Vaping is notoriously hard to quit. Cigarettes may be addictive, but since the smoking ban arrived in July 2007, it’s become much harder to light up. Not so with vapes. It’s not uncommon to be hit by wafts of watermelon on the Tube or see the odd bubblegum cloud in the office as someone takes a puff under their shirt. Vapes are everywhere. Although the NHS advises that vaping is less harmful than smoking tobacco, it still contains addictive nicotine along with other chemicals – to say nothing of the fact that it involves sucking on a battery.

On the internet, memes about how vapers are all doomed to get ‘popcorn lung’ from inhaling the water are as common as vapes themselves. And while we’ve still got a long way to go before we fully understand the long-term health effects, studies are raising concerns about the health impacts of vaping, including the potential for chronic lung conditions and a heightened risk of developing cancers. 

“The aerosols produced by vaping devices are laden with harmful chemicals, including formaldehyde and acrolein, which can cause respiratory issues and damage lung tissue. These toxic substances also increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases,” says Suzanne Wylie, GP and medical adviser for IQdoctor, who adds that they still contain nicotine, a highly addictive substance that can impact our heart and brain health.

“Many clients who vape report that it helps with anxiety and depression. However, studies indicate that nicotine addiction can actually intensify and prolong anxiety symptoms,” adds Amy-Leigh O’Rourke, a social worker and outpatient programme manager at Mountainside Treatment Center who helps patients quit addictive behaviours.

If you’re keen to quit your vaping habit but find yourself buying yet another Lost Mary on your way to work, you might need a little help – and who better to offer that advice than women who’ve managed to quit vapes for good?

“I slowly reduced the nicotine levels in my vapes”

“It was hard. Definitely harder than quitting smoking because you can vape pretty much anywhere. When I smoked, I never did it indoors. It was an effort to roll and then go outside, whereas with vaping you’re ready to go anywhere, even inside. I had it under my pillow for goodness sake.

“I tried to go cold turkey and chucked both my vapes in the bin but I found it too hard so I got another. I decided to reduce my vape liquid’s nicotine content until it was down to zero, and then bought a necklace with a vape thing on the end to mimic the action. After a while, it just started to feel obsolete.” 

Crecy, 30 

“I reminded myself that cravings are just nicotine withdrawal”

“The biggest thing in the first few weeks for me was to remind myself that whenever I thought about vaping in a certain situation or while doing a particular activity, it wasn’t an active decision but a subconscious, nicotine-deprived thought.

“It is not about a trigger being very appealing or irresistible, it’s about the chemical processes. I found that keeping this in mind made it easier to withstand triggers. If I felt a trigger coming, I tried to distract myself – walking, cleaning, exercising – something physically demanding to put my mind off focusing on vaping.

“After a while, these thoughts became rarer (but you have to be prepared for them to keep popping up occasionally for months). Nicotine addiction is hard to beat, but even after two weeks of not vaping it gets so much easier.” 

Jane, 27

“Scientifically, vaping doesn’t help you to relax – the moment I realised that, it was game over”

“I quit cigarettes and vaping by reading Alan Carr’s Easy Way To Stop Smoking. The book’s track record is impressive and helped to switch something in my head. I reached a point where I was like, ‘WTF am I doing?’ I’ve been smoking since I was 13 and nothing had ever worked before.

“There’s lots of repetition in the book, and it feels kind of like brainwashing – like an anti-brainwashing brainwashing. But the thing that resonated with me was instead of focusing on why we need to quit (which we already know), it dispels myths around why we smoke in the first place. We think, for example, that smoking helps when we’re stressed, but it doesn’t. Nicotine is the most addictive drug and the second you stop, you want another puff; smoking just satisfies a craving that it creates itself. The reason you feel chilled after you have a vape or cigarette is because of withdrawal. Carr writes that ‘cigarettes do not fill a void, they create it’ – a thought that stuck with me.

“When I started to realise I was kidding myself about what smoking was doing to me and became aware of the vicious circle, I was finally able to stop.”

Alya, 35

“It took several attempts, but in the end, I was tired of thinking about my next vape”

“It took multiple times until it clicked. I was so miserable going through that cycle of starting and stopping. Things reached a head on the day of the solar eclipse. I wanted to be completely present for that moment. Nature is important to me, and I didn’t want to miss such a rare show clouded by thoughts about hitting my vape next. I didn’t want to be worried about needing a vape while practising yoga, hiking on a nature trail or just going for a walk outside. I’m also sober, and the longer I’ve stayed sober, the more I’ve realised that vaping isn’t aligned with my sobriety.

“When I finally quit, I drank plenty of water and two cups of coffee each morning. I wanted the water to flush out any toxins in my body. Every time I had an urge to use my vape, I reminded myself that it would be the same cycle all over again. I recommend moving your body, whether it’s getting up to go for a walk or engaging in a 10-minute exercise video. Try eating healthier and incorporating more fruits and vegetables into your diet. Most importantly, keep reminding yourself why you want to quit. My ‘why’ was that I wanted to be present for my entire life rather than looking to escape. I refused to let a device dictate my experiences or limit my potential.

“As a person in long-term recovery, I recognised that if I was capable of kicking my substance abuse and alcoholism and working through heavy traumas in my life, I didn’t want to give away any more of my power to something that had me in its grips.” 

Kristina, 32

“Vapes became a treat for achieving life goals – but the cravings went before I got to achieve them” 

“I quit cold turkey. It was making me ill and costing too much to keep up. When I had cravings during the first month of quitting, I’d just tell myself that I could have a vape when I reached a life goal I was pushing towards (like getting my dream job or buying a house). It’s been five months and I haven’t reached those milestones, but the cravings have stopped. The only time I think about vaping these days is when I’m thinking about how glad I am that I quit.

Angharad*, 25

*Names have been changed

Images: Getty