Keith…welcome to the club!
As someone who was truly, madly, deeply in love with cancer sticks for over 2 decades, I know first hand how difficult it is to quit.
We know we don’t need to give you reasons to quit smoking, but just in case you need a refresher:
1 person dies every 4.5 seconds from a tobacco-related disease
Action on Smoking & Health: https://ash.org/programs/tobacco-statistics-facts/
- Over 20% of all deaths in the US are from Tobacco – that’s more than murders, car accidents, and HIV/AIDS combined
- More than 600,000 non-smokers die each year from secondhand smoke worldwide
- Tobacco smokes contains over 7,000 chemicals
If you were going to quit, you would have done it already
The reality is that we all know of the perils of smoking. But for many of us, the dangers of smoking are not enough of a reason for us to quit.
And there are many reasons why:
- It’s a habit that we’ve formed and are used to living with (and can’t imagine living without)
- It relieves stress
- We’re addicted to nicotine – and there are awful withdrawal symptoms whenever we’ve tried to quit, including dizziness, hunger, restlessness, headaches, trouble sleeping, crankiness, depression, and the list goes on.
And it just feels so darned good
For me – the health hazards of smoking always bothered me – but not enough to quit. The awful smell, the yellow teeth, and the stale breath certainly did though. But even then, I just kept going back to it.
Until I discovered vaping
When I discovered electronic cigarettes – I then truly understood the magnitude of my addition – and specifically, why I could not let it go.
I simply enjoyed smoking.
Like, I REALLY enjoyed it. It was the first thing I did when I woke up, the most important dessert after a meal, the best pairing with a glass of Scotch, and the last thing I did before I went to sleep.
Smoking consumed me – and I loved it.
But when I tried vaping for the first time – it was a sensation that was very similar to smoking, but different. It gave me the same feeling – the loosening of my muscles, the slight euphoric feeling, the burn in my throat – it was all so familiar…
… except
it tasted phenomenal,
it smelled fantastic,
my clothes, my car, my home, and my surroundings didn’t smell awful anymore,
and most importantly… I could breathe again.
It was then that I discovered that I hated the TASTE of cigarettes
Think about it for a second. What are your favorite flavors? Mine include grapefruit, lychee, mango, pomegranate, watermelon, papaya, etc. But never do I think about cigarettes as one of my favorite flavors.
Once I discovered that vaping SATISFIED ME MORE than cigarettes – quitting was possible.
At the end of the day, I replaced something I enjoyed doing with something else that I enjoyed doing MORE – and that’s vaping.
And let me tell you, it’s easier than it may sound. It’s been a few years since I was a smoker, and once in a while I would buy a pack of cigarettes to try when I travel just to see if I wanted one. And every single time, I have one drag and throw out the pack – because it tastes awful.
I just enjoy vaping so much more!
And you know what? It’s healthier, doesn’t smell awful, doesn’t make me feel bad, didn’t hurt those around me – and most importantly, does not kill me.
Sure, there is still plenty of research that needs to be done to determine the long-term effects of vaping. But there’s certainly no denying that the core ingredients to vaping are vegetable glycerin, propylene glycol (generally recognized as safe for consumption – and is a common additive in food and medications), food-grade flavorings, and nicotine.
That is, 3 of the 4 ingredients on this list – we consume almost daily. Nicotine is a naturally produced stimulant and toxic if consumed in high doses. That said, nicotine is also one of the most common tools to quit smoking – and has a good safety history.
I’m not a doctor and you should not take medical advice from me. But for me, vaping is a significantly healthier alternative to smoking, and in my mind, one of the best ways to quit smoking.
Which is why we built The Vape Review.
We want to help you quit smoking.
We want to help you find the best vaping products to match your lifestyle and taste – so that you never go back to smoking.
And we want you to help others quit smoking.
And so, we will continuously share news, guides, reviews, and announcements to help you navigate around this seemingly complex world of electronic cigarettes – and we are ALWAYS here to help.
So you want to quit smoking?
We’ll be happy to help at iquit@thevapereview.ca