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Q & A to End Stoptober - Was it a Success?

2nd Nov 2022

Person Thinking About Whether Stoptober to Quit Smoking Was a Success by Using a Vape

The tenth month of the calendar year is recognised for a few reasons in the UK. The final Sunday of October is when the clocks go back with the end of British Summer Time, the 31st of October is Halloween and the whole month in the past few years has been dubbed Stoptober. Renamed as a national campaign by the Department of Health in England, it’s dedicated nationwide to the idea of challenging millions to put down cigarettes for good - to improve the health of smokers and for so many other reasons.

In our previous case study, we discussed with customer Adam what he hopes to achieve from the initial month-long switch to vaping from smoking. This was tailored towards offering him the right advice to find the best device. We spoke at length about what his initial goals would be for quitting smoking, how much he hoped to save by vaping and understanding his nicotine levels to match with the right vape kit.

Bear in mind when anyone begins the journey of using e-cigarettes as a replacement for smoking, there is not one size that fits all. Each person is different, with trial and error often playing a part in finding the right set up. We caught up with Adam one month on to see how his Stoptober challenge was, what he discovered and whether he picked up a cigarette.

Week 1 - The Challenge Begins

Q: How did you find the first couple of days with the new vape kit, e-liquids and coils?

Adam: Well I went with the Voopoo Drag X after our initial consultation because I liked the look of the device. What I wanted initially was a simple device to use but something that chucked out a bit of cloud. Hopefully getting a device that would help me cut down my nicotine levels. It was easy to grip, would fit in my pocket with no problem and didn’t have any issues fitting the coils, which I needed to change after a few days.

In terms of the liquids I first got, the cherry menthol vape juice I had was nice with a decent cooling effect at the end. My favourite had to be the Blue Razz Lemonade 10mg nic salts from Nyx Juicy which tasted like sherbet and was popular in my office, who ended up ordering them too.

Q: Any difficulties you faced at the beginning?

Adam: Yes, I struggled initially. I tried to vape it like I would a cigarette and it was tough on my lungs. It filled my mouth with vapour in seconds and ended up coughing straight after. I was using a 0.3 Ohm coil at 40W.

V2 Cigs: So the issue would be that you were using a Sub-Ohm coil at a low wattage with a mouth-to-lung technique (which is similar to smoking). What you would have needed to do is vape it directly into the lungs with that type of coil and potentially upped the wattage to find the right resistance to match that coil.

Adam: Exactly, it still tasted good with the cherry menthol but was tough initially on my throat. Once that happened I readjusted the wattage and tried direct lung vaping after getting some further advice. It was a challenge trying something completely new but it soon started to feel like a better experience.

Another thing I noticed is that sometimes my e-liquid tasted odd when I switched to a different flavour. Slowly I realised that it was because I wasn’t cleaning the tank out fully. After that, I was more methodical with making sure it was always empty and clear before adding a new e-liquid. Chatting with V2 Cigs again, they recommended I prime the coil and allow it to steep for 10 minutes before vaping. Following that, I instantly recognised the flavour was much better! Perhaps impatience and smoking in the past got the better of me as I’m used to just smoking straight away.

Quote About How Vaping is New But a Better Experience

Week 2 - Tweaking the Device

Q: After the first week, did you make any additional changes that benefited you?

Adam: I just started getting used to the device and what worked for me based on the e-liquid I was putting in there. After a recommendation from a friend, I found that the Voopoo Drag X can support higher resistance coils too. So I added that in at 0.6 Ohms and started playing around with the settings to test what I liked. I selected the ‘smart setting’ option on the kit’s menu, added my new coil and e-liquid and it was a breeze.

Q: How was the adjustable airflow, did you alter that during the first two weeks with the Drag X?

Adam: For the initial period with the device I had the airflow closed as I didn’t want to puff out too much cloud and go through my e-liquids too quickly. But after feedback and understanding, I need it more open, I tweaked the airflow and did see better results afterwards.

Week 3 - Initial Signs of Better Health

Q: What can you tell us about daily habits and whether you saw any improvements to your health?

Adam: I noticed that I was vaping more. But I also decided to try and drop my nicotine levels too, so that may have impacted it. Before when I had a Blu pen I was vaping 50VG/50PG e-liquids with 12mg of nicotine.

About halfway through the month-long challenge, I decided to drop my nicotine level by half to 6mg. I still didn’t touch a cigarette but I was craving the liquids more as the flavours are tempting. What was great is not having a weird aftertaste anymore from the vape juice once I reduced my nicotine level.

Q: Did you notice anything else different during week three?

Adam: The coughing started to subside which was good but I think that was a combination of understanding better how to vape direct lung, allowing my e-liquids to soak properly in the coil and taking a bit more time in between vape hits.

However, I also noticed a bit of dry mouth and a moorish taste. I was advised by V2 Cigs that vaping a lot of liquids, particularly high VG can lead to dry mouth before the liquids are thick and can reduce saliva. Moving forward I just drank more water in between vaping sessions.

Week 4 - Still Going Strong

Q: How did you find the last week of the challenge?

Adam: I didn’t have any cravings for a cigarette, was enjoying all the new flavours I purchased and switched from 0.3 Ohms down to 0.15 Ohms. This was because I realised that I preferred the flavour much more once I dropped the coil resistance to lower Sub-Ohm levels and kept high VG e-liquids with a higher wattage.

What was also good was that by the end of the month I realised I saved hundreds of pounds. Granted I needed to make the initial investment in more e-liquids and coils, but in comparison to the minimum five packs of cigarettes a week I was spending on I saved a bucket load. It left me with some money to add to my savings and treat myself to other things I enjoyed!

Final Thoughts

Adam: Overall, I’m happy with the switch and the first month of vaping. I have also stopped coughing as much in the morning which is great, saves me a lot more money and I don't have to taste terrible cigarettes anymore, with so many more flavour options with vaping. In the future, I will try more e-liquid options, reduce my nicotine levels further and hopefully neither need cigarettes or vaping.