I quit smoking way back in 2010 by using an old-school “cigalike” vape made by Green Smoke (see the image above). This was a top-of-the-line device in those days and I paid a lot of money for it – something like $120 for a single-battery kit! Today, you can get a similar type of cigalike for less than $20. It’s crazy how far we’ve come 🙂
I still remember thinking back then that the price I paid was outrageous, but now I remind myself that I wouldn’t be where I am today if I would have never invested in it. I quit smoking thanks to that little e-cig and I’ve probably added decades to my life. $120 has been more than worth it.
But I want to talk about some of the early observations I made in my first week, which are probably questions that you might have too.
Vaping More Than I Normally Smoked
During the first week of getting a vape, I found myself using it far more often than I would smoke regularly. I was almost worried that it was going to cause me to smoke even more. I was just so excited to have this new gadget but I think it was also because I had never inhaled something like chocolate. It was a true game-changer.
But I quickly realized that even if I did use it more than I smoked, it was much healthier for me.
And eventually, my habits started to align with how I had usually smoked. So I would vape three or four times per day and only for about five minutes per session. It was really hard at first, but I eventually adjusted.
Not Knowing How Much To Vape
This goes hand-in-hand with the issue above, but knowing how much to vape was really confusing for me at first. Back then, I decided to force myself to stick to my regular routine of smoking, so instead, I would vape once or twice per day, three to four times per day.
Today I think differently.
I still think that you could do what I did and force yourself into your old routine, but there are studies showing that sticking to a routine is one of the biggest issues with addiction. Routine forces your mind and body to crave something at the same time, every time. If you smoked when you drink a cup of coffee in the morning, your body knows that you’ll reward it with nicotine every time you drink a cup of coffee. So if you can break that habit and vape at different times of the day, which is extremely hard, I know, you will set yourself up for better success later.
But you still have that option of sticking with your routine. Do what you need to do.
And you could even simply vape more often. Today, we know that vaping is 95% safer than smoking (and probably even more, but researchers need to leave room for error), so even if you vape all day, it’s still likely to be much safer for you than smoking.
Something I also found was that even though I vaped a lot in the first week, eventually my body started to realize how much nicotine I really needed to be satisfied. As soon as I had enough nicotine, I was able to put the vape down in about the same amount of time that I normally smoked.
Curing Cravings While Drinking
Another one of my worries was that vaping wouldn’t stop my cravings for regular cigarettes, while I was drinking. I rarely drink at all anymore, but in my twenties, it as a big deal for me and my friends. We would get together and drink every weekend. And for anyone who drinks and smokes, you know how good smoking is when you drink. I would smoke a full pack in one night when I’d drink.
So yeah, satisfying my cravings while drinking was a real concern for me. I didn’t want to go back to smoking while I drank. And I’ll be perfectly honest, it wasn’t as satisfying. But it was satisfying for the most part. And I was determined to quit so I stuck with it. I stuck with my routine and I vaped it as often as I normally smoked cigarettes. It only took a few weeks before I no longer had the desire to smoke any more.
And I couldn’t believe it!
I thought I would never quit smoking, but then vaping opened up this whole world of possibility for me. It showed me that quitting was truly possible.
How Soon Will You See the Benefits of Switching to Vaping?
This will be different for everyone, but at least for me, I saw the health benefits of switching to vaping almost immediately. I only smoked about one or two packs per week and most of that was on the weekends. There were periods of my life where smoked much more, but at the time I quit smoking, that was about how much I smoked.
So I wasn’t a really heavy smoker and I think that’s why I noticed the health benefits so quickly. Usually, I would feel the effects of smoking the next day, first thing in the morning. I had a lot of phlegm, my throat hurt, my chest hurt, and I coughed a lot.
After switching to vaping, all of that went away almost immediately.
It did take more time for me to improve my lung capacity and cardio health, but that improved almost immediately too. I used to exercise heavily and daily, including lots of cardio work and running. The effects of quitting smoking were noticeable right away, even if it was only a small amount, but over time, my health continued to improve incrementally. Today, I can run 5-10 miles at a time and ride my bike 30-40 miles per day without having to worry about wheezing or chest pains whatsoever. The only thing holding me back now is muscle endurance!
What Questions or Observations Do You Have?
These were some of the notes that I had actually written down for myself in 2010. These were real observations and questions I had. There’s a lot more information about vaping these days, so you’re probably more prepared than I was, but I want to ask if you could share your own questions and observations. Please let me know in the comments!