I'm making converts!

[Ironhorse]

Mind you, we live in a small town. But the pharmacy I go to all the time for my prescriptions, the ladies who work there all know my face - heck, one of them even knows my voice over the phone!

Anyhow, I had mentioned to the counter lady that I was going to try to quit smoking using the e-cigarette, and last time in she asked how that was going. I proudly informed her that I was going on 3 weeks without a ciggie, and showed her my e-cig.

This caught the attention of the pharmacist who asked me if it was just a phony cigarette - which lead to me giving them a brief demonstration and explaining how an e-cigarette works, and what the parts were - next thing I know, the pharmacist is saying she's going to try to stock e-cigarettes as a stop smoking aid.

Anyhow, I'm spreading the word!!

[bferris19]

I posted on facebook that I'm using e-cigs to quit smoking and have gotten a few folks who are very interested asking me about it. I'm only 3 days in but I really feel it's something I can do to replace smoking long term. I just hope that it's not even more dangerous than smoking - I smoked for thirty years, and although it was taking it's toll on my breath exercising and such, it's "the devil I know" so to speak - and it's killing me but doing so slowly. Fact is we don't know about these e-cigs. It would be quite a kick in the *** to be thinking you're doing the right thing for your health and suddenly find out that e-cigs are actually super toxic and will kill you in months rather than years! I don't think that's the case however, and I can feel my lungs breathing a little better even in this short time of vaping.

[mcquinn]

Keep up the good work,I wouldn't worry too much about vaping you are consuming most of the ingrediants anyway.My advice to any newbie is get to the lowest nicotine level as quick as you can without falling off the wagon.I doubt we will have the choices we have today for a whole lot longer and people who are just using vaping to get nicotine will have to find other avenues .I have tried a lot of ways to beat my addiction and vaping is the only one that worked for me.It has been a year and a half and once I got to the point where I was using low and no nicotine I can go for quite a while without getting all uptight like I used to.The nicotine in e-liquid is not as addictive and you are not getting the other additives in cigerettes that they put in to keep you hooked .This is a great opportunity take advantage.

[bferris19]

Right on Mcquinn. Actually I'm not even sure if I'm getting any nicotine in my system via e-cigs, studies suggest not really, but it doesn't matter much to me, as it's replacing that routine-ritual-reward thing that makes smoking such a tough habit to break. To borrow a term from AA parlance; smoking, and cigarettes themselves, ARE the "people, places, and things" all rolled up in one little white package.

[bferris19]

To follow that point I am stocking up on as much e-liquid, atomizers, batteries, and such just in case they do shut this whole thing down soon. My basement is looking like the "secure undisclosed location." I want to have enough to get through the physical addiction and wean myself gradually off the psychological side.

[mcquinn]

good plan.

[Jim Davis]

Originally Posted by Ironhorse

next thing I know, the pharmacist is saying she's going to try to stock e-cigarettes as a stop smoking aid.

There's an ongoing battle about this subject. E-cigs are not a quitting aid. They are an alternitive to smoking.

Also - There is no scientific proof that e-cigs are safe to use.

In any case, your Pharmacist would have to buy in bulk to sell at a reasonable price.

[bferris19]

I don't follow the logic of the argument "E-cigs are not a quitting smoking device - they are an alternative to smoking." As recent studies have suggested vaping really does not produce a measurable level of nicotine absorbed into one's bloodstream, so I have to disagree. It in fact IS a quitting smoking device - at least when smoking is viewed through the traditional prism of being an addiction to nicotine and cigarettes as the primary nicotine delivery device. Rather I'd say e-cigs are an "alternative to hand to mouth oral fixation" which goes hand and hand with smoker's addiction, and I'd rather be stuck with continuing that odd habit than with inhaling 4000 chemicals INCLUDING the very addicitive nicotine in addition.

[bferris19]

All I know is it's been four days since I've smoked a traditional "analog" cigarette. The last time I'd gone that long was in the hospital after a car wreck 20 years ago. The time before that I was 12 years old and hadn't yet started smoking. E-Cigs ARE a quitting device. I'm pretty confident I'll be able to stop Vaping when the time comes now that the nicotine addiction is in it's waning days.

[mcquinn]

Some people can quit smoking with gum or lifesavers.To be accepted by the FDA as a smoking cessation product would require studies and documentation.The liquids we use probably are not made to very stringent or verifiable standards .I agree with bferris19 that a lot of people including myself have broken thier addiction to smoking with the use of vaping but I can see where this technology should not be promoted as a smoking cessation device but rather an alternative to smoking. Kind of a fine line to walk these days ,there are a lot of things being promoted for all kinds of health reasons that are just scams and there are PV suppliers who are making questionable claims and charging exorbitant prices.I am sure there will have to be a day of rockoning for vaping to become legitiment.When that day comes I am afraid our choices will become more limited as most suppliers and manufacturers will not be able to pass muster.