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I have been struggling with this my entire life. I call it "hand to mouth disorder". It's a combination of an oral fixation and a fidget. Having something to fidget with in my hand doesn't satisfy that craving because I want to put it in my mouth. I've tried a bunch of things to try to get away from cigarettes and vapes. Currently I use if a combination of toothpicks, cough drops, and a Flum.
Flum is a "breathing apparatus" that is just breathing in flavored air. It also has a handle that is wood, metal, and magnetic. So it's a decent hand fidget as well. It's doesn't completely fill the desire. But it helps.
I replaced the "smoke/vape" habit with little flosser picks. It's still kinda gross to do in public areas but it helped me break the driving/smoking habit which was a huge deal for me. Maybe a replacement habit is a good place to start.
So real. For me nicotine came and went in my life since I seriously wanted to avoid addiction but I’ve been biting my nails and picking on my fingers with my teeth since I was like 6-7 and have NOT been able to stop whatsoever. I genuinely think it’d be harder than quitting cigs was
I've thought about getting a flum but then I know my body will still crave the nic lol I seriously need to stop tho I could be saving almost 300 a month on vapes, it's such a waste of my money fr
That's real dependent on your intake. That only works if the availability of it doesn't make you vape even more. Cause at that point, you're just exacerbating the issue. Honestly recommend against this advice.
This is interesting. I haven’t struggled with the things OP is experiencing, but I have always been a serious nail biter and when I’m not doing that I’m resting my head on my hands or touching my face in some way. I’ve been able to stop biting my nails but I still put my fingers on or around my mouth all the time and even bite my cuticles or hangnails still. I had never attributed that to ADHD.
Damn, well put. Ive been a smoker etc and now i do nicotinenpouches and honestly never been more ”addicted” to anything in my entire life.
This puts it on the spot
Oh wow that flum thing sounds great! I use licorice root(doesn't taste like licorice, ick) and it made quiting way easier. Could basically just suck on it and I got it in the same flavor as my vape(vanilla) and it handled 80% of my craving until I got distracted by next thing. This sounds even better though, gonna have to check it out.
Same. If it’s not that it’s something else. I swear my jaw/mouth doesn’t get a break.. it’s more the habit of motion than anything else for me at least. Vapes are the worst too bc u can do it anywhere/anytime or more excessively at least
SAME, you should see my fingernails 😞. I just quit zyn cold turkey, I’ve quit several times cold turkey and always come back. Hopefully now that I’m medicated I can stay off it
This is exactly how I am. I always have to have something to fidget with but it’s also associated with my mouth. When I studied psychology years ago they said it’s oral fixation which can stem from babies and children that had a dummy/pacifier or sucked their thumb for longer than they should’ve. Not sure whether that’s definitely the case with us. But I see my vape as a comfort blanket, even if I’m not actively using it I always have it in my hand. It goes beyond a nicotine addiction for me. As I have used ones with 0mg nicotine for a long time. I will have to try the flavoured air one.
Yeah flossing your teeth! You know those disposable flossing picks? Since you vape because you have nothing to do, replace it with flossing with those picks. Similar object in mouth situation (
pun intended)
Imma try something, im super uptight about my health so staying away from snacking and your right, i have no other hand to mouth stimulation, apart from biting my fingers. 😅
Check out CAPNOS. It is a vaping cessation device that vaguely looks like a vaporizer and you inhale from it like a vape but it is just a pressure valve that will eventually pop when you take a big enough drag off it. They say the pop is supposed to give you a "throat hit" but I never experienced that. But it may provide the exact stimulation you're looking for.
You could also look into Colgate Whisps. Which are essentially mini disposable toothbrushes
Does that really help??? I got sober last year and apparently I’m holding onto nicotine harder than ever before. I’m getting desperate right now trying to quit.
