electronic cigarettes

[mojo]

I've been trying on and off for a long time to quit smoking.  I think I have tried just about everything (cold turkey, Chantix, Zyban, patches, gums, and hypnosis) to quit and haven't had much luck.  Now, it seems like electronic cigarettes are gaining popularity, and I'm thinking of giving them a try.
I have been reading reviews on different brands, and some are good, and some are not so good.  I also found a forum with a lot of high-tech sounding stuff on there. 
I was wondering if anyone on here has tried them out, and if they have any recommendations or advice on what to buy.

[Kopfjäger]

The only thing I know is they use nicotine, so you won't really get rid of the monkey.

[mojo]

Not necessarily.  I've seen them with a range of 16mg of nicotine, all the way down to 0mg.  That way you can ween yourself down, and hopefully give it up all together.

[Kopfjäger]

Not necessarily.  I've seen them with a range of 16mg of nicotine, all the way down to 0mg.  That way you can ween yourself down, and hopefully give it up all together.

True, but the fact that are still copying the act it will not make it any easier. Hell you might even try to light one. 

Give it a try, can't hurt. 

[redxblack]

They look so cool I kinda want to start smoking again.

[ungeheuer]

Hello.  My name is Ungeheuer and I'm a nicoholic.

I found all the substitutes.... nicotine reduction... weaning off the weed....  and related "helpful" products/activities just prolong the inevitable agony.

For me the only way (more than 15 years now) was Cold Turkey.  Its awful and its difficult, but for me theres no chance of me ever smoking again coz theres no way I'd wanna put myself thru that ever again. 

Go 5 minutes without smoke.... then go five minutes more... and then it will be hours... and before long days... and after a while you'll even have days when you didnt think about smoking at all.  So yes, theres pain before the gain.  But if you wanna be free of the nicotine....  Just do it.

[redxblack]

cold turkey was the only thing that worked for me as well (15 years now), but it took a few tries.

[mojo]

My wife is the one who mentioned the e-cigs to me.  She smokes too and I don't think she doesn't have the will power to quit cold turkey.  We both want to quit, and it seems like the best way to make it work is to do it together. 
I would be willing to try cold turkey again, but she is actually excited about trying out the e-cigs.

[ungeheuer]

My wife is the one who mentioned the e-cigs to me.  She smokes too and I don't think she doesn't have the will power to quit cold turkey.  We both want to quit, and it seems like the best way to make it work is to do it together. 
I would be willing to try cold turkey again, but she is actually excited about trying out the e-cigs.

Addicts are always excited about solutions to their addiction which still include the substance to which they're addicted.  Everybody has the will power.  You think I'm especially gifted?  Its hard, sure.  But looking for easy ways is IMO just fooling yourself.  There is no easy way.  You keep smoking.  Or you stop smoking. 

And when you do stop spending money on cigarettes and/or the nicotine replacement/reduction torture treatments.... Put those dollars aside and buy yourself a well deserved reward 

[zooom]

have you tried just changing your brand every month or so to something lighter and lighter each time till you are smoking Capri's and then just kick it hard and easy from there?!?!?!

[mstevens]

Addicts are always excited about solutions to their addiction which still include the substance to which they're addicted.

Yup, yup, yup. Truer words were never written.

Over 2 decades of clinical practice (and years of talking with colleagues addicted to the noxious plant) have convinced me that, practically always, the best solution is to stop "cold turkey."

If you can't stop actually smoking, then nicotine replacement is far less injurious to your health. It's much preferable to continue using nicotine addictively when delivered by a means that isn't likely to kill you than to continue smoking. Patches and "gum" are proven here. Electronic "cigarettes" are not at all known to be safe - nobody has ever researched the question - and I will be shocked if the FDA doesn't move to ban them, or at least the nicotine-containing cartridges, soon as an "unregulated drug."

Varenicline ("Chantix") is a nicotine partial agonist that can reduce abstinence symptoms (withdrawal and craving) while also blocking nicotine from doing much if you slip and light up. I've never seen the much-publicized suicidality side effect, but it's been reported.

Bupropion ("Wellbutrin" or "Zyban") is FDA-approved for smoking cessation, but I can't say I've seen any conclusive evidence it works well enough to make it worth the trouble and expense.

Nothing you do will actually make it easy to become a non-smoker. Go ahead and do it the hard-but-effective way: Stop lighting cigarettes.

[mojo]

ungeheuer, if you're not a therapist, you should be.
Maybe me and my wife are looking for an easier way out...but I'm just glad we both are ready to quit at the same time.  It's always been one or the other, and never at the same time.

Varenicline ("Chantix") is a nicotine partial agonist that can reduce abstinence symptoms (withdrawal and craving) while also blocking nicotine from doing much if you slip and light up. I've never seen the much-publicized suicidality side effect, but it's been reported.

Bupropion ("Wellbutrin" or "Zyban") is FDA-approved for smoking cessation, but I can't say I've seen any conclusive evidence it works well enough to make it worth the trouble and expense.

I've tried Chantix twice.  The first time was just after it came out, but I didn't stick with it...I guess I wasn't really ready to quit. 
The second time was about 4 months ago, and my doctor said that it seemed to work better while using the patch too.  I tried them both for about a month, but I became depressed, and basically turned into an asshole.  Didn't like how it made me feel, so I stopped taking it.  It wasn't too long after that that I started smoking again.
I tried Zyban one time, but it just didn't seem to do anything for me.

[mstevens]

my doctor said that it seemed to work better while using the patch too.

Far be it from me to criticize another physician, but your doctor is an abject idiot with no understanding whatsoever of pharmacology. The whole point of Chantix is that it prevents nicotine from binding to acetylcholine receptors*, which is where nicotine exerts its initial effects, so such a combination could be nothing but useless. More commonly, it's a recipe for significant side effects. There is an explicit warning about this combination in the package insert.

Some doctors switch their brains off when they finish residency. Others do when the cute pharma rep with the low-cut blouse brings them lunch and pens. Some work to keep up (and actually read the product labeling).

*specifically, the α4β2 nicotinic ACh receptor, but that's only of interest to psychophamacology nerds.

[mojo]

Far be it from me to criticize another physician, but your doctor is an abject idiot

I agree.  I think I understand the medical mumbo-jumbo in your post (remember, I pound out dents with a hammer for a living), and my "doctor" was an idiot.  She is actually a nurse practitioner and I have since changed doctors because you feel the same way I do...and you never even met her.

[zooom]

Some doctors switch their brains off when the cute pharma rep with the low-cut blouse brings them lunch and pens.

and other promotional stuff and money for their office upgrades and yadda yadda yadda....and more often than not...these reps are getting their fingers into more and more Dr's pockets in so many ways....so much so...it is getting harder and harder to not get a reccomendation from a Dr for a drug of anykind without some level of pharma rep backing pushing that drug in the back pocket of that Dr's office...and the only time I haven't seen this kind of influence...is in the ER.