Six months ago, I quit smoking. And you’re probably thinking, “That’s nice. Whatever. No big deal. I have no intentions of reading another I quit smoking story. Etc, etc, etc.” You’ve probably heard it all. And if you smoke you’ve probably tried most of the ways to quit. But I’m telling you my story is different. Why?

Because I never wanted to quit. Never tried. Not once. Ever. In almost 40 years (Don’t do the math). And ten seconds before the day I actually considered it for the first time…it was the last thing on my mind.

You see, I loved smoking! I mean really loved it. I think probably from the moment I lit up at the tender age of 13, it was love at first drag. I used to spend half my lunch money for school to buy my cigarettes. That was when they were about 50¢ a pack. And in the summers, or if I ran out, I “borrowed” some from my mom.

But six months ago, everything changed. And thanks to our own Ms Carrie Ann, I am now smoke free. We were talking on the phone one day, and she told me she quit. And I reacted the way most of you smokers would… “Uh huh, that’s great Carrie, I’m really happy for you. (While my mind is saying…now can we change the subject). But she kept talking. Thankfully!!!

She told me she was vaping, which in layman’s terms is using an e-cigarette. I had heard a little about them, but very little. I really had no idea what they were, and I wasn’t interested anyway, because, like I said, I didn’t want to quit. But I was paying attention and something, some little thing inside my head, said “maybe”.

I think what got me thinking about it was the fact that, first of all, I knew she was a fairly heavy smoker as well. And she told me that there were NO withdrawal symptoms, whatsoever. And basically, it felt like you were still smoking. But without almost all of the 4000+ toxins that are in commercial cigarettes.

The liquids used in a cartridge or cartomizer for vaping are propylene glycol, vegetable glycerine, flavor (mine is still menthol), and nicotine if you choose. You can have anywhere from 0 to 24 mg of nicotine in them. I am still using a rather high level of nicotine, but at least that’s the only toxin I’m still putting into my body, compared to all the ones that are in regular cigarettes. And there is no tobacco, whatsoever, in the vaping liquid. The reason it’s called vaping, is because you are not smoking, you are inhaling a liquid and exhaling vapor.

After our conversation ended, I decided to look into this. I got on the Internet and looked up e-cigarettes. And, as usual, there was a ton of information, too much actually. But fortunately, I came upon a site that was extremely helpful. It’s a website called www.e-cigarette-forum.com. But even that was a bit overwhelming. Luckily, they do have a “new members” section. So, for several days, I read and read and read. Until finally I felt I had a real handle on what “vaping” was all about, and I decided wanted to try it.

The next thing I had to do was decide what type of e-cigarette I wanted, and which brand to buy. Which let me tell you, is no small task. There are so many different types and brands from which to choose. Finally, I decided on what I believed would be the best for me. Thankfully, I was right, and they turned out to be just perfect.

While I was waiting for them to arrive, I continued to read everything I could about this new technology. I wanted to know how to get the most out of this experience, along with how to quit smoking through vaping. And you know what? I found myself actually getting excited about trying this. Isn’t that strange? Me. Thinking about quitting smoking. Nobody would believe it.

At first, I intended to alternate the vaping with the smoking. Just to see how that went. I figured that if I couldn’t quit, I could at least seriously cut down. But if things did work out, I would slowly cut down the cigarettes more and more, replacing each one by vaping. The crazy thing was though, on my first day, I only smoked 10 cigarettes. That’s only is a third of what I normally smoked. And I didn’t even miss the other 20! I was blown away! Me, the person who couldn’t go more than one hour without a cigarette. The person that would drive in the dead of winter, in a snowstorm, at 3 am in the morning if I had to, just to get a pack of smokes, only had 10 cigarettes in a day. The next day, I only smoked seven cigarettes, and a few days later I was down to four. By the end of the week, I was completely smoke free. Now I’ll admit, I have smoked four cigarettes in the past six month. I would somehow get it into my mind that I missing something. But I always ended up tossing them out after just a few drags because I actually didn’t like them. They just don’t have that hold on me any longer.

I still can’t believe how easy it was! I’m actually still in a bit of shock. And I’m seriously, seriously proud of myself, and grateful to Carrie! My husband is out of this world, ecstatic! He has never been a smoker, and he hated all the smoke in the house, and the fact that I smelled “like an ashtray” (his words, not mine). He now loves the way I smell.

I have to admit I really can breathe easier. My cough is gone, and so is the constant stuffiness I had. I’m starting to get my sense of smell back, which I seriously missed because I couldn’t even smell his colognes any longer. Even food tastes better. I can now breathe deeply. I feel better than I ever have in my entire life. I can have sex without coughing. I can stay on top a LOT longer. (You didn’t think I was going to write this whole article about smoking and not mention sex, did you?) I can even run up a flight of stairs and not be out of breath. The list of what I CAN do, as opposed to all the things I couldn’t before really is priceless. Best of all, I have suffered NO ill effects from quitting, which was one of my biggest worries. Quitting, with vaping, has been completely painless.

You may be wondering if and when I’ll take the next step and quit vaping. I don’t know. I’m definitely not there yet, and not sure if I ever will be. But at least I’ve traded the 4000+ toxins of the cigarettes for the one (nicotine) that is in the vapor I inhale. And I have to say I really do like vaping. I can even do it in most public places because it is not illegal, and most people don’t mind. I’ve even had people come up to me and ask questions because they are curious and thinking about quitting.

If you smoke, or you have a family member or friend that does, believe me when I tell you…This works! Seriously! If you would like more information about “vaping” check out www.e-cigarette-forum.com. Also, there was a recent study done by the Boston University School of Public Health about E-cigarettes that is quite interesting. And if you would like more information from me, feel free to leave me a message in the comments section. I would be more than happy to help in any way I can.