Mine is a story of accidentally quitting cigarettes. I had been a smoker for over 35 years and had been smoking 2 packs a day for over a decade – maybe two. I last smoked Camel Lights. I had resigned myself to always being a smoker even though my Dad died of smoking induced lung cancer. The addiction is that strong, and I just liked smoking too much to quit. One day at work, I noticed a coworker whom had what looked like a white cigarette holder (long), it glowed red on the end, and he was puffing on it in the office! In California, smoking is not allowed indoors, and certainly not at the workplace. One of the things my coworker said was it was about 10% the cost of cigarettes in the long run. That was my motivation – cigarettes were getting entirely too expensive (and had been for several years), and this looked like a viable partial substitute in order to cut down on the cost of cigarettes. I started my own little research project (I’m a Mechanical Engineer) into the personal vaporizer. I had no intention of quitting cigarettes at the time. After having found enough evidence to make an educated decision that it didn’t appear to have any health effects and appeared safe, I decided to give it a try. I bought a 510 manual device along with a couple Camel like e-juice flavors. It was similar to smoking, but different at the same time. It was enjoyable. Then something happened I could have never anticipated. Three days later, I announced to everyone I know (I was so excited) that I suddenly and inexplicitly lost my desire for cigarettes and could honestly say I found something much better and apparently much safer – the personal vaporizer. I was a non smoker! Never, never thought I would be able to say that. I had (and have) absolutely no desire to smoke cigarettes – as long as I have my substitute. I worry about going back if this device is taken away. My vaping evolved from that first 510, to several different types of mods, to now using a handful of different mod devices. I find that the latest variable power devices are what are now my regular device of choice. We own Silver Bullets, BBs, Alphas, Omegas, VP-1&2, and our latest favorite are the two Vamo devices we use now. Also, a considerable factor is the availability of so many flavors. I don’t even use tobacco flavors any longer. I prefer coffee, cola, chocolate, peppermint, strawberry, banana, and many more. This is another reason these devices work so well – choice. I have been tobacco free since June 18, 2009. Over four years. Hurray for me – but especially for my wife and kids. My wife also quit cigarettes with this device, over two years now. Shortly after becoming a non smoker, I had went to my doctor for an unrelated visit. Still just gushing over being a non smoker and having found this alternative, I explained in detail what I had experienced. We decided to take some vitals as a baseline – and come back several times over the period of a year to see if there was any measurable difference in my health – my doctor was very interested to learn about this. At the end of about a year, and at least a half dozen visits, we seemed to see some significant changes: My blood pressure and heart rate went down. My lung capacity increased by a double digit percentage, not sure what the number was, but it was significant – I could feel the difference. I lost my bedtime wheezing that I had had every night for as long as I could remember. My smokers cough has disappeared. I just feel better and have more endurance and energy. Food taste better, my sense of smell seems more sensitive. The most surprising change I noticed was my sense of touch seems to have improved. I play the guitar, and have noticed I feel the texture of the strings now – and never have before. Most of the improvements appeared within the first six months, and gradually got a little better in the next six months or so. I couldn’t be happier. As a person whom designs highly complex machinery and systems for a living, I think the electronic cigarette is likely the most significant and ground breaking tobacco alternative that has ever been invented. I believe it is the most promising method we have to reduce tobacco use, and subsequently save millions of lives. It may even have the power to push tobacco use to extinction. I believe it has saved my life. Regards, Rick H.