I began smoking when I was in 7th grade. My friends and I would sneak cigarettes after school and on weekends; it made us feel grown up. Through the years, I smoked fairly consistently (quitting only when I was pregnant and later breastfeeding my daughter). There were times when I smoked as much as a pack a day, and in more recent years, had reduced my habit to about 5-7 cigarettes a day. I lived in fear of the horrible repercussions of smoking, and my daughter also was pressuring me to quit. So – I did. A couple of months ago, after doing some online research, I made the decision to quit smoking once and for all and take up vaping (e-cigs) instead. This has been a great success story. Vaping enabled me to stop cigarettes completely and never look back. I threw away my last pack of Marlboro Menthol when I bought my first e-cig kit, and have not smoked another cigarette since. Vaping is absolutely THE answer to quitting; it is the only cessation method that provides nicotine to quell the cravings while also satisfying the mechanical, or physical act of breathing in and blowing out smoke (which is actually vapor in this case). Most smokers are as addicted to the inhalation and smoke blowing as they are to the nicotine, if not more so. I have spoken to hundreds of people who have successfully quit smoking using e-cigs, and they have all confirmed this to be true, as I know it was for me as well. Early on in the quitting process, I did have moments of thinking about cigarettes, but I would take a vape and the cravings were immediately satisfied. I did not experience any mood swings or the physical symptoms associated with smoking cessation, and I have not once relapsed. I never sought out assistance for my quitting process; I studied about the methods and equipment needed to vape online and made the purchases with no intervention. No counseling was required, but the support of the online vaping community was definitely helpful. When I first began vaping 2 months ago, I was using 16 mg nicotine liquid (e-juice), but I have weaned myself down to 6 mg liquids with no issue and plan to continue on to 0 mg juices, and continue vaping (I really enjoy it). Since I quit smoking, I feel a million times better – healthier, happier, more confident. I can fully taste food again and have no problem running up a flight of stairs! I spend more time with my daughter and our two beautiful dogs, and feel a great sense of accomplishment. My family is also very proud of me. If I had one issue with vaping, it would only be that peer reviewed, large-range research has not yet been funded to prove its efficacy as a cessation method. So many lives could be saved with the data in place to back up all the anecdotal success stories. I am happy to provide more information if needed – let’s start teaching people that there IS a better way.