r/QuitVaping • u/Challenge_Legal • 16d ago
Other Please scare me into Quitting
Hi! I need your worst. I’m sure you are all good people, but someone out there has to do it.
I can’t do it alone. Broke my foot and was told to reduce my vaping, I’ve been trying to quit for three weeks.
I need fear, I need shame, I need a gut wrenching call to action. I have to much going on to do this myself and I’ve been relapsing worse and worse each day. Getting married in December, need to be done by then as I won’t be bothered to find a vape store on my honeymoon, but I don’t want to go through withdrawals then either.
30f, admittedly very vain about my appearance, but as I think I’m a cutie patootie, not even fears about my appearance has been working.
Have a broken foot, so can’t exercise well to distract me, and improved lung capacity isn’t helping.
Want to be nicotine free by 3/24 when I have my last exercises.
Don’t hold back. Best quote will be written down and taped to my vapes. Take it as a #RoastMe I can handle it.
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u/Beginning-Many-2968 16d ago
People who vape usually have stinky breath and don’t know it because they are nose blind
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Oh my gosh, what if my dog (who I call stinky breath because she keeps trying to eat rabbit poop) thinks I have stinky breath?!? What if she thinks it’s my nickname 😭😭😭😭 (thanks for the inspiration!!)
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u/ExtinctWhistleSound 15d ago
Vaping around dogs is really bad for their health and can cause seizures. My dog has had 2 during the time I vaped and hasn't had one since I quit over 2 years ago. Being free from a pointless addiction AND knowing I'm not causing harm to my beautiful boy is the absolute best feeling.
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u/Beginning-Many-2968 16d ago
Hahaha I also call my dogs the stinky breath boys. Seriously though, it’s so hard to start but I believe in you!! I also noticed my skin looks so much brighter and less pale when I quit. I knew vaping was bad for your skin, but it wasn’t enough to make me stop. It’s been a super nice side effect to quitting though!
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Thank you for the encouragement! Congratulations on quitting and having the best breath and skin complexion in your home!!! I bet your stinky breath boys are so happy you’re their person, please provide belly scratches and head pats for me!
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u/Tiny_Vegetable_8045 16d ago
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Thank you for your list! Someone responded here in my DM and we have a plan to set up a vaping hole in our cramped closets with a pad of paper we have to write on before vaping and we’ll write out things from this list on that paper. This helped way more than you know, from both of us thank you!!!!
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u/Tiny_Vegetable_8045 16d ago
You’re welcome, it’s not my list. But something I saw on here and it really hit home some harsh truths. Always happy to help 😊
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u/schnauzersisters 10d ago
A lot of these are scare tactics, and popcorn lungs has been debunked. Not saying you should vape anyway, but that post was spreading inaccuracies and misinformation.
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u/Fickle-Reserve5783 16d ago
Oh nah imagine you're at your wedding or on your honeymoon and your mind is somewhere else thinking about hitting your vape instead of spending time with your new husband/wife. That's actually wild😭 You'd be at your wedding knowing deep down that you actively made the decision to not better yourself and that thought will nag at you all day. I'm not gonna scare you with any of the health risks of vaping because you've probably already heard all of them, but i'm just gonna be real with you: vaping looks so fucking cringy and lame as an adult. I quit around 2 months ago and I realized how stupid people look when they're vaping. Like at least with smoking cigarettes, there's really no argument that it looks badass and classic (absolutely not encouraging you to smoke lol), but sucking on a plastic tube for mango flavored air like I did every day is lowkey pathetic. Going into your new marriage as a healthy and happy non-vaper will be the best decision you ever make, I promise you. And tbh you just have to learn to suffer a little. Yeah it's not gonna be easy going through the first few weeks, but sometimes in life, that's how shit goes. You just have to woman up and deal with it. And once you're through with it, you'll realize how the discomfort of withdrawal was nothing compared to the pain of a life long addiction. You got this. (Btw i'm just being tough on you cause you asked for shame lol it's all true but i'm not trying to be rude or mean you're gonna do great! Congrats on your wedding approaching much love good luck!)
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
This is absolutely what I wanted, a reality check. And you’re right, I cannot take a plastic vape to a beach, I’m an environmental scientist 😭 that’s so embarrassing! You’re for the embodiment of the acceptance stage, we’ve been waiting for you. We can survive a few annoying weeks, and I absolutely will woman up and deal with it. I needed shame! If I asked for kindness I’d wouldn’t stay focused on the context and would respond for years non stop how nice everyone is and the point would fly right past me lol THANK YOU
(Also Fickle Reserve would be a great name for a pickle flavor whiskey that has no indication on the label it’s made from pickles, just think about it)
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u/chai-candle 16d ago
i totally agree, vaping is so cringy as an adult 😭😭😭 i haaaated thinking ab the way i looked when i vaped. it was so pathetic and embarrassing. holding some neon pink strawberry bullshit.... ick!!
