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Give and get support around quitting

Vaping has become my everyday ritual

Hello all! I’m pretty young and I started vaping 4 years ago. I didn’t think I was addicted until I bought my own and it has become something I crave constantly. I need some help trying to replace this habit. I have been trying to quit for the past year and ever time I throw one out, I end up buying one the next day. Please give me some tips on how I can get over this. Thanks! 

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12 Replies
sweetplt
Member

Hi and Welcome to Ex’s erindempsey147 

You are smart to rid this addiction before you get older.  May I suggest your read at My EX Plan | BecomeAnEX where you plan for your quit date. (Substitute smoking with vaping) Then, join the group  E-Cig and Vape Quitters and Users Also, read the blogs on quitting and addiction from the elders at this site.  The night before you quit rid all vaping paraphernalia...replace vaping with healthy activities, here is a list /blogs/Maggie_quit_8-1-2010-blog/2012/03/19/100-things-to-do-instead-of-smoking?sr=search&searchId=b... 

Come here to the support site to get help and to encourage others in this journey.  You can do this...I quit smoking after  30 years ... one day at a time...Colleen 633 DOF 

Thanks for the help! 

JACKIE1-25-15
Member

Now that you recognize that you have an addiction you have to treat it as such. Education is the key to successfully abstaining from the drugs you are ingesting. 

Quitting is very hard. It is going to require discipline and commitment It is suggested that you wean yourself from the vape by reducing the amount of mgs and times that you vape. Tell yourself to wait a little longer. Gradually use less to break away from it.   It really takes the commitment never to touch it again no matter how bad you feel because it gets better in time. You have to go through withdrawal-like any other drug.  To make it easier you have to find distractions that you may enjoy other than vaping. 101 Things to Do Instead of Smoke   It takes about 3 days for most of the nicotine to be out of your body but the mental adjustment makes take longer.  You have to be willing to do whatever is necessary.  

Just like the lack of research surrounding the dangers of vaping in general, there are very few resources available specifically for those who are looking to quit vaping. On the bright side, however, the process for quitting smoking is almost identical to the one for quitting vaping, with the added benefit of being able to fully control the amount of nicotine you use, depending on the e-cig you are using. Go to this link @Quitting E-cigarettes | Guides & Tools | BecomeAnEX 

 

Thank you Jackie!! 

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YoungAtHeart
Member

Welcome to our community!

You are addicted to nicotine.  Every time you vape, you energize the brain receptors and its effect is short-lived, so almost as soon as you put the device away, you are jonesing for you next fix.  Read on to better understand it!

I recommend that you educate yourself on what nicotine does to your body and mind To that end, I suggest Allen Carr's “The Easy Way to Stop Smoking.” . Vaping was not a concern when this was written, so you will need to sub “vape”as necessary. This is an easy and entertaining read which can be found online or at your local library. If you do nothing else to get ready for your quit, please do give this a read. Here is a video to inform you further about nicotine addiction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpWMgPHn0Lo&feature=youtu.be.

 

Although primarily a smoking cessation site, I have seen a huge increase in the number of people coming for help to break free from vaping. You will need to substitute “vape” or “device” as you do the reading I will recommend. Research suggests nicotine may be as addictive as heroin and cocaine. Because vaping is available to you most anywhere, anytime, I believe it might be more difficult from which to break free than regular tobacco products - but it CAN be done!

I am so happy to hear you are breaking free at such a young age.  Considering vaping to be “safe” is far from a given - there is much research to be done. What we know is that vaping raises your blood pressure and spikes your adrenaline, which increases your heart rate and the likelihood of having a heart attack. There are many unknowns about vaping, including what chemicals make up the vapor and how they affect physical health over the long term. Recently vaping has been in the headlines because of the possibility of it causing severe lung damage in young people. An August, 2019 study at the University of Pennsylvania showed that a single instance of vaping immediately lead to reduced vascular function: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190820101601.htm

Nicotine addiction is nicotine addiction - no matter the delivery device - and how to beat any of them is about the same. Every time you read :"cigarette" in the information I will give you, just sub "Juul" or “vape,” or “device.”   The one thing different I would recommend is that you first start to reduce the nicotine content of the pods.  Start with a lesser amount in, like, one in every four, then three, etc. until you are only using the smallest amount, or reduce the amount of nicotine in the pods over time. That way the physical withdrawal should be more manageable. You might find useful information, as well, here: https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/quitting-smoking-vaping/quitting-e-cigarettes.

