Twenty days ago, my son suggested that we lock my cigs up and I give it yet another go at quitting smoking. I've been down that road before and it never ended well. It just ended. Nervous breakdowns and anxiety attacks were nothing compared to the shingles I broke out in. Yes, my quit attempts usually ended with my body literally trying to eat itself!
This time, I decided I do something a bit different. No Wellbutrin. No patches. No gum. This time, I'd use something called an electronic cigarette. Now, before I go much further, I do want to say up front that nobody who is not currently smoking tobacco products should even consider trying these things! They aren't the new cool and hip thing to do. It's not a safe way for teenagers to rebel against authority. They're just cigarettes, but without the tobacco.
Okay now that I got that out of the way, they are extremely helpful for me personally in my quit attempt. When I am highly stressed, which is me about 95% of the time, I'm not adding to the stress by trying to reject the urge of lighting up. When my body is screaming at me for relief, I don't ahve to light up to give it that relief. At the same time, I'm also not using this thing nearly as much as I was smoking before!
Honestly, I was smoking between two and three packs each and every single day. Can you imagine willingly putting that much carbon dioxide, arsenic and 3,997 other chemicals not including nicotene, into your system willingly each and every single day? That's what I was doing. Now, I've traded those 3,999 chemicals for just five or six chemicals. Those five or six chemicals may be doing damage to me, but not to the entire family or the world around me.
Before the quit, every morning started out with 15 to 20 minutes of coughing. Okay, not even coughing. It was more like hacking for breath. If I moved five feet at a moderately quick pace, I was out of breath. If I talked on the phone for more than two minutes, I could not breathe. Laughing would throw me into a coughing fit. You guys are getting the picture now, right?
Now I'm not going to tell you that all of my breathing problems are resolved, because they aren't. I do still have a mild cough through out the day. Every once in a while, I still get that throat tickle. I can sleep through the night however, and usually very well.
For me, these are a tool to help me in my quit. They are no different than the patch, the gums, or the Nicotrol inhaler. At the same time, just because they are effective for me in this capacity does not mean they will be effective for everyone. These are not supposed to be marketed as smoking cessation devices for a reason. They have not been proven to be able to assist an adequate number of people in a quit to be called smoking cessation devices.
There are some drawbacks to these things.
First, once you find a brand that you like, you will likely have to keep getting that brand from the same location. This is because this is such a new type of product that they aren't regularly found at many different locations. While there are about 10 different brands, one place will have one or two brands, but other places will have different brands.
Second, the initial cost is often astronimcal. Some offer lifetime replacement if anything ever happens to your unit, while others don't. The cartridges themselves are cheap when compared to regular tobacco products however.
Third, they have to be carried a certain way and can't come in contact with metal objects. So you can carry them in your pockets, especially if you have loose change. If you carry it in an upright position, the liquid can drip into the battery causing damage to the battery. If upside down, then the liquid drips out and it's just nasty.
Fourth, you almost really do need two batteries. One to use, and one as backup in case you need to recharge during the day.
Fifth, these things are big, bulky and heavy. A full pack of cigs weighs less, but it is about as much as a pack of cigs and a lighter.
If you do decide to go this route, shop around and do some research. "Smoke Anywhere" products SUCK. I learned that the hard way. Don't just go for the first one you see. Ask current users. Do an Internet search or two. And for heavens sakes, don't start using these the way you started smoking: blindly! Do your research into the health benefits vs the health risks.
For me, these are not a long term solution. These are temporary while I wean myself off of the nicotene itself. They keep me off of regular cigarettes, which is the ultimate goal.
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