A newbie's report one week in

[tobylerone]

Hi all, I thought it would be useful to anyone exploring the forum considering their first steps into vaping if I shared my thoughts on my first week of it.

As some of you may already know I have returned to vaping after a brief and failed experiment with a cig-a-like nearly three years ago. I've been an on-off smoker for many years now but recent months have been very much on and my health was suffering. After reading much of the advice on here I made the jump and ordered a Riva kit from Vapeescape which arrived last week.

So here are my thoughts:

1. It doesn't quite feel the same as smoking but very quickly you'll know no better and prefer it
The feel of vaping isn't quite the same as smoking cigs. Sometimes your vape will be much thicker, but I learned to like that fact quickly. You still get the hit on the throat/lungs, you still get that feeling of inhaling and exhaling "smoke".

2. Don't be shy
I wrote on here about how self-conscious I felt when first vaping on my Riva as I wasn't expecting something quite so big. I've gotten over that mostly now but mainly tend to vape on my own. I work in a large organisation in a town centre, so lots of outdoor areas that are ok to smoke so it's easy to go for a walk and vape. When I went out on Saturday nobody even noticed until I mentioned it to one of my friends. He gave me a bit of a ribbing but soon forgot about it.

3. Be well lubed!
Vaping dries your mouth out, sometimes a lot, sometimes less so. I've found it's so much better alongside a coffee or a beer. Also discovered last night that straight after brushing your teeth you get a very nice moist minty vape! (And certainly wouldn't have smoked after brushing my teeth before and make myself stink!)

4. Be prepared to experiment to find out what is right for you
I can't decide whether I prefer Cartos or Clearos so alternate between them. Sometimes I also direct drip, it really depends on what I feel works for me at the time.

5. You won't necessarily always get the high you might get from smoking
My first vape of the morning (as long as I've got my Riva well charged and enough juice in there) gives me that buzz of an early morning cig. Sometimes later in the day I don't get it, but the act of vaping is enough to stop me wanting a cig. Often I find this is a good time to direct drip to get a bit of a stronger hit.

6. Be prepared to get hooked
I'm already planning my next purchases of juices and considering a cig-a-like for occasions when my Riva isn't perhaps convenient. Can see my collection building up very fast, but still know I'll be spending less than I would have on cigs.

7. Look around for accessories
I got a decent little velvet effect pencil case that's the right size to be pocket sized and hold my Riva plus spare battery and cartos for £1.50. An official e-cig pouch would generally set you back a lot more.

8. You will feel so much better in both health and well being
I still had the odd roll up for the first few days as well as vaping but after my night out on Saturday (which included a few cigs and roll ups, but much less than normal as I alternated with vaping) I woke up thinking the idea of a cig was horrible. I've not touched one since and don't really fancy it. I feel a bit guilty about the half finished pouch of tobacco in my work bag but can't yet bring myself to bin it! I'm not coughing as much, I can already feel I don;t get out of breath so easily and I feel much happier about myself knowing I'm being healthy and don't stink of smoke!

9. Bring on the karaoke!
I can sing better! Singing in the shower this morning I could really tell my airways are clearing and my voice cracked a lot fewer times than in recent years! I'm no Pavarotti but I used to sing in bands a bit and loved karaoke. Lately when I'd attempted to sing, just along to the radio etc I've not managed much before going way out of tune. I genuinely can feel this changing. Similarly you know when you don't speak for a while sat at your desk or whatever, then you go to say something and your voice is all dry and you're aware you sound stupid? Yeah, that's not happening as much either!

10. E-juice lasts ages
I mentioned on here before my purchase that I had quite a bit of menthol e-juice left over from my previous attempt at vaping. As this was well over two years old it was suggested it was probably no good now. I decided to try it out anyway and it's fine.

I hope that's useful to potential newbies and chimes true with some of you more experienced vapers. I'm aware that my experiences won't be the same as everyone's but felt it would be good to put this out there and hope people will add their own pointers.

[Chrissie]

Brilliant post Toby #icon_bravo#

[shelly999]

I have found it quite easy so far and i dont even want a normal ciggie, what is direct dripping ?

[OneDay]

Brilliant post Toby. Don't feel guilty about the half-finished baccy. When I realised I'd been forgetting to smoke as I was enjoying vaping so much I still had an un-opened packet of Marlboro. I still have them, in the cupboard next to my vaping gear. Not as an emergency supply, but because every so often they catch my eye and it gives me great pleasure to know I just don't need them anymore.

[tobylerone]

Sept 12, 2012 9:04:39 GMT shelly999 said:

I have found it quite easy so far and i dont even want a normal ciggie, what is direct dripping ?

Hi Shelly, this post includes tips and a video on Direct Dripping allaboute-cigarettes.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=newmembers&action=display&thread=5594

[smokescreen]

great post and it matches my experiences to date - except the singing ... i am tone deaf :-[

[tobylerone]

Sept 12, 2012 10:01:25 GMT smokescreen said:

great post and it matches my experiences to date - except the singing ... i am tone deaf :-[

Sure my wife feels the same about me, even now

[tobylerone]

Another point:

11. Don't be afraid to ask the forum
Everyone has been very helpful and without the forum I would no doubt have bought something rubbish. So ask questions before you make the leap, even if you think your question is stupid!