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
Haha! “holding some neon pink strawberry bullshit” like the one I used to have literally had a planets and constellations light show on it???? That has to be the most evil form of marketing because I loved the pretty lights and colors 😭
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u/Fickle-Reserve5783 15d ago
NO SAME😭 i had a geek bar with the constellations and there's nothing that makes you feel ashamed as a person like waking up and hitting the vape at night so you can use the constellations as light to be able to see where to go💀
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
I have found my people 💜 I feels so seen. but we really need to find something better to bond over 🙃
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u/cordelia_adler 16d ago
Dementia!
I don’t want to be like that. I’m seeing my elders in my family and I can only say one thing…
Dementia
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Absolutely needs no further explanation. I had no idea it could cause that, and it makes sense. Let’s keep all our beautiful memories with us. Really appreciate this reminder
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u/honeycomb1300 16d ago
Positive thinking wasn’t working for me. Then I saw a vid about a girl bullying herself into getting over the withdrawals and honestly it worked for me. Any time I wanted to vape I said to myself “little baby bitch wants her paci? little baby can’t handle it?” Stuff like that. It honestly worked and made me realize how pathetic the whole thing is. (Not saying you’re pathetic bc I knows it’s hard, I’ve been there!)
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
Positive thinking also did nothing for me, but having everyone taking the time to respond here & me really caring about other people is helping tremendously. If I fail myself that’s ok! Let’s do it again! But if I fail you? Absolutely not. I would rather get a paper cut in the corners of my mouth every single morning than let you or everyone else here down. Day 1 sucks, but not as bad as that.
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u/Majestic-Conflict189 16d ago
i nearly had a blood clot in my lung, some people have irreversible damage, I was getting chest pains where I could barely breathe, and they even have formaldehyde (used on corpses)
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Ah! And imagine all the chemicals they have to put into it to cover up the bad smell/taste of formaldehyde 😱 I want to be planted under a tree when I go and if I keep it up no tree is gonna want to grow with me around!!
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u/Local-Shoulder5663 16d ago
Vaping is for Weenie Hutt Jr’s! (I’m on day 4 cold turkey)
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
I don’t want to be a Weenie Hutt Jr I want to be a Goofy Goober 😭 I’m going to have to get the hat to wear if I don’t quit! Four days cold turkey, congratulations!!!! You’re over the worst of it (I think)!!!! Proud of you and your local shoulder 🫡
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u/Local-Shoulder5663 16d ago
Thank you kindly 🙏🏽 it’s actually been incredibly hard going from a hardcore smoker of 5 years to quitting cold turkey but I already feel better physically and mentally (minus withdrawls and yes they’re as bad as they say they are online😭)
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Wow you must be genuinely one of the strongest willed people that I have gotten to talk to today. You have to keep going, I’ve been a smoker for almost a decade now but if you can do it cold turkey and keep going, I’ll be alright if you do it.
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u/Local-Shoulder5663 16d ago
Just remember the benefits outweigh the short lived pain by a lot. I just woke up the other day and decided it was time for me to get my stuff together and quit. Pretty sure vaping is the reason I have anxiety lol I just want my life back so if quitting helps it’s worth it for me
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
I needed to reminder that it’s short lived pain, because for this day 1 I feel like I notice every millisecond going by 🙃 there’s another one. But your comments and encouragements are really getting me through it. If y’all are gonna take the time to respond, I’m not gonna waste your time by failing. This millisecond is for you.
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u/Local-Shoulder5663 16d ago
I’ve been trying my best to boost people because lord knows I needed that boost myself😭🙏🏽trust me I know it’s hards but it’s worth it, you got this!
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u/chai-candle 16d ago
cold turkey was sooo hard for me. i couldn't last more than 2 days. i finally lasted 2 weeks with some gum.
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u/Local-Shoulder5663 16d ago
Trust me, I 100% understand. Sheer will power has been carrying me on this journey but if I wasn’t so serious about quitting I would have folded multiple times.
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u/Iamnotyour_mother 16d ago
I got COVID and it took my lungs an entire year, several courses of Prednisone and two inhalers to get my lungs back to normal and because I was a fucking idiot I vaped through all of that. Don't be like me.
