E-cig Basic Info

I smoked for about 20 years. I have been “vaping” for 114 days and smoked my last “analog” on day 2 (calculation: I haven’t smoked an “analog” cigarette in 112 days or since May 13). If I could teleport myself back to May 1, I would never have guessed that I would only be puffing on this contraption, let alone that all these new, crazy words would become part of my daily vocabulary. I will admit that vaping is definitely different from smoking regular cigarettes - It tastes different…It drags different…It feels different.

The price of a pack of cigarettes went up twice in Florida at the beginning of this year but the cost, for me, was never a deterrent. It did, however, start my co-worker looking elsewhere. He saw something on the news about the e-cigarette so we spent the day researching it. I, eventually, gave up surfing because there was way too much information to wade through, but he went home and researched more, deciding on which model to purchase and who to purchase it from. I believe he was aiming for cheap for his first one in the event that he absolutely hated it and if he did like it he’d find a different place/model if necessary.

He purchased an M-201 pen-style starter kit from www.absolutelyecigs.com and a nicotine juice sample pack from www.johnsoncreeksmokejuice.com. He received both about a week later and his wife almost confiscated it from him. She loved it so much they decided to order a second starter kit for him right away. Over the next few weeks, they ordered several starter kits for themselves, their grown children, and their friends.

While they were ordering and loving their e-cigarettes, I was going back and forth between a Nicoderm patch and my Marlboro Ultra Lights. Almost every weekend I would smoke, but during the week I’d wear a patch to work. I finally decided that if I was going to go back to “smoking”, I’d have to do it with this “fake” cigarette so I placed an order for 2 starter kits (I ordered 2 because I thought my husband might want one after he saw mine). I was never worried about over-ordering because I knew if I didn’t like my new ciggy thingamajig, my co-worker would buy all of my gear.

I had about ½ pack of cigarettes left when I received my first e-cig order in the mail (most of those smokey treats were smoked that night after work and I had one remaining for the next day). I received my personal vaporizer (PV) while I was still at work and the batteries were, basically, charged so I started puffing on it immediately just to get a feel for it. The flavor of it was absolutely disgusting. I was so disappointed (as this gadget was going to liberate me) until I read somewhere about the primer in the atomizers. I truly believe this is one of the most important things to tell someone who is just starting out because that taste may discourage them from ever puffing on that thing again. For those of you who don’t (but plan to) vape, when you first receive your e-cigarette, realize that the atomizer comes from the company with a primer in it. This primer tastes very nasty (almost like a burning skunk) and you will need to either put new juice in your atomizer and “primer puff” it (puff and blow without a cartridge and without inhaling) or you can clean out the atomizer with very hot water before ever using it.

I am now well beyond my first experience with my e-cigarette but flash back to the end of May when I went to my first party (since quitting). I knew I’d be drinking at this party so this was my true test. I didn’t want to put myself in a corner, so I never told myself “no smoking”…I even thought about having one once while I was there but the thought of tasting a real cigarette didn’t sound at all appealing when I could have either green apple or Dr. Pepper flavor.

The e-cig is not a definite quitting tool and they are not advertising the product as a “smoking cessation device”. It is likely that you will still have quite a bit of difficulty with quitting smoking. My co-worker never really got into the habit with his e-cigarette but I’m so happy he introduced them to me. For me it was somewhat easy because I was just about done with smoking cigarettes already, unfortunately I never really wanted to quit smoking. I originally moved to the e-cigarette because I felt it would allow me to continue to “smoke”. Most people who I haven’t seen in a while ask if it has helped me quit but in my mind, I still smoke so it usually throws me off how to answer. I guess the answer is, “Technically, yes”.

I now have a new morning ritual and I can’t just grab a pack of cigarettes and lighter before I go out to a bar but I’m so happy with my little vapor stick. You will learn tons of tips and tricks as you go along and if you ever need any help or have questions there’s a great message board (www.e-cigarette-forum.com).

If there is interest in my personal experiences, tips, tricks, etc. I can write much more on this blog. For example, I purchased a black mini e-cig. I love the little blue light but the cartridge is quite a bit smaller than my pen-style so it holds less nicotine juice which means that the cartridge has to be refilled more often. This is alright if you are hanging out at the house or work, but if you are out for the night, I have found that it’s best if you have several prepared cartridges and/or full e-cigarettes (1 starter kit will allow you to make 1 full e-cigarette and have an extra battery.