I’ve smoked since I was 12. Started when I found I wouldn’t get sick on the second-hand smoke from my parents cigarettes. After 42 years of smoking my lungs protested violently. I’ve tried every form of NRT (the gum works, sort-of as a short-term (hours) substitute), but couldn’t stick with them and always ended up smoking again. Knowing I had to kick the burning leaf I researched e-cigarettes and, using the advice of the fellowship at E-Cigarette Forum, made a committed purchase of equipment. It takes a (very) little while to learn to ‘vape’; once some skill is acquired it becomes natural. In short order I found the burning leaf intolerable, preferring my e-cigarettes instead. After three months, I went for a visit with my doctor. He immediately commented on how much better I looked, and after giving me the once-over how much better my chest sounded. While I’ll always have stage I COPD due to the emphysema the chronic bronchitis flares very rarely now. Heavy concentrations of cigarette smoke will set it off as will seasonal allergies. However, being in our local e-cigarette shop does NOT cause a flare up! I’m impressed as there is usually a large number of fellow ‘vapers’ gathered and the clouds, were they cigarette smoke, would certainly cause a flare. The equipment I purchased I still use. I have the original 510 pen-style cig-a-like with a Vision Nano clearomizer for discrete use. My mainstay is an eGo-C variable voltage twist style batteries topped with a Vision CE4 v2.0 clearomizers and a Kamry X6 1300mAh battery topped with a Smok 3.0ml Pyrex Nova tank. I use both commercially prepared, and self-made juices at a 70/30 Propylene Glycol/Vegetable Glycerine base with 5-10% food grade flavorings. Nicotine content runs an average of 20mg/ml across the blends. I use approximately 1.5-2ml of liquid per day. Flavorings vary from my own tobacco/vanilla blend, RootBeer (commercial), a local Coffee style blend, Chocolate covered Cherry (my own), and an Irish Coffee blend (my own). It is now 11 months since my last tobacco cigarette, I’ve reduced the strength of nicotine from 24mg/ml to 18mg/ml and I am comfortable and much healthier. Thanks to the free availability of an electronic vapor alternative I am tobacco free for the longest I have ever been. I don’t smell awful, I don’t hack constantly, I can taste and smell subtleties I’ve missed while smoking and I spend a fraction of what I paid for tobacco products or prescription NRT. I recommend this as a viable alternative to others looking to free themselves of the harm smoking tobacco products produce, and I’ve had 3 friends successfully follow in my footsteps. I urge anyone who knows someone who is smoking because of a nicotine addiction, to give this alternative a try.