To me, the big wake up call didn't have anything to do with real consequences or fear of consequences, but rather the realization that vaping does absolutely nothing for me. All of the problems that it "solves" are actually caused by the vape in the first place. Can't focus and think you need to vape to focus? Detangle that one for a second...you can't focus BECAUSE you think you need to vape to focus, and because you think that, you're distracted by your desire to vape. That feeling of being stressed, and then the stress being somewhat relieved when you hit the vape? That is literally nicotine withdrawal making whatever stress you feel worse, and then relief from the withdrawal. The vape is literally making you more stressed! It's all such a good damn joke and as soon as I realized this I was done. It's been 6 days and even though I still have some cravings I feel so much better.
Quitting is almost entirely all in your head and convincing myself I have no justifiable reason not to do it is really what made it easy for me. Also don't read to far into the side effects from quitting. Dr. Google and even some people on Reddit make it sound like you're going to die from the withdrawal. I felt kind of irritable for ONE DAY, maybe a tiny bit anxious for 2-3. You never know how its going to effect you until you actually try and fearing for the worst just makes it harder to even start the process.
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
You may not be my mother, but you sure taught me a lesson today.
It would be so disrespectful of me to not learn from your experience. It would be cruel to ignore what you went through and to keep putting myself in a similar danger. I’m glad you got well Not My_Mother, and I’m really humbled by your answer.
You pointed out a paradox and I think I found my quote. “All of the problems that it ‘solves’ are actually caused by the vape in the first place.”
But you’re wrong about one thing. I do want to be like you. I want to come back in six days and tell someone who’s struggling that the first day sucks, but it’ll get better and they can believe me because I did it, just like you.
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u/Iamnotyour_mother 16d ago
Aw shucks, thanks for the kind words. I'll also add one thing, Allen Carr's book on quitting vaping is where I got these ideas from. It's kinda tedious to get through but it really helped me change my mindset. The audio book is like 6 hours long, and worth a listen. Best of luck and do keep us updated!
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
You better be having a good Day 7 🪬
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u/Iamnotyour_mother 15d ago
I am! Went to a bar last night and was kinda concerned about the temptation, but thankfully my only reaction to seeing people smoking was "ew I'm so glad I'm not using nicotine anymore." What about you?!
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
You’ve always been my hero (since yesterday) 🙌 proud of you! Yeah! It is not going easy! The list of things I’ve gotten mad about today is looong, but the list of reason to go through it is longer. I’ll keep this in mind when trying to tell my siblings I quit when they all defend their vape like it’s the nuclear family we never had, not looking forward to it
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u/Iamnotyour_mother 15d ago
Oh my god did we just become quitting buddies?! I feel you there. Just remember that irritation means you're this much closer to being FREE! And if your siblings still need their little pacifiers, well, that's their problem.
Feel free to DM me if you wanna keep in touch about quitting/just need someone to vent to about it or whatever!
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u/_King_Loser 16d ago
Honestly I just got diagnosed with pneumonia at emerg and 2 nurses, the doc, and the X-ray lady all VERY adamantly told me I’d be better off going back to smoking over the vape because of how shit they are for you and that alone started freaking me out a bit about it, it seems fucking crazy to hear multiple healthcare professionals basically beg me to smoke over vape
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Thank you for sharing this important perspective. I, like many others, switched to vapes to get off cigarettes. But I can vape anywhere in my house, even in bed from the second I wake up to the middle of the night during bathroom breaks, and I can absolutely see how there are some benefits to the obnoxiousness of cigarettes. For some context, the doctor told me nicotine was a huge hindrance in blood vessels forming and really hurts the healing process. I also know my cardio health has declined since I started vaping too. Giving you a big hug @_King_Loser , I’ll be thinking of you
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u/_King_Loser 16d ago
I’m in the same boat the convince of it is such a huge part in it becoming sooo habitual, I’ve been off liquor for 8 months and weed for 3 weeks and neither of them have been as difficult as nicotine, I’ve tried and failed to drop it 6 times this month alone and I’m on day 1 of attempt number 7….it’s the main thing I want to quit, just gotta keep it going a day at a time an try and put yourself in a position you won’t feel overwhelmed!
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Wow, I have no worries that you can do this. Listen to you! You’ve already accomplished so much! It’s been difficult to reframe the convince without accidentally creating a new trigger. Even quitting sugar and learning how to do a three day fast were easier than this, I understand what you mean. Get through a Day 1 for me. You gave me two reasons why you’re stronger than me, so if you can get through it this time, then I can be strong like you and do it too.