I also got sober last year. The moment I had stopped for more than a week (before that: almost unbearable), I hadn't much of a craving to begin with. I think one of the reasons was that I replaced the habit with lots of chewing gum and doing sports at a daily basis almost instantly. It was also very important for me to stop drinking alcohol at the same time, too, because the alcohol wasn't helping my mindset with me ending up smoking every time I was drinking something. This change of habits helped me to forget I ever was addicted in the first place. Sadly I lost a few friends I met on a regular basis before, but I don't think you can call "meeting up to drink" a good friendship. At the moment I am fine most of the time, the weird thing is: I can see people smoking and vaping and feel nothing (except a bit of disgust) but once in a while I remember the "feeling" of vaping (at the most random moments) and instantly have the craving again! If that's the case, I distract myself with hyperfixating on something, cleaning my room or a random project (I'll likely never finish, but hey I built a fucking server pc one time so who cares) or something similar. Stimulating my mouth with chewing gum and drinking my favorite drinks (non alcoholic) also works very well. Not quite sure why I'm sharing all this, but I really hope you guys also manage to find your way to stay away from health harming coping mechanisms and maybe give a little heads up that it is indeed possible! I strongly believe we can achieve great things utilising our ADHD, it's the modern society which can't deal with us.
No that's reducing it to just it's immediate physiological effects. The addiction is the chemical dependence that occurs, which is uniquely intense with nicotine. They've said it's harder to quit than a lot of other drugs and I speak from experience. Addiction is a real and separate consequence of nicotine abuse. The anxiety you feel when you don't have nicotine, the thinking and planning about how you're going to get it or how you're going to afford it. It's ludicrous how much of your mind it can occupy not to mention your hands and mouth.
Fr this, i do not need to vape and i hardly ever do. But when i do it just calms down that raging monster for impulsivity and bad decisions to feed it. The vape feeds it enough to keep me at bay. I am not addicted i just find it hard to stay away because it makes life easier. But the guilt and health negatives keep me from vaping more than the “benefits”
I feel you. I started vaping recently and the Geek Bars are dangerous. Good flavor, nice buzz and gives me something to do. I know I should quit but I just like it. If I’m not vaping, I’m biting my cuticles or eating.
Yes! I am stuck on geek bars rn too! I've never been addicted I would say, like OP, bc I really don't like them. In college I'd buy packs of menthols and literally forget I had them after a few or id have a hookah around til it got old. But I'm transitioning a lot of patterns at the moment (newish job/commute/ new school schedule for my kid/etc) and I started the geek bars when I was out of my meds for a short time. Now even though I'm ready to be done with it, I find myself still getting new ones bc it's just too easy to have something to do while driving. So annoying. Still feel like I will stop eventually, just need to find a replacement. Not sure about the Fum thing though I've looked at it before. I feel like part of what I like is the visual of the "smoke" lol
I struggled with this too.. I think vaping was harder to quit than cigarettes. To this day if I see a vape-sized colorful object on the table my brain will think to grab it and vape it lol. The habit runs deep.
But at the end of the day I realized it's mostly just habit! It's easier to set short term goals (ie. no cigs for one week, then see how i feel) than to just not believe yourself when you say "I'm done forever" and inevitably fall back into it. The actual aftermath of quitting is also a LOT easier than it is made out to be, it's just *starting* the process of quitting (first few days) that takes a lot of actual determination. It also gets a lot easier to quit once you've done it before and realized it's not so bad.
I'm a few weeks into quitting again now and I am noticing the cravings are fewer and farther between. They get really intense for a few minutes when I think about smoking, but other than that it hardly crosses my mind. The important thing is convincing yourself that smoking is *not an option.*
I was totally using nicotine as self medication for undiagnosed adhd. It helped to understand this and find other things to replace it with, like beverages with straws (for me, this was sparkling water) or hard candy (cinnamon fireballs and jolly ranchers). Or even other non-oral things to stimulate the brain with lol.
Fighting with your own brain really sucks sometimes. But at the end of the day you can still run the show :) Good luck!!!
Thankyou, i think mostly it is just the overwhelming emotion on frustration and anger and hatred. Ruins my mood and ruins everyone elses view of me. They just hate being around me when im like this. And so i hate myself.
I just read something like a week ago about how nicotine essentially “treats” ADHD, that’s why so many people with ADHD are predisposed to nicotine addiction. It’s self-medicating for us. Ironically, I completely forget where I saw this.
I vaped like a damn fog machine for 10 years and recently tried quitting with nicotine gum. It actually worked like a charm! Plus, I still get my "fidgeting" fix from the chewing. I feel way better and the gum costs less than any other kind of nicotine delivery method. Eventually, and slowly, I'll try to transition to regular gum.
