Breathe Happy

The electric cigarette was produced in 2003 by a Chinese druggist named Hon Lik. It went on the Chinese market in 2004 and then marketed elsewhere in 2005 by Golden Dragon Holdings. The product is traded through private companies but the base is Electronic Cigarette Association.

No electric cigarette company is endorsed by any healthy organization. They are banned in several countries including Canada.

The product is made up of a battery, a cartridge and a atomizer that vaporizes the liquid. These cigarettes cost less than actual cigarettes. A starter kit can run you $50 and flavor cartridges about $12. They come in several flavors such as chocolate, mint and orange that may even attract children to use these.

Though the e-cigs do not produce the tar and carbon monoxide of regular tobacco cigarettes a user may actually have an even stronger addiction to the nicotine than they may have had before. This is due to the solution of nicotine and propylene glycol used in the electric cigarette. It is basically a battery operated nicotine dispenser. And remember nicotine can cause heart problems. The other ingredient is Diethylene Glycol which is a anti-freeze component and is toxic to humans.

Also contained in these cigarettes is Tetramethylpyrazine. This a Chinese drug used in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases in China. Found to induce relaxation in rats.

And if the e-cigarette breaks the user can be exposed to cancer causing compounds.

There is not a lot known about the long term effects of this product. But if you turn to this product to help you in stopping smoking regular cigarettes you may find you have an even stronger addiction to nicotine. So what have you lost and what have you gained?

Triggers are those things that make you crave a cigarette. It might be when you get in the car, on breaks at work, or after you eat. If you have been smoking awhile your day is probably filled with triggers. Learn to recognize these triggers. They can come at cetain places, certain times or even after eating certain foods.

For smokers a cigarette is the solution to any problem. You know that certain situations are likely to give you the urge to smoke. Doctors refer to this as HALT or Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired. Even boredom works into this. So if you recognize that these times weaken us and make us vulnerable we are more able to change this behavior.

Keeping a log of when you find your worst cravings come can be alot of help in the process of quitting the habit. Keeping note of when, whats going on, where and how you feel.

Look back over your log after afew days(best to have atleast a week day and a week-end day)and see when your most extreme triggers occur.

The trick is to see these and then change your routine. Practice eating the meal without the cigarette at the end. Or if it is while you are driving practice not smoking during the drive.

If you associate certain things with smoking change those things. For instance if you smoke while watching a certain show on tv in the evening change and go for a walk instead. If you usually go outside to have the cigarette then go for the walk instead. Adding some exercise to your routine will help you feeling better as you are going through the quitting process.

With your committment to working on changing your routine you are ready to set a date for quitting this habit that has plagued you for so long.

I used to be a smoker. It was a long time ago, but I do remember it well.

I had no idea that I reeked so. I had no idea it was making me sick. I was clueless.

Sure, I tried to quit every year as a New Year's resolution and failed every year. I even tried a few times in the middle of a year to quit, but something would always happen to stress me out and I'd start back up. Somebody dies? Smoke. Getting divorced? Smoke. Lose a job. Gotta have a smoke, right? And there I'd go again. Smoking those stinking cancer sticks.

I didn't think of them that way then. I didn't really even think of them as a bad habit. I thought that I was an adult and I could smoke if I wanted to. I actually wasn't an adult when I started. I was fifteen and stole my first cigarette from my stepdad. It gave me bed spins. I should have stopped then.

But nooooo, not me! I have to learn things the hard way!

I smoked menthol cigarettes for ten years. I thought I was cool. What a waste of cool points that was!

I ended up with my cool butt getting very sick. I couldn't stop coughing. No, you don't understand. I mean I literally coughed for about 3 months straight, almost non-stop.

My co-workers kept saying, "Go to the doctor!" I kept telling them, "I am!"

The doctor gave me breathing treatments, inhalers, nasal sprays, and antibiotics – all to no avail. I could suck down enough NyQuil to put an elephant down and still cough like a Saint Bernard all night long. Sitting up didn't help. Lying down didn't help. Round after round of various treatments didn't help. That awful dry cough was out to kill me.

Finally, the doctor yelled at me. "You have to stop smoking if you want to get well!"

I listened. I quit… for a week… then smoked one pack of cigarettes over one week's time and I got it again — the dreaded Bronchial Spasm!

I literally couldn't breathe in air without coughing. It was so miserable. I actually bruised my ribs from coughing so much over those months. I would sit in the bed, doubled over in pain, feeling like I was dying. It's one of those illnesses I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.

It was time to take action. I had to quit. But how? I tried every year and failed. What would work?

I dug down deep and pulled something out that I hadn't used much before. Well, what was this little item tucked away in my disposition?

It was willpower.

The doctor was right. I was making myself sick. I had to stop. Period. End of story. I never smoked again because not only did the doctor yell at me, but I told myself matter-of-factly, "You cannot smoke."

Did I still crave them? You bet! I craved cigarettes for about five years after I quit. But as my health and senses returned, I realized the benefits and it got easier and easier.

I realized that all the time I had smoked, I smelled like an ashtray! My clothes, my house, my car… all smelled like an ashtray. I couldn't believe I had smelled like that for ten whole years and didn't even know it!

Soon, it got to the point that I couldn't even remain in a smoke-filled bar for long without going out for fresh air. Wow. Fresh air! Without a cigarette in my hand. What would I do with myself? Well, I stood there and took in the beauty of life as a healthier person.

Finally, my cravings for cigarettes went away. I substituted for a while with chocolate, but broke that habit as well.

Today, you might catch me eating a chocolate truffle, but you sure as heck won't catch me with a cigarette in my hand.

Keep trying, keep strong, and know that you can be an ex-smoker too someday. I conquered the cancer sticks… so can you!