Withdrawal Symptoms I – Vaping for Beginners
When you stop taking in the chemicals found in cigarettes, your body can react at first. The more years you’ve spent smoking, the more likely you are to notice a physical reaction.
We’re not doctors. If something worries you and these simple tips don’t help, please go and see your doctor!
Dry mouth and throat
First things first: when you switch to vaping, you need to drink more water! Water helps prevent that dry feeling in your mouth and throat. So if you suddenly feel dry, chances are you simply haven’t drunk enough water. Keep a bottle of mineral water on your desk and take a small sip every 30 minutes. Don’t worry, the dryness usually disappears after a few months. Important: coffee won’t help.
More coughing
As soon as you switch, your body starts clearing tar from your lungs. Cigarettes contain chemical substances that “suppress coughing”; e-cigarettes don’t. Your lungs need to clean themselves, and coughing is how they do it. So you may find yourself coughing more in the first few weeks than you did back when you smoked. It has nothing to do with vaping, and after a few weeks the cough is gone.
Drinking water can also help with coughing. Especially in the morning, take small sips as soon as a coughing fit starts. Herbal cough teas are another option.
Sorry to say it, but every ex-smoker has to get through this. The upside: after just three weeks, climbing stairs will already feel easier.
Tingling in your mouth or other parts of your body
After you stop smoking, your circulation improves over time. And it’s exactly this improved blood flow that causes the tingling. It’s annoying when it happens in your mouth, because unfortunately you can’t exactly scratch it.
Two things can help here: mouthwash. Rinse your mouth and throat several times a day with the strongest mouthwash you can tolerate. Mouthwash doesn’t just help temporarily with the tingling; it can also help prevent possible gum issues.
If your gums bleed more than usual for a while, vaping isn’t to blame — it’s the increased blood flow to your gums. The same applies here: as above, rinse with mouthwash!
Therapeutic mineral water can also help with the tingling! These are mineral waters with a higher level of carbonates and other minerals. Important: you can only get them at the pharmacy, and you shouldn’t drink as much of them as you would regular mineral water. One or two small bottles at most, spread throughout the day (depending on the manufacturer — Google can help). For me, therapeutic mineral water with a very high mineral content really did help with the tingling after two days.
Otherwise, if the tingling and bleeding gums don’t stop after a few days, go to the dentist. The longer and more heavily you smoked, the more likely you are to experience tingling. In most cases, though, the cause really is simply better blood circulation!
Next week, we’ll look at a few more symptoms that can worry some new vapers. The home remedies we recommend may help — but they don’t have to! So if you’re worried, it’s better to see a doctor!
You may experience these symptoms — or you may not! Next week we’ll also cover the topic of weight gain — something that’s on many people’s minds — as well as other possible side effects.
But that’s how it is: side effects go away again. Breathing more easily is what stays!
