Hello all. Today has been quite a difficult day. I still can't get over how some days are so hard and some are not that bad. I seem to have so much to worry about today and the quitting just adds another layer of stress to a difficult situation. Stress isn't usually a trigger for me but I just feel like I need the five minute break. Sometimes I think it's just the five minutes peace and quiet that helps. It's just time to thinks and clear my mind. I have been drinking a lot of tea instead.

I have been talking to a lot of people about vaping today (using electronic cigarettes). I'm not about to start using them but they seem to work for some people. I was even speaking to someone today who has started smoking again after 3 years of vaping because he wasn't allowed to use his e-cig (he lives in supported housing). My brother used an electronic cigarette to quit. He used it for about a month and then quit all together - he's in the armed forces so quitting has really helped him with his fitness. 

I used an e-cigareete for a while last year and did live it... I even blogged for a while about vaping and the benefits of it. I do not think they are perfect but if you are using a good quality device and good quality vapour from a reputable source, it is better for you than smoking. My problem was that it was too heavily linked to smoking and it was too easy to switch between the two. I don't need the "crutch" of the actual device and the handbook mouth action and the e-cigareete did not hit the spot when it came to the relaxed moments that I wanted to smoke. I always thought it was OK to have a few cigarettes as well and so never stopped smoking fully. I think it can work as a quitting device and it is better than smoking but we still don't know the risks of long term use. Sometimes the impact of these things doesn't raise it's ugly head until years and years later. 

I am getting somewhere I think. I'm still using plenty of lozenges a day but I think that, like vaping, it's so much beer than smoking. My best friend also quit today and.im so proud of her. She's in a tough place emotionally at the moment and quitting is difficult but she is stronger than she knows and, if I can do this, so can she. And so can we all.