by Ashley Strehl, Editor-in-Chief
This week I’m going to discuss something with you all that I’m not usually comfortable talking about. My nicotine addiction. Yes, I am one of the many young American’s who had “just one” cigarette and was hooked… No, that’s really not how it happened. My story is similar to others, and I’m going to tell you why.
The whole reason I am going to be discussing this topic is because all I ever see in the news anymore is how people are dying from vaping. Clearly this is something to be taken seriously, but the headlines are too vague, people aren’t just dying from vaping, they are dying from vaping juice that they have bought online. Not from juice that was locally mixed, like the ones from the shops that I purchase my juices from.
Did I start vaping because I thought it was cool or hip? No. I started vaping because I had a serious addiction to cigarettes. I couldn’t go more than an hour maybe hour and a half without craving one. I smoked around 10 cigarettes a day, about half a pack, and while some people have worse addictions, I think mine was pretty bad.
I constantly smelled, and when I felt like I needed one I’d be irritated and on edge, my hair dried up and my teeth turned yellow. At the time, I was going through some personal issues. While that is not much of an excuse, it’s the reason why I starded. I also hung out with a few friends that liked to smoke as well. It was all about what and who I surrounded myself with.
But when I started vaping instead of smoking a lot changed. For starters, I smelled better. I now save at least $100 a month. I found myself being able to walk up stairs and across campus without feeling like I was going to pass out. My hair got softer, my teeth got whiter, and I even lost weight.
So with this editorial am I telling you that vaping IS better for you than smoking? Yes. Am I telling you to actually read the article titled: “STOP VAPING OR YOURE GONNA DIE” before you share it with me? Yes. Am I telling you that vaping improved my life? Yes.
I could go on and on about this but in the end this is just the way vaping has affected me. Just don’t judge a vaper, you don’t know their story.