 

After you have completed the recommended reading, it will be time to make an informed choice of the quit aid, if any, you will use. If you go that route, I personally recommend the aids that don't let the addict control the dose such as the available prescription drugs or the patch. If used properly, gum, lozenges and inhalers are fine, but they need to be used only as a last resort after you have tried to delay and distract.   I have seen folks become addicted to them if they substitute them for every cigarette they used to smoke - just trading one addiction for another.  You need to start out with a plan to reduce use of them over time - which the patch does by decreasing the dose contained in them..  For the gum, you can start by cutting each piece in half, then in quarters, then sub regular gum of the same flavor in between, adding more and more regular gum.  For the lozenge, you need to start subbing a mint in between to begin, increasing the number of them over time.

 

It will be informative if you do the tracking and separation exercises recommended here on the site. As you track each device use, note its importance, and what you might do instead. Put each use off just a little to prove that you don't NEED a puff just because you think you do

 

The idea is to change up your routines so the vaping associations are reduced.  Drink your coffee with your OTHER hand in a place different from where you vaped. Maybe switch to tea for a bit.  If you always had that first puff with your coffee, try putting your tennies on right out of bed, going for a quick walk, then taking your shower and THEN your coffee! Rearrange the furniture in the areas you used to vape so the view is different. Take a different route when you are out and about so you aren't driving by your vaping supply shop. Take a quick walk at break time instead of vaping.


You need to distract yourself through any craves.  You can take a bite out of a lemon (yup - rind and all), put your head in the freezer and take a deep breath of cold air, do a few jumping jacks, go for a brisk walk or march in place, play a computer game.  Keep a cold bottle of water with you from which to sip. Don't let that vaping thought rattle around in your brain unchallenged. Sometimes you need to quit a minute or an hour at a time.  You will need to be disciplined in the early days to distract yourself when a crave hits.    Get busy!  Here is a link to a list of things to do instead of vape if you need some fresh ideas:
 https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/blogs/Youngatheart.7.4.12-blog/2013/02/25/100-things-to-do-instea...


The conversation in your head in response to the "I want to vape" thought needs to be, "Well, since I have decided not to do that anymore, what shall I do instead for the three minutes this crave will last?"  Then DO it.  You will need to put some effort into this in the early days, but it gets easier and easier to do.

 

Stay close to us here and ask questions when you have them and for support when you need it. We will be with you every step of the way!


 Nancy

Thank you so much for the help and resources! 

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AnnetteMM
Member

Hi Erin. You asked for tips...have you done any of the reading everyone has suggested? LOTS of ideas in there. 

I also used vaping, and I wrote about it here:  https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/people/AnnetteMM/blog/2019/09/08/how-to-quit-juul-or-vaping-in-ge... 

Please respond back here to let us know how you're doing. We really do care, and we really do want to know

Thank you so much!! 

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breakthecurse
Member

erindempsey147‌, Erin. I was also addicted to vaping- it’s highly addictive! I’m on 27 days and I still have to resist the urge to not go buy one.

My tips for success:  I used Chantix. Yep. I did and it helped. I also changed my thought process which I wrote about in my blog- change in perspective. https://excommunity.becomeanex.org/people/Breakthecurse2020/blog/2020/08/02/change-in-perspective 

Some people have had success with cutting the nic mg and slowly weaning down.  

I’m wishing you all the best, and if you need extra support just reach out!