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I’ve been a cigarette smoker for more than half of my life. More specifically, a menthol cigarette smoker. A Newport smoker.

When I was 22 years old, I had a little bit of my freedom taken away for about 3 weeks. Where I was, I could still smoke, but not on my own time.

I couldn’t smoke whenever I felt like smoking, but only when it was announced… ” SMOKE BREAK!!! SMOKE BREAAAK COME GET YA SMOKE BREAK! TIME FOR FRESH AIR!!! ”

At that point- one cigarette, a short- was just not enough.. it just didn’t do it for me. So, I switched to Newport 100s. This way, I could smoke 1 whole cigarette, plus a half of a cigarette & save the other half for next time. ( or give it away to someone without any.)

I thought for sure this change would be temporary. That when I got home, I’d go right back to smoking shorts. I wouldn’t need all that cigarette when I could smoke on my time. Whenever I wanted to smoke.

That wasn’t the case. Instead, I continued smoking Newport 100s. The excuse I used now?? “It’s easier to Split a cigarette with someone…”

Well, true true, Fair Point. It worked well when I hung out with other smokers. My live-in-BoyFriend also smoked Newport’s and we felt like splitting the 100s made us smoke less!!! _{^{THE LOGIC}}!!

I mean everyone we talked to, e v e r y o n e we hung out with always wanted us to “Split a cigawette wisss me pls?” (a joke for another day)

There were a few times in between then and now, that I actually quit smoking all together.

Those times, I used the Nicotine Patches to quit.

The most successful time I used the patches, I stayed on Step One, 21MG’s, for about 2.5-3 months. It was Christmas-time & I had a lot going on at the time. My doctor was very much monitoring me with monthly appointments.

Somewhere in between the third and fourth month of Step One, (January), I felt as though I was finally ready to step down to a 14MG Patch, Step 2. During the transition, 4 of 5 times, there was a period of, 2 maybe 3 days that I had forgotten to change my patch all together. So when the time came to step down, I put on the 14MG patch and within a few shorts hours I was so sick.

Clammy palms, sweaty armpits, pounding headache with an emphasis on light sensitivity and nausea.

Forgetting to switch my patch for multiple days, multiple times, had lowered nicotine tolerance significantly.

After taking a few hour break without any patches on, I stepped down even lower, to Step 3, 7MG’s.

It didn’t make me sweat, or give me a headache, but the nausea was sticking to my insides like you’d think a giant wad of swallowed Bazooka Bubble Gum would do. [Click image for Bazooka Bubble Gum Song by ScouterMom. com!]

A few short hours and a nice hot shower later – I could officially say I quit smoking. It felt great to say and so did I.

Two and a half years later, while celebrating my “Dirty 30” at a bar in Patriot’s Place with a ‘good friend‘ of mine, we got a little buzzed and bummed a few cigarettes. None of which were Newports.

We Craved that cooling Menthol sensation that feels so much like relief.

So, on the way back to her house, she bought us a pack of shorts, and we vowed to toss them out the window on the ride home.

We were rationalizing ….. We both preferred to smoke 100s, so it’s not like we’d really want them afterwards.

They were shorts, so we weren’t smoking as much.

It was my birthday, I deserved to do what I wanted to.

I hadn’t had a cigarette in 2.5 years, I wouldn’t throw that all away in one night… Right?

Happy Birthday To Me.

I did not throw that pack out the window on the ride home that night.

I told myself I was not going to litter just to get them away from me. No, I’d throw them in the first dumpster I saw. More rationalizing on my part.

Still, I didn’t.

I smoked three that night and held onto the pack for over a week. After they were gone, I picked right back up.

Stupid.

Maybe just as stupid as my most recent attempt at “quitting“. See I tried to stay the course I knew, and use the Patch again, but I continued to smoke- and you cannot do both.

This time, Newports and all menthol cigarettes had been completely banned from the State that I live in. Flavors were completely banned. I’d have to drive an hour or more to get the cigarettes I smoked.

This time, I picked up something new. Something I’ve pretty much always been against.

Something that has been turned into ‘the trendy way to smoke.’

Appealing to the budding minds of our youth.

Our children.

The Future.

There are risks, we just don’t know about them all, not yet.

Vaping.

I thought that by using a Puff Bar, more Specifically, an ESCO BAR whenever I craved a cigarette, than I was on the path to quitting.

I thought that with every craving I had, Every puff that I took, I was one step closer to being a retired smoker.

Instead, I was using just another form of replacement therapy.

The flavors were wide and filled with taste. Colorful even. So hard to choose.

Now – I use this…

SMOK’s Nord 4. It’s a small enough vape “bar” with a removable tank to add in nicotine flavors. The difference between this and an Esco Bar, is that this can be refilled as needed, buttt also, everyone so often the coil needs to be changed out. How do you know when to change it?? Oh you’ll know.

The bitter/bad coil taste has quite a wide variety of grotesque tastes. When you know- You know.

I thought this was not as bad as smoking cigarettes, and, while it might not be as bad as sucking down 20 Newport 100’s per day – It still feels like its pretty frikkin bad!! I’ll tell you a little about what I feel.

See usually when I quit smoking, I feel it in my lungs pretty shortly after quitting. I feel like breathing becomes easier, lighter even.

With vaping, I’ve not felt my breathing get lighter by any means, maybe slightly easier, cleaner, but not lighter.

I don’t stink like stale cigarette smoke anymore *hooray!!* and my mouth doesn’t taste like an old dirty ashtray, but are my lungs greasy now?? Oil and water do not mix, so is the oil sitting on the fluid of my lungs? It sort of feels like this is what that would feel like. hmm.

There are days where I feel like I’m puffing on a computer – Like I’m puffing electricity… if that were a thing…

The dull ache in the back of my throat that connects in my head, leads me to believe it has something to do with my vaping… but what do I know?

My breath sometimes feels heavy, too heavy. Like taking a great big inhale just won’t work because it’s too heavy, or something is in the way.

This isn’t an every time thing, however it is a thing. Is it due to vaping? I can’t say, but there are times where I feel like I know my body so well, that I know something is going on in there…

I’d need to do a lot more research on the effects of vaping to really know any answers, but today I just wanted to share my thoughts about my vaping with you. Have something you’d like to add or say about vaping or smoking?

We’d love to hear you Share in the comments!!

Some Link Sources Found throughout the Page:

• Urban Dictionary is where it's attt!!
• Merriam Webster Dictionary tells alll!
• Wikipedia is Big Big Helpful...
• Scouter Mom . Com