Charles “CJ” Heitz, 41 years old, from Baltimore, Maryland was a smoker for close to 30 years. Through those years of smoking, he has tried multiple methods of quitting. Nothing worked. He even attempted some methods several times without success, such as nicotine gum and nicotine patches. It simply did not work for CJ. He enjoyed cigarettes too much to make a successful clean break from them. Well, he didn’t like the smell and the fact that they are bad for your health. But other than those things, he just loved his cigarettes. However, he did take notice to the negative effects cigarettes had on his own health. For example, he would wheeze just sitting on the couch watching TV. Also, he would have shortness of breath from time to time.
He then reached out to his vaping buddies to “show him the ropes” about vaping. After speaking with his vaping friends, he figured out where to start. He went down to his local vape shop and purchased a vape pen. From that day, he states, he has never smoked a cigarette again. He even goes as far as saying he actually enjoys vaping more than he did cigarettes. He raves about the options in devices, but especially flavors, countless flavors. Vaping has empowered CJ to transition away from the extremely harmful elements of traditional cigarettes. He now runs a YouTube channel that focuses on advocacy and beginner level vaping.
While vaping, he observed his better health. His taste and sense of smell returned to normal. The shortness of breath condition lessened. CJ has steered clear of cigarettes, using vaping as the alternative, a successful alternative unlike the other methods. He is now giving back to help others do the same.
This is another story from the YouTube channel Vapers Helping Smokers to Quit, a project run by Dr. Christopher Russell at the Centre for Substance Use Research in the UK.
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