Electronic Cigarettes - My #1 Hobby

[Electric Rider]

I'd like to take a moment to tell all you smokers that your dirty evil habit is a horrible addiction, it's killing you and your all going to go To Hell...      

but I won't because I don't buy any of that crap!   That was just a joke folks.. Seriously, that's all BS. 

 But I will share my story.  I smoked for 22 years and tried everything to quit smoking over the last few years. I tried the patches, gum, cold turkey, lozenges, those fake cigarettes that are hollow straws with a nicotine cotton swap inside.. everything short of prescription methods - I am kinda anti pharmaceuticals.

Thing is none of that worked for me because I really did not want to quit - I just didn't want to die from smoking. Many people feel this way.  I LOVED to Smoke. Nothing wrong with that.. but I knew if I didn't stop one day it might catch up with me in a bad way, and I didn't want that.

About a year and a half ago I saw a commercial on TV for these Electronic Cigarettes. I was intrigued. I started searching the internet for all the information I could get my hands on. I read all the pros and cons, who said what about them and looked into those peoples backgrounds to see if they had any kind of agenda that would color their views. I spent 3 months doing research. I came to the conclusion that the electronic cigarette or e-cig as it's called was safe enough for me to try. I learned there was much hype with some e-cigs just as there are some lies told about e-cigs largely perpetuated by the pharmaceutical industry. The pharmaceutical industry has a billion dollar a year investment in quit smoking products world wide for products that are not nearly as effective as the e-cig in clinical and anecdotal evidence.

I did some research on the best e-cig for a beginner and found there are many styles and sizes of e-cigs. Many do not look like cigarettes at all. I learned to stay away from Mall e-cigs because they are way over priced due to the overhead of Mall shops. I ordered a 35 dollar kit that contained two e-cigs and a bottle of tobacco flavored liquid nicotine juice to use.
It was love at first puff.  It looked like smoking, felt like smoking, gave me the nicotine I wanted. Best of all doesn't have any of the 4000 chemicals or the 69 cancer causing chemicals or tar or carbon monoxide found in cigarette smoke that causes the body harm.  We call it Vaping instead of smoking because you inhale a vapor. It was easy to stick with and quickly replaced my cigarette smoking for good. I had no harsh cravings. The juice from this initial purchase lasted me several months - The juice itself was about 40 dollars - way cheaper than cigarettes and the two e-cigs are still going strong.

Now, over a year later, I have a variety of e-cigs and different flavored nicotine juices. I am smoke free. I have quit smoking tobacco. I still enjoy the e-cig and because it's not hurting me, will probably continue to use one the rest of my life. Does it satisfy like a cigarette? Yes it does for the most part. There are some things like the morning head rush I don't get and that was from the carbon monoxide in tobacco smoke. The e-cig is what worked for me.  It may not be for everyone.

I also learned about the types of anti smoking/anti nicotine groups out there and the lies they tell people. No, your not evil for smoking or using nicotine. Nicotine by itself has the same health risks associated with it as caffeine. Like caffeine nicotine is a vascular constrictor (narrows blood vessels) and a central nervous system stimulant. People who cannot have caffeine or have high blood pressure  may find nicotine will acerbate their symptoms. Nicotine by itself is only mildly addictive. ( there are other things in cigarettes that contribute to addiction) Nicotine by itself does not cause heart disease, lung disease or kill. It's the smoke that kills.

If you are trying to quit, and nothing is working you may want to look into trying an electronic cigarette. It can save your life, I believe it has saved mine and my doctor is ecstatic. My body is healing from 22 years of smoking damage at the rate of someone who quit cold turkey. I can breath better have more endurance and feel great. ( been of tobacco smoke for over a year now)

That said, what's important is that you find the best method that works for you.

Thank you for reading my story.

Electric Rider

 Any other e-cig users out there? Lets hear from you !

[PBurke]

i am curious. what are some of the best ones/options?

