A Year Of No Smoking

I can’t remember the exact day that I stopped smoking, but I know it was around the end of February 2017. I started the dirty habit when I was just sixteen-years-old, thinking I was the edgiest bitch you’ve ever met, when in reality I looked like a much too young girl trying to disobey her parents. I think all in all I puffed away for around eight years which is pretty mental thinking back on it now – I dread to think how much it cost me over that time and how much money I could have saved myself!

But after blacking out outside of work whilst walking back in after a cheeky afternoon roll-up break, I made the decision to stop smoking for real. I’d tried it a couple of times but didn’t actually want to give up – I enjoyed smoking so giving it up never really appealed to me. I loved how I made so many interesting friends through popping out for a fag at work or on a night out, so I didn’t have the motivation to truly stop until I started to wonder if it was really affecting my health.

Cue a trip to the local vape shop to stock up on a little device and some yummy flavoured juices – I finished off the tobacco I had left in my pouch and went cigarette free from the following Sunday!

Yes, I’m now one of those vaping wankers that leaves clouds of vape in my midst when I’m walking about (although, I definitely think I’m more considerate of those around me than some fellow vapers) or clouding up our living room when I’m holed up at home.

But I’ve noticed a huge difference since binning it off and thought I should share those little bits of info for those of you who have been thinking about kicking the habit;

• I smell divine – no joke, the amount of flavours available means that I always smell sweet and delicious. No more stinking hair, breath or clothes for me!
• My teeth are a lot whiter – I was smoking roll-ups which tend to stain your teeth a lot more, so I’ve got a dazzling smile now 😉
• I no longer have nicotine stains on my fingers! I’m not sure why, but I always ended up having brown stains on my middle and index finger, which only came off using a pumice stone or nail file🧐
• I’m saving a pretty penny (not a massive amount as I still spend on replacement coils and juice for my vape) to save for our wedding and house we plan on buying at some point – probably when we’re forty
• Breathing becomes easier than it used to be – I didn’t really notice it before, but when I was helping my best friend Maisie blow up balloons for her little girl’s birthday party, I wasn’t getting massively out of breath like I used to!
• I’m more productive at work and at home – I’ve found I get a lot more done now that I’m not sneaking off to have a cheeky fag. At work I don’t vape at all until I get home and when I’m at home, I vape whilst I do whatever I’m doing – I’m fact, I’m vaping right now!

Don’t get me wrong, I had one little relapse back in September where I was having a drink with my sister and had a couple of pulls on her roll-up, until then I’d convinced myself that I missed smoking so much and just wanted to try it again. However, inhaling the smoke made me realise that I actually hated it! I coughed my guts up, had an awful taste in my mouth and knew I wouldn’t smoke again.

I’ve got a couple of points I want to give you a heads up on if you’re thinking of giving up and giving vaping a go, as a lot of the time you’re not going to know what’s coming your way;

• When you first stop smoking and vape, you’ll notice you’re coughing – like a lot. If you continue to smoke and vape at the same time, this won’t stop happening because of how cigarette smoke affects the little hairs at the back of your throat (I think that’s accurate, but don’t take my word for it – I know the coughing thing is real, but can’t guarantee that’s the reason for it)
• You’re likely to get cold like symptoms when you stop smoking as your body learns to function without it – it can be rough, but stick with it and they’ll soon go away!
• You don’t have to worry about notifying your doctor that you’re a smoker – I actually went for an appointment the other week for a repeat prescription and totally forgot until my doctor asked if I was still smoking! The look of pride on their face is priceless 😉
• You’ll start to notice how nice your home smells – I only ever smoked in our kitchen (I stopped smoking in the living room a few years back when I walked in from work one day and truly smelt how bad it was) but it was crazy how much of a difference it made!

So here we are, an entire year later! I’m so proud of myself for kicking the habit and especially so as it’s something I never thought that I would end up doing without something like getting pregnant happening (no I’m not pregnant, I’m far too worried about fitting into my wedding dress right now lol).

Let me know in the comments below if you’ve kicked the habit and if you haven’t – what’s stopping you?