This is my 2nd attempt at quitting smoking using electronic cigarettes. On my first attempt, I made it 6 weeks before resorting back to analogs. The reason being ?? I had an atomizer die and didn??t have backups. We didn’t have the brick & mortar stores back then, so I was forced to buy a pack of cigarettes, thinking that they would tide me over until the new shipment arrived (which was always a long process, because they were often stopped and/or seized by customs) and that I??d carry on vaping?? but that was not the case. Back when I first made the switch, 3ish years ago, the e-cigarette technology was nowhere near what it is today. You had the choice of either a cigarette looking ??device? (like the Blu??s, and Joye 510?ýs).. or you could build your own mod.. a few places were selling mods, but they were really expensive because they were hand made, one by one, presumably in someones basement. Today, however, things are way different. The technology has finally caught up with reality and vaping is no longer a chore. Is there more to it than smoking? Sure.. but not overwhelmingly so. I was a pack a day smoker for 17 years.. and both times that I??ve switched to vaping, I??ve been able to stop smoking the same day that I started vaping with no real cravings or horribleness associated with all the other cessation products. What made me switch this time, though, was a terrible bout of bronchitis. I was fairly accustomed to getting sinus infections and bronchitis.. typical smoker type illnesses.. but this round of bronchitis held on for months. I then started to get severe pains in my lungs and, of course, started to worry about what it might be. I also was afraid to go to the doctor because I wasn??t sure I wanted to find out what it was. I then started to think about it. If I go in and get a chest x-ray, and the doctor DOESN??T tell me that it??s lung cancer.. I might not be so lucky next time. Did I really want to ever put myself in to that situation because I chose to do something that everyone knows is bad for you? Like, 2 out of 3 smokers die from smoking related illnesses. 2, out of 3. Think about that. That group of smokers that you take breaks with.. at least 2 of them are going to die as a result of smoking. You??re probably going to be one of them, as the odds are against you. Problem for me was.. I actually love smoking. I find that nicotine helps keep me balanced and able to focus.. plus I act of taking a drag is a breathing technique that??s taught in meditation, because it??s relaxing. ??Why don??t you just use the patch and take breaks and focus on breathing?? Someone who??s never smoked, or never truly had the habit of smoking, doesn’t get it. It??s the ritual, the hand to mouth action, the act of exhaling smoke.. the whole experience is the addiction.. the nicotine only plays a very small role. This is why vaping is great. It satisfies all of those senses.. yet, wont kill you. It also, more often than not, turns in to a hobby for a lot of people. There are so many devices, accessories, juices, etc.. that it??s very easy to start a collection. And, since every device, system, and juice vape differently.. you??re constantly looking for that holy grail. I’ve now been smoke free for 135 days without so much as a craving for a traditional cigarette. I no longer get winded going up a flight of stairs, or walking long distances, I’m not waking up coughing up phlegm and who knows what else, my sense of taste and smell are better than ever, and I don’t smell like an ashtray anymore. Vaping has literally saved my life. – Matt