[aarrggh]

  A few guys where i work smoke those fake cigs . They say they like them but they must be weak minded cause they still smoke cigarettes too .
 In other words they smoke both ! .
                                                           

[Electric Rider]

i am curious. what are some of the best ones/options?

That's subjective because they are all different. There are the cigarette size looking e-cigs like the kind you see on TV and the Mall. These have very small batteries so you have to recharge them every few hours. The kind I started with is called a Riva or an Ego. It's a cigar size e-cig with a 3.7 volt battery and the charge last all day. Now I use both a 5 volt battery and even a multi voltage battery that goes from 3 to 6 volts.

Here's the rundown:

All e-cigs are essentially a battery, a small heating element that vaporizes the nicotine liquid (or e-liguid) and a chamber that holds the e-liquid. Most e-cigs come with rechargeable batteries and chargers. You can purchase different e-liquid for the strength of cigarettes you use, ultra light, light, or regular strength - or anything in between. . You can get these in regular tobacco, menthol or a thousand other flavors

 I enjoy Pineapple, candy cane, pina colada, peanut butter and a tobacco flavor called Wyatt Earp. I buy both pre mixed e-liquid and make my own e-liquid at home. This way saves some money. Yes, I have a large bottle of USP grade liquid nicotine for this purpose as well as flavorings and bottles of Propylene Glycol, and Vegetable Glycerin. These ingredients are all legal, FDA approved and dirt cheap.. even the liquid nicotine.

The heating coil parts are called Atomizers. The wire used in atomizers is nichrome wire and comes in different thicknesses that operate at different ohm ratings and voltages. A 3.0 ohm coil is rated best for use with 5 volts for example. You have to choose an atomizer with a coil rating (ohms)  suitable for the voltage battery you use. The Riva and Ego above use 2.0 ohm coils with the 3.7 volt batteries.

See.. like I said.. subjective. There is a lot to these e-cigs. Most of the time people are unhappy with the performance of the e-cig is because they have a weak coil and weak battery. I personally find a 5 volt e-cig with a 3.0 ohm coil or 3.2 ohm coil to deliver as good a hit as a normal cigarette. Lots of vapor and lots of flavor. How the e-juice ingredients are mixed and in what amounts plays another factor in how well the e-cig works for you.

Now if you have followed all that and are not asleep or disgusted then with a little more education on the subject you will be able to find an e-cig that's good for you to try.  The best way to do this is research. Find a good e-cig forum and start looking around and compare different e-cigs and prices from vendors you find on the internet.  I suggest using a forum called the Electronic Cigarette Forum http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com They don't sell e-cigs but have tons of information about them as well as a good recommended e-cig vendor list - these are vendors who are known to the community to be reputable and not just out to scam you.

Hope this helps, and you or anyone may contact me any time for assistance. I'm happy to help. My thing is I know e-cigs can save lives and it's important to me to help folks know about this option that may work for them when nothing else is working.

Electric Rider

  A few guys where i work smoke those fake cigs . They say they like them but they must be weak minded cause they still smoke cigarettes too .
 In other words they smoke both ! .
                                                           

yep. that happens a lot. if you followed the above this may be because they have a weak battery and coil combo or they have yucky tasting e-liquid or just haven't made up thier mind to switch yet. many people only use the e-cig for places they cannot smoke regular cigarettes. E-cigs were not designed to get around smoking bans but people take advantage.

Oh and for the record.. we don't call em fake cigs.. in fact we hate that they are called electronic cigarettes. Associating these things with cigarettes gives them a negative connotation. We prefer to call them Personal Vaporizers or PV's. I'm not ragging on you.. I can easily see how people can call these fake cigs.. I did at one time too ! LOL.

Electric Rider

[Lynchy]

Hey,

My brother inlay just quit smoking by using one of theese, he can't stop signing there praises!

Although I do not smoke the thing looked way to cool

[djones]

 Easy rider what you vaping on these days?

