South Africa

I started smoking after high school and became a heavy smoker after dropping out of varsity, when I became a father i started thinking about the future and I switched to vapes , I'm now smoke free , no vape no cigarettes, I just decided to take back control

I started smoking when I was 15 years old in 2008 and I continued like that for 13 years I eventually quit in towards the latter part of 2020. I stopped using tobacco products mainly cigarettes because of the financial cost and health risk that came with using tobacco products. The financial cost was more than I could bare as well as the health risk that came with my smoking so if it was either I could smoking or then I get further complications on my health so that's when I decided to switch to hubbly vaping patches but eventually the one thing that I sticked with was Vaping. Since I stopped smoking I have led a more health focused lifestyle doing more physical activities like running, swimming, hiking. I stopped I'm smoking for 3/4 years before coming back to Vaping so that's where we all right now trying to quit the vaping again.

I start smoking from a young age, was hooked and could not see myself without the smoking it is part of me and who I' am. 24 years later my children was born and could not let them inhale the same smoke that I had as a child and also develop the same edictions I had. My goal was to change my behaviour and not set an example how to start smelling like an ashtray and think it is right to be like that and sit with all the same closed chest and health problems I sit with while smoking.

To stop smoking cigarettes, I have tried cold turkey, Nicorette gum, Nicotine patches and hypnosis. Since vaping started to take off in South Africa I tried that and is the only thing that helped. Never wanted to quit smoking completely, just quit cigarettes. I still vape today and feel younger and healthier than I did 12 years ago!

I started smoking cigarettes in 2016. At first, it was honestly just part of growing up. I was young, trying to fit in, trying to be cool, and somewhere along the way, smoking just became normal to me. But I eventually realised something had changed. It started with one cigarette here and there. Then it became a cigarette when I woke up, after a meal, before bed. And whenever life got stressful, my first thought was, “I need a cigarette.” Without even realising it, I had become dependent on something I once thought I was in control of. From 2016 to 2019, I managed to completely stop smoking. I remember feeling like I had finally broken free from it. Then 2020 came, lockdown happened, life changed, and I found myself going back to cigarettes on and off till the beginning of this year. I would stop, then life would get difficult, and somehow I would find myself reaching for a cigarette again. And that cycle taught me something important: it wasn’t always about the cigarette. A lot of it was in my mind. I had convinced myself that I needed a cigarette whenever I was stressed, overwhelmed, or going through something. Eventually, I had to ask myself, “Why am I still giving this thing control over me?” That was the moment I decided I needed to take my power back. I chose to move away from cigarettes and, for my own journey, I turned to vaping instead. Since the beginning of this year, I haven’t smoked a cigarette. And one of the biggest things I’ve noticed is the change in my mindset. I’m not constantly thinking about when I’m going to have my next cigarette. I don’t feel like I need it to get through a difficult moment anymore. I also started going to the gym, exercising and taking better care of myself. And slowly, I started feeling like I was becoming more in control of my own life again. I’m not saying my journey is perfect. I’m just proud that today, cigarettes don’t control me the way they once did. For me, quitting wasn’t just about putting down a cigarette. It was about taking back control of my mind, my choices, and ultimately, myself.

I started smoking tobacco products at age 16 due to peer pressure and stress through grief, in my last year of high school I discovered THR products that kept me off cigarettes for good and changed my lifestyle and self esteem completely for the better.

I smoked cigarettes like mad vaping hellped me not to smoke cigarettes no more vape make me sleep better and reduces stress its way more easier then cigarettes vaping also dont make u smell like cigarettes

I quit smoking hubbly because I realized my health is more important than a temporary habit. What started as something social became something I no longer wanted controlling me. So I chose to stop, breathe better, and choose my future. I’m proud of myself for choosing me

So, my story begins late grade when I was curious to see how a cigarette would make me feel and from that one puff I was hooked, but over the span of 2 years I had felt really bad health wise and tried quiting and finally came right with vaping and it made me feel 10 times better, healthier, more focused, and less of a hot head

Started smoking at a very young age. But seemed to quit the habit. Until I found vaping. I have never been happier to this day. Feel refreshed everyday. No more coughing or drained energy or the smell of smoke clinging to my clothes. I would never turn back to cigarettes