Debbie's Journey of Vaping - Excuse me, have you got a light please? Part 1.

Hi, welcome back. Good to see you!

In the last blog, I promised you a treat, and I’m delighted to be able now to share this with you….I will now pass the baton to Debbie to entertain and enthral you…

“Excuse me, have you got a light please?”

“No, sorry, I don’t smoke”

I will never tire of saying that!!! I feel quite smug and extremely proud to call myself a “non-smoker”.

Hi, I’m Debbie, and I’d like to share my journey into vaping with you and the best place to start is at the beginning.

FEB 2012:

Of course I’d heard of electronic cigarettes, but I enjoyed smoking and to me they were likely to be just another flash in the pan. I’d never really considered “giving up” ….I looked forward to my ciggie, first thing in the morning with my first brew and especially after a meal…. In fact, sometimes before the meal had even finished I would excuse myself and announce “just nipping out for a smoke.”

Smoking relaxed me. It took away all the stresses of the day. Some people have a nice bath, me? I reach for the cigarettes and a brew. After all, for the 36 years I’ve been doing this it’s never let me down!

Then, within 4 weeks of each other, two key things happened that changed my life forever…..

We were going to Canterbury, Kent, my husband, son and I to check out the University he’d chosen. In his wisdom, for some reason he thought it would be a good idea to go to the other end of the country to study. Why when we have an excellent university here in Manchester, would he do that??

Of course the real reason I didn’t want to go was because I would not be able to have a smoke on the train for over 2 hours. Unable to smoke, panic sets in and I become a wreck. My addiction to these little sticks was totally overwhelming and I would regularly find myself inventing excuses not to be involved in things that would take me out of my comfort zone, ie, I would need to have regular “smoke breaks”. It would take meticulous planning on my part in anything I did in order to ensure all of my needs were met!

And there it is, right there. MY NEEDS.

How selfish are we, us smokers, always thinking of ourselves and how or when our next “fix” would be?

So off we went….I made it through to Euston and was frantically looking for the nearest exit so I could get out as quickly as possible to light up. Ahhhhh, “that’s better”. Smoke filled my lungs and once again all was well with the world.

Outside of the station where I was stood was quite a large kiosk, advertising Electronic Cigarettes. I didn’t take much notice of it. I was far too busy topping up my nicotine levels, puffing away without a care in the world. A lady from the kiosk approached and asked me if I would like to try one of the electronic cigarettes. “No thanks, I smoke menthol” I replied hoping she would leave me be. However she trumps me with her response. “That’s ok, we have menthol” and she proceeded to pass me the menthol one. “It looks like a cigarette, but it’s a lot heavier and much wider than the real thing” I said, thinking all the while, this cannot possibly work.

I took a drag and inhaled still thinking of my firm belief that this was a ‘flash in the pan’ and would not work…. but as the vapour hit me, in that moment, that very second, I knew that this “flash in the pan” was going to be big.

But I’m a smoker. I loved and needed my ciggies so I didn’t purchase the “pretend Cig” as I nicknamed it. I was still not convinced. Impressed, yes, but not convinced. I needed to think about it and anyway I told myself as we would be going home in 2 days, I knew we’d be passing the kiosk again…..

I did think about it, but was not ready to ‘shell out’ on something that I might not like!!

There I go again with the never ending list of excuses…….

Anyway, life as I knew it carried on until 21^st March 2012…The Budget. The only thing I am concerned with on Budget day is the increase in tax that would be imposed on my ciggies. Like all smokers I knew without a shadow of doubt that it would increase. It always does.

I needed telling twice…………… “37p”

“Whoa,whoa, whoa, WHAT? “

“37p” my colleague repeated,

I needed a cig.

I went home that night, still in a state of shock; my cigarettes had gone up to over £7.00 a pack in a few short hours. HELL!!!! How. Bloody. Dare. They?

Time to take action.

I’ d gone to that place in my head where I could not justify paying over £7.00 for a pack of cigarettes. And so, with a heavy heart, I was going to say goodbye to my beloved menthols.

I was so angry with the government for daring to increase the price of my cigarettes by so much… I suppose over the years we just put up with them going up by the odd 3, 4 and 5p. But 37p!!! In one go. They were sending a message surely? Well Mr Treasurer, so will I. Not only will you not get your extra 37p out of me, you will get nothing at all……stick your 37p in your pipe and smoke that why don’t you?

I was terrified and excited all at the same time. I told everyone that I was going to stop smoking on 26^th March. I thought the more people I tell, the harder it will be for me to go back on it.

I had a mixed reaction to my news….some kindly encouraged me, some even laughed out loud because after all, it was a well-known fact that if I could not be found I would be outside “having a fag” . One work colleague even said that he’d seen me outside in all weathers, rain, snow and hail. He actually thought I needed HELP!!!! Looking back, I suppose that to a non-smoker, I must’ve looked ridiculous standing outside huddled under my umbrella, freezing…. but nothing would have stopped me from going out there to get my fix!

That day I took the plunge and ordered the “pretend cig”.

It arrived on 25^th March 2012 and I decided to waste no time at all. The next day March 26th 2012 was to be my D DAY.

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Hey!! Debbie, you can’t leave us hanging like that!!!! I want to know what happened next!!!

WOW! I can soooo relate to some of Debbie’s experiences. I’d forgotten how if someone suggested going somewhere or doing something I would plan a strategy in minute detail to make sure I could regularly smoke!

I can’t wait to find out how Debbie got on as she unwrapped her package containing her ‘pretend cig’ can you?

See you soon!