new members thinking of joining shouldn't think it is okay.

 

Quitting using vapes as a step down method similar to NRT ending with no longer filling their lungs with anything but air, like members have done before, is fine but this post reads like it is trading one addiction for another and that is not okay.

[AgaveGirl1]

Hi, 

It has been a long time since I've been on but all I have to say is "There are many ways of going forward but only one way of standing still". Franklin D. Roosevelt 

My feeling is if Vaping is helping you NOT smoke cigarettes then good for you! Do anything you can, however you can to not smoke cigarettes. :good3:  

 

Yes, ultimately the idea is to quit smoking anything and everything but why not use this 'tool' to your benefit? That's the key though is to think of it as a tool as opposed to a crutch or substitute. I mean people who overweight go on diets and we don't criticize them for eating 'diet' lasagna or having a 'lite' beer instead of subsisting off of lettuce and water for the rest of their life. We applaud them for doing something sensible and making positive changes; making as many 'good' choices as possible whenever and however they can.  Same with smoking.

 

Not everything is 'Easy-Peasy' for everyone. We are humans. That means we are all slave to some master like it or not.  We will all struggle with a different set of individual chains when we move away from it. While I never had a problem with my weight and do not understand those who do or with sex addiction or gambling or drugs and alcohol, I can empathize with such people because I struggle to quit smoking. NO....it is not 'Easy-Peasy'. It is harder then Hell.

 

To be honest that attitude and the fact that everyone has got to be a white knuckled, teeth gritting, hyperventilating 'dry drunk' and miserable as Hell to be successful non smoker is part of the reason why I stayed away. If somebody told you that you could lose weight but eat all the zero calorie bacon cheeseburgers you wanted would you eat them or would you go, "Nah....I rather not have a cheeseburger today or any day or ever. I'll enjoy this nice dry, white, chicken breast that taste like sawdust and a salad with no dressing." ? I vape and I love it.

 

I am down to 5 cigarettes a day now from a pack and a half thanks to vaping. I am also using the mid strength nicotine liquid not the full strength like I started out on. I used the full strength the first three months. Working towards cutting down to 3 smokes a day. That will start on the 1st of next month.

 

As for the safety of vaping well Meriam-Webster defined safe as 'free from harm or risk'. So no, according to that definition vaping is not 'safe' but then again neither is walking or eating potato chips. It is fairly low risks though when you compare it to driving. When talking about inhaling the flavorings they are those that are commonly found in bakeries and candy and meant for ingestion.  To be honest no much information is out when it comes to inhaling this stuff.

 

There has been brief or minor cases of upper air way or lung irritation but since vaping is so new we don't know that chronic airway irritation won't lead to serious issues long term. Some flavorings are particularly irritating and those are cherry and almond and they were researched but there is no evidence that the other flavors are either risky or safe.  Also a lot of people who vape don't use flavorings so there is little to no risk present. It is just inhaling water vapor.

 

The one group of flavorings that are shown to cause lung damage when inhaled in large quantities are those associated with the chemical Diketone or artificial buttered popcorn flavor. In the early 2000s workers in a Missouri microwave popcorn factory were all diagnosed with incurable lung condition called bronchiolitis obliterans after working with Diacetyl to flavor the popcorn.  The condition was nicknamed popcorn lung.  

 

 

NO smoker or vaper has ever been Diagnosed with popcorn lung!!!  

 

Also the United States  American Heart Association (AHA) in 2014 issued a 20 page statement that suggests e.cigs are less hazardous than tobacco and can help smokers quit :yu: . To quote, ""E.-cigarettes either do not contain or have lower levels of several tobacco derived harmful and potentially harmful constituents compared with cigarettes and smokeless tobacco...and they present an opportunity for harm reduction IF smokers use them as substitutes for cigarettes." 

 

The United Kingdom Department of Health report published by Public Health England said E. cigarettes are 95% safer than tobacco cigarettes and a potentially viable approach to quitting smoking.

 

And then there's just a comparison of what's in them chemical wise and cost wise.

 

Cigarettes:                                                                    E.-Cigarettes:

-nicotine                                                                         -nicotine

-nitrosamines                                                                 -nitrosamines

-hydrogen cyanide                                                         -propylene glycol (vegetable oil)

-lead                                                                               - acetaldehyde

-arsenic                                                                          -food grade safe to consume chemical flavorings

-ammonia

-benzene

-carbon monoxide

-polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

 

 

Smoking Material Fires from Cigarettes (2011 most recent data)

 90,000 smoking material fires

 540 people died

 1,640 injured

 $621 MILLION DOLLARS in property damage.

 

 E.-Cigarettes (2017 most recent data)

 243 E.- Cigarette battery explosions

  63 during use

  84 during charging

  52 during transport, storage or unknown circumstances

  44 spare batteries

 

Of the 243 incidents 158 resulted in personal injury.  Before 2015 there were NO Injuries. Injuries have since occurred due to increased battery size, improper charging techniques and improper storage.

 

Cost of Cigarettes versus Cost of Vaping                                                                                                  

 

SMOKING

20 Cigarettes per 1 pack including tax at Walgreens in suburban are of AZ is $7.05

1 pack a day for 7 days a week = $49.35 a week

1 pack for 30 days a month = $211.50 a month

12 months a year = $2,538.00 a year

* We did not factor in the cost a smoker pays for higher premium health insurance. :wacko2:

 

VAPING

To purchase an E. Cigarette starter kit that will last a year you will typically spend $40.00

This is the most expensive part of vaping.

One bottle of 'juice' per week if you vape heavily is $15.00 a week or $60.00 a month or $720.00 a year.

Cartridge replacement every 2 weeks is $5.00. That is $10.00 a month or $120.00 a year. 

 

So $40.00 + $720.00 + $120.00 = $880.00 

                                                  

 Smoking at $2,538.00 - Vaping at $880.00 = SAVINGS OF $1,658.00 :air_kiss:                                                                     

 

 So as long as you diligently work towards decreasing and ultimately eliminating the nicotine what's not to like about this helper. I think it is a great support system and a God send. If used right it will get you there one step at a time and you won't be nic-fittin' and wanting to kill somebody. You may actually enjoy quitting instead of resenting it and hating the whole process----maybe the reason why people can't quit or don't stay quit. Quitting by vaping is actually fun!  

 

The person who invented this little gizmo should be made a saint!    

[PeaceTrain]

You certainly have a right to your opinion and if you are choosing to vape and use that as a method to reduce smoking cigarettes, that's the choice you're making.  You can't, however, claim to have quit smoking on April 26th when you are currently "down to" 5 cigarettes a day.  That is, in fact, the average number of cigarettes I was smoking when I quit, cold turkey, on May 20th.  There were other periods in my life when I smoked a lot more than that per day, but for the last 4 or so years of my smoking life, that's all it was but you can rest assured that I was addicted to those 5 cigarettes a day as I was to the full pack a day habit I had at one time.  

 

Once you are no longer ingesting nicotine in any form, you have quit "smoking."  Not before.  That is my opinion.  If you think vaping is helping you to reach that goal, great.  But to be clear, you are not quitting till you actually quit.  Until then, you are reducing your intake.  Looking forward to seeing you again (with a correct ticker) once you have actually quit.  

[AgaveGirl1]

P.T. you are correct. :)   

I would have removed the ticker but don't know how.  

 

Glad you are doing well and continue to. Hope the information and facts I presented are of use to others and perhaps to some who went away because they feel 'can't do it' cold turkey.

 

Have a good day all and best wishes.

AG