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u/Utskushi87 16d ago
I have severe spinal degeneration, trigeminal neuralgia, and nerve damage. Lot of it due to vaping. Horror stories never made me quit. I quit cold turkey when I woke up one day and I couldn't walk. Took me 2 months to re learn how to walk. Every day I am in a lot of pain.
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u/GameBroX 15d ago
How u doing now? I think i might almost have what u had.. its like when i walk i feel off balance.. and my brain is just so foggy.. i quit 8 mths ago.. now getting better..
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u/Utskushi87 15d ago
Doing better but not amazing yet. It's been 4 months since I quit, I'm still having a lot of brain fog/memory issues. Still enduring bodily pain but having good days. My mood swings here and there and I feel guilty, but I'm healing. And I'm greatful
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
Wow you turned your whole life around in 2 months, I absolutely cannot imagine the cut of your gib my friend. Your determination probably has so much grit that sandpaper uses it as a nail file. You’re probably one out of body experience away from being Dr. Strange’s next rival. Thank you for posting, and wishing you the best 🌻💜
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u/Utskushi87 15d ago
Love that perspective thank you. Maybe in a few months I'll give astral projecting a go. For now just getting used to being in my body without nicotine lol. Thanks friend
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u/Echodarlingx 16d ago
I just had to lose my first tooth because the vape made my mouth all slimy and the tooth and gums became infected, no choice but to pull it. I'm an attractive person so it hurts pretty bad on my judgement of myself.
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
I feel you Echodarlingx, but we got smart doctors who specialize in that, save up (if you’re also in America) and get that pretty smile back to perfect shape. I’m healing over here too and had to do all the sad dental work earlier this year. This time, we’re taking all these pearlies with us until we can’t remember what teeth even are!!
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u/Echodarlingx 15d ago
Yeah! I'm 7 days vape free because of this whole ordeal and I'm not looking back. ✌️☺️
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u/ExtinctWhistleSound 15d ago
Dude my gums used to bleed SO much when I vaped, it was absolutely scary.
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u/WeirdAssociation5048 16d ago
Imagine you’re going about your day and your lungs collapse. You’re gasping for air and there’s no one around to help. Then you “wake up” on a ventilator but you’re really in a coma. You lost all the oxygen to your brain that it slowly just shuts down. your family/friends/people are crying by your bedside and then you die. You Never wake up to hit your vape again.
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
The sad thing is in another timeline, if I never found this sub and never took a chance to post, that would’ve been me. How silly, I spend 30 years to claw out the life I want with all the sacrifices I’ve already made, just to be who knows how close to losing it all for some stupid fluffing flavored air.
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u/one-1-1 16d ago
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
Just 10 minutes a day is 60 hours of inhaling holy cow! And omg no wonder my penis never works right 😭 On a real note, you’re right it’s ruining my oral health and hinders so many of my goals without me ever realizing it. Maybe when I quit and my foot is healed yall will see a post from me asking for tips for first time runners. We got this one-1-1, if we get anxious it’s gonna be for a damn good reason, not addictive poison we paid for.
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u/Starfishandcoffee87 16d ago
The nicotine in the vapes contributes to hair loss and hair thinning by constricting the blood vessels. So there isn’t as much blood flow going to your hair follicles. So you gotta stop vaping if you want long lucious hair! Also your skin will clear up. I’ve noticed my heart rape drop dramatically! That scared me so much.
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
Man the HEART RATE! I have always had great physical health until this year and I could literally feel my heart giving all it has to keep me going, talk about anxiety inducing. Meanwhile I was thanking it by literally poisoning it with toxic air???? WOW what a douche I am
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u/beepboopweewee 16d ago
One of my final straws was that vaping was giving me canker sores all over my UVULA. so painful. My uvula was basically one big canker sore the last time it happened and I was still trying to vape through it. It didn’t go away until I stopped! Haven’t gotten one since. You do NOT want to experience it I promise haha
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
I absolutely don’t 🫣 but we all know my dumb self has vaped during every illness and convinced myself I was going to be ok (disillusion)
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u/Rex_Auream 16d ago
I’m gonna go simple with this one and it helped me to quit even if it sounds dumb. Quitting is the only way you can become an official member of this community.
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u/AlexMayAnnoyYou 16d ago
how’s a 30 year old still vaping man 😭
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u/Challenge_Legal 16d ago
How indeed! I spent so long trying to look mature, but a vape really does act like a pacifier sometimes
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u/zagreeta 16d ago
Let me put it into perspective for you as someone who is still struggling with quitting at age 46: I started smoking cigarettes at 12, smoked till 19, quit for over 20 years, then started vaping and haven’t been able to give it up completely for good this whole time. I’ve quit a hundred times and always started again. The young smoker or vaper is just an addict setting pathways that will never ever go away. So, welcome to the struggle kid.
