E Cigs

I suppose this would best be posted in this forum for addictions. Seems like the proper place for a discussion of E cigs, in the event anyone is working on ways to quit smoking. I'd just like to share my experiences with these new fake cigarettes that are all now the rage. I've tried several different products now, each has it's own advantages, hopefully my experimenting will help someone else decide which would work best for them.

First off, let me be perfectly clear. I am not going to quit smoking. Just the thought of quitting sends me into a panic and fit of nervous rage. For right now my goal is only to cut down on smoking. That I can mentally deal with. I'm going at this in baby steps. Maybe once I have cut down I'll take it a step further, but for right now lets just start off with a goal that I at least have a fighting chance to attain. I should mention at this point I am smoking probably more than 2 packs a day. WAY too much.

My first E cig was what I believe is the original e cig. It looks like a real cigarette, just a bit longer and heavier. When you puff on it the orange/red plastic tip glows red, simulating the burning end of a real butt. You plug it into your computer to charge it up. It has cartridges you can purchase for refills. I got my first one on one of those promotions where you just pay $5 for it and your starter kit, but when I got it they didn't have menthol cartridges available. So I got regular cartridges, and honestly they tasted really bad. I never got a chance to try the menthol refills made by the E cig company. I did however, after trying it, purchase a couple of those disposable e cigs, the non refillable type that come pre filled and already charged and ready to "smoke." I did get the menthol and let me just say, the taste left a lot to be desired.

Now I have one of those eGo-t refillable models. It has cartridges you can buy little bottles of fluid and fill them yourself. The company was a pain to work with. They didn't send out my cig until long after my credit card was charged with the purchase. I was supposed to have a trail period and I never got the dang thing to try before they charged me. It took some precious time and phone calls to get that fixed. Also, the e-cig came with no instructions whatsoever. Just the parts and some refill containers. While they are pretty simple contraptions, not having any clue as to how to fill and charge and all that stuff was quite annoying, and calls to the company with numerous promises to email me directions that were never kept, it took nearly a week of wasting time on the phone with them before I finally did get some directions. Their customer service is extremely poor to say the least. As for the cigarette it 'self, I have to say, I like the little cheap ones better. This one has a button on the side you have to press when you want to take a toke off of it. I find that rather annoying. It is also much heavier than the cheap ones, and instead of being shaped like a regular cigarette it has a small mouth piece. If you are one of those people who like to leave a cigarette dangling from your lip when your hands are busy doing something else, you won't care much for this style. It's far too heavy for lip dangling, and of course, you actually have to have a hand on it to press the little button. The button lights up blue when you press it by the way, instead of the orange glow you get from the other types. There is also the problem of only having one. The batteries last awhile on a charge, but it takes awhile to charge back up, a person really needs 2 of them, one smoking and one charging. If you only have one it would probably be wise to keep one of the disposable types handy for charge times. I suppose the good side to this type is the cost, they are cheap enough to operate and the fluid refills are fairly easy to come by.

But over all, if you want to quit (or in my case cut down) on smoking, these E-cigs may be just the thing. They keep you supplied with a level of nicotine, which helps reduce the cravings and they also give you the cigarette to have in your hands to fiddle with, which is also somewhat helpful. Part of the addiction is having those things in your hands. They fulfill the "motions" of smoking, you inhale, feel the vapor, exhale and see the vapor coming out. Just like with a real cigarette. Another up side is that they are handy when you just have time for a couple puffs. Instead of smoking a whole cigarette like you usually do if you light one, this one you can stick back in your pocket after just a puff or 2. They do have a slick advertising campaign going on how you can smoke anywhere, since it isn't really smoke but steam, though I have heard that certain places are trying to prohibit their use. (which I find totally insane, considering they are legalizing pot in many places now, but go figure....) It's really nice to have one when you are stuck somewhere that you can't get out of for a little while you can take a couple quick puffs off of and then just drop it back in your pocket.

The down side to all models is that they just don't taste all that great. You would think with todays modern sciences they could come up with something that really did taste like smoke, tobacco and menthol. The good thing is that if you can keep on puffing on one and ignore the nasty taste for awhile, it eventually grows on you. Now I'm finding it less offensive all the time, but it takes awhile to get to that point.

Oh, and how am I doing? Pretty good actually, or at least I think so. I've gone from over 2 packs a day to about a half pack or a little over, some days a little less than half a pack, so I think that's a pretty big cut back. If you want to quite I think these things are a good option to try.

good for you SD, And hopefully soon you will be able to quit altogether here's fingers crossed.

Might want to cross your toes too! LOL. Geeze, it's not easy. I was also wearing those nicotine patches too when I first started, but I got to thinking I was probably taking in more nicotine with the patch and the e cigs than I was when I was just smoking, so for the last 4-5 days I haven't used a patch. And it's made it more difficult, I'm up several smokes a day, although I'm still under a pack a day.

I really want one of e-hookas. I still can't find one that I saw this guy with but it looked really cool! Have you tried smoking hookah instead ?

as long as you keep trying SD, Maybe going to a meeting about Stopping when you are ready,

my ma tried stopping once she lasted until night time and then she went into the bin and got the ones she had throwing out that morning.

well SD Hope you are able to cut back abit,

Ok, I'll bite, what is hookah? Never heard of it. Don't suppose that is another new name for something that might still be illegal in some states? I really have no desire to smoke much of anything except tobacco. Sure don' t want any part of any mind altering drugs, my mind is in bad enough shape as it is without screwing around with it. I like what brain cells I have and really need to keep them.

Oh, just thought of something else I wouldn't mind smoking. Chicken. :-) Put a nice whole bird in the smoker and leave it to slow cook for 4 or 5 hours, now there's some good eating!