[Blitzed]

I'd like to take a moment to tell all you smokers that your dirty evil habit is a horrible addiction, it's killing you and your all going to go To Hell...      

but I won't because I don't buy any of that crap!   That was just a joke folks.. Seriously, that's all BS. 

 But I will share my story.  I smoked for 22 years and tried everything to quit smoking over the last few years. I tried the patches, gum, cold turkey, lozenges, those fake cigarettes that are hollow straws with a nicotine cotton swap inside.. everything short of prescription methods - I am kinda anti pharmaceuticals.

Thing is none of that worked for me because I really did not want to quit - I just didn't want to die from smoking. Many people feel this way.  I LOVED to Smoke. Nothing wrong with that.. but I knew if I didn't stop one day it might catch up with me in a bad way, and I didn't want that.

About a year and a half ago I saw a commercial on TV for these Electronic Cigarettes. I was intrigued. I started searching the internet for all the information I could get my hands on. I read all the pros and cons, who said what about them and looked into those peoples backgrounds to see if they had any kind of agenda that would color their views. I spent 3 months doing research. I came to the conclusion that the electronic cigarette or e-cig as it's called was safe enough for me to try. I learned there was much hype with some e-cigs just as there are some lies told about e-cigs largely perpetuated by the pharmaceutical industry. The pharmaceutical industry has a billion dollar a year investment in quit smoking products world wide for products that are not nearly as effective as the e-cig in clinical and anecdotal evidence.

I did some research on the best e-cig for a beginner and found there are many styles and sizes of e-cigs. Many do not look like cigarettes at all. I learned to stay away from Mall e-cigs because they are way over priced due to the overhead of Mall shops. I ordered a 35 dollar kit that contained two e-cigs and a bottle of tobacco flavored liquid nicotine juice to use.
It was love at first puff.  It looked like smoking, felt like smoking, gave me the nicotine I wanted. Best of all doesn't have any of the 4000 chemicals or the 69 cancer causing chemicals or tar or carbon monoxide found in cigarette smoke that causes the body harm.  We call it Vaping instead of smoking because you inhale a vapor. It was easy to stick with and quickly replaced my cigarette smoking for good. I had no harsh cravings. The juice from this initial purchase lasted me several months - The juice itself was about 40 dollars - way cheaper than cigarettes and the two e-cigs are still going strong.

Now, over a year later, I have a variety of e-cigs and different flavored nicotine juices. I am smoke free. I have quit smoking tobacco. I still enjoy the e-cig and because it's not hurting me, will probably continue to use one the rest of my life. Does it satisfy like a cigarette? Yes it does for the most part. There are some things like the morning head rush I don't get and that was from the carbon monoxide in tobacco smoke. The e-cig is what worked for me.  It may not be for everyone.

I also learned about the types of anti smoking/anti nicotine groups out there and the lies they tell people. No, your not evil for smoking or using nicotine. Nicotine by itself has the same health risks associated with it as caffeine. Like caffeine nicotine is a vascular constrictor (narrows blood vessels) and a central nervous system stimulant. People who cannot have caffeine or have high blood pressure  may find nicotine will acerbate their symptoms. Nicotine by itself is only mildly addictive. ( there are other things in cigarettes that contribute to addiction) Nicotine by itself does not cause heart disease, lung disease or kill. It's the smoke that kills.

If you are trying to quit, and nothing is working you may want to look into trying an electronic cigarette. It can save your life, I believe it has saved mine and my doctor is ecstatic. My body is healing from 22 years of smoking damage at the rate of someone who quit cold turkey. I can breath better have more endurance and feel great. ( been of tobacco smoke for over a year now)

That said, what's important is that you find the best method that works for you.

Thank you for reading my story.

Electric Rider

 Any other e-cig users out there? Lets hear from you !

I congratulate you on quitting smoking, soon we'll be back to the original purpose of smoke which was to signal friends at a distance. However, I cannot fail to notice that within your eloquent, correct monograph basically what you've justified is turning from one addiction to another.