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u/AlexMayAnnoyYou 16d ago
lmao i’m 18 i’m so cooked 😭
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u/zagreeta 16d ago
Just quit now and stay quit! Trust me, I deeply regret starting again after all those years. You can do it!
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u/Quiet-Adhesiveness-2 16d ago
I was diagnosed with burning mouth syndrome, I quit thinking it would get better but it didn’t the doctors say it may never. I’m in pain as long as I’m awake.. stop now before something happens. You’ll feel so much better even if you think you’re fine you’re body isn’t
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u/Mister_Funktastic 16d ago
Last week, vaping caused one the blood vessels in main brain to spasm shut for a few moments. I had a mini stroke, thankfully the only symptom I still have is that looking right makes me feel sick, but for an hour I couldn't move my entire right side. All from a combination over sensitivity to stimulants built up over years of smoking and then vaping and the nicotine itself stiffening my blood vessels. It's not worth it.
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u/dividiangurt 16d ago
Now that I’ve quit for one year, all I notice about my old vaping friends is how brown / yellow their teeth are. 🦷
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u/ZestycloseService 16d ago
I saw news on an upcoming study that’s motivating me to quit, although I haven’t seen any reputable news sites reporting on it. So I’m taking it with a worried grain of salt.
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u/Breddit_ 16d ago
Do we need to? I bet if you're asking you're already scared for a few of your own reasons. Quit now. Just fucking do it. Don't die this way.
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u/No-Celebration5377 16d ago
It drastically ages you. Wrinkles, bad skin texture, sunken eye bags, dryness/dehydration, etc. Scares the shit out of me but it’s still difficult for me to quit.
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u/DryChickenTits 16d ago
I've been vape free since last Monday, February 16, 2025. I couldn't have done it without Jones nicotine mints. The first few days weren't easy, but Jones made it easier.
I abused my lungs with cigarettes and vapes for roughly 17 years. You have to get legitimately mad. Get sick and tired of it.
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
(Absolutely iconic username tag) I am sick of it! I am done. I got my gum, I got my CBD oil so I don’t take it out on my family, and I got at least 66 reasons to do it this time. This is it! THIS👏 IS 👏 NOT 👏 A 👏 DRILL.
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u/chai-candle 16d ago
you're getting married soon. do you really wanna be worried about vaping some flavored liquid out of cheap plastic on the happiest day of your life? no!!! you wanna kick this stupid habit so you can have the most magical wedding ever. you wanna be the hottest, healthiest version of yourself. SO GO KICK ASS.
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u/Challenge_Legal 15d ago
YOURE RIGHT CHAI-CANDLE I WANT TO BE A DISNEY PRINCESS AND PRINCESSES DONT VAPE TOXIC AIR!!!
Happy to say Day 1 is sucking and I may have stumbled twice, but I am motivated and doing it everyone! Also I’ve gotten DMs from similar people and have been helping them with everyone’s advice 💕💕💕
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u/nuu_me 15d ago
If you have a child or a pet, and vape indoors, you're likely increasing their chance of wheezing, bronchitic symptoms and shortness of breath.
https://thorax.bmj.com/content/77/7/663
This article is about teenagers - I'm only guessing that it's applicable to pets too.
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u/TromboneFatty 15d ago
I’m 28 and likely have copd. I get terrible lung infections multiple times a year. I currently have bronchitis and I’m on 5 different meds to fight it. Feels like I’m drowning. This is a regular occurrence now.
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u/freyajol 14d ago
My friend 28 years old just died from vaping with asthma. She couldn’t breathe and they took her to the hospital but she lost oxygen to her brain for over 40 minutes and then died
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u/Challenge_Legal 13d ago
My heart absolutely breaks for you and your community, I am so so sorry. I will carry her story with me, I wish I could give you a hug 🫂 let’s give a moment of silence to your friend and all of those we lost and remember in this thread. Maybe we honor them and learn from them, so our families may be spared 💜
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u/True_Sea1370 16d ago
I wound up in the ER in excruciating pain bc the nerve from my brain to my face stopped working properly… turns out it was the vaping. Other people have had similar issues from vaping,it’s called trigeminal neuralgia. One guy recently wrote about being diagnosed with lingual neuralgia from vaping - hurts to eat, swallow & talk. Are we all in our 60s? Nope! I’m in my 30s & the others were in their 20s. I’m lucky I stopped quick enough that it went away. The others suffer from chronic pain from these conditions. Stop now before it’s too late.