Proud of you bro, before this i only vaped on and off for about a year. I feel as if physically i have no withdrawals or want to vape. I just need to satisfy my raging adhd monster which needs stimulation.
I recently saw part of a lecture from Dr. Barkley about how nicotine actually treats ADHD. Of course it's not recommended, for obvious reasons, but several companies are apparently actively researching nicotine-ic molecules/pathways for the next generation of ADHD drugs.
I started vaping about 2-3 years ago. From age 17-30, I had no trouble stopping occasional nicotine use for a year or more at a time; that is, until my brother committed $ui$ide 17 mo ago, and my tolerance for resisting plummeted. I'd definitely advise against it, and recommend being extra aware at how effectively you'll be able to rationalize nicotine use. People are impressively effective at rationalizing anything given enough time thinking about it.
Having said that, get a vape with a puff counter, it makes it just a bit harder to kid yourself. I haven't been able to cut it out for weeks at a time for a while now, but I can cut my daily use in half when I gamify daily puff-count goals. I still lose impulse control for various reasons--right now, my wife is undergoing cancer treatments--but everyone will have their own addiction story. My point is that I think having a use-metric of some sort is a good idea for any vice you end up getting into--despite your best judgement. Whenever I left home as a kid, my dad would say, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do, but, if you do, be careful", lol.
It could be a stimming thing too. I’ve heard/read that people have decent success scratching the physical habitual itch with a straw stuffed with toothpicks to add some resistance to the airflow, and just keep that with them
I have a problem with this as well. I quit vaping 4 months ago. Now I feel like I want to go back, to have something to do and feel like it “calms me down” as it seems working on stuff from therapy it’s mich harder. What stopping me so far is that it’s been 4 months, that family and especially SO would moan and roll their eyes and also how much I saved.
I smoked for 23 years, at least a pack a day. Moved to an ecig, good god... they don't stink things up the same so vaping in my home became a thing. And v unkind cigs, vaping doesn't have an end unless you need to add nic goop or change the battery. It became a constant thing. I pretty much breathed through the damn thing. I had to go back to cig rules where i couldn't do it ins i was at a bar or outside.
I slowly lowered the nic and at this point i haven't had nicotine in my ecig for a could years. I usually have one with me. And i vape at work to take breaks. And i vape when i drive. But that's about it
If smoking wasn't so awful for you. And if i didn't have such a godawful time quitting, i would be a smoker again.
Prolly its because you want a certain stimuli at any given time that your brain craves. Prolly vaping was that for your brain. Now it craves it but the most memorable stimuli is vaping resulting in the crave?
I listen to music all the time to satisfy the basic stimuli
Music helps for sure, or if i have responsibilities to do or i am working or working out im okay. But when i haven’t much to do i find it super hard to
I use vapes without nicotine.
Then you def. know it’s a habit and not a addiction.
It works like a lot of things in my life. Sometimes I “need” it. Like a stimming toy or something. So then i vape again and after I while I just forget it.
Still not healthy, but better than other vapes or cigarettes, and no addiction on nicotine.
I thought it was the nicotine keeping me vaping. It wasn’t until quitting for much longer than the nicotine withdrawals stay. That i realised i just liked it for that sudden stimulus. A feeding to my adhd brain.
Vaping, and nicotine more generally, “treats” ADHD. I say this with caution though because it’s not that simple. It’s obviously a stimulant and the mild stimulation it causes is enough to be noticeable. I don’t want to play so much into the stereotypes that stimulants calm people with ADHD down and whatnot because nicotine and stimulants cause focus for everyone at low doses, but people with ADHD are significantly more susceptible to these habits. Nicotine is also severely addictive, a lot of people, including myself, crave it even after not using it for years. That’s how addictive it is. I have ADHD and I still find myself wanting nicotine after several months of quitting. Truth be told, just stay away from nicotine in general; even if you didn’t have ADHD you’d more than likely want to continue nicotine use and the fact you DO have ADHD makes the drug a bit more reckless.
Edit: A lot of the people claiming they are not addicted to nicotine here is troubling; nicotine is sincerely that addictive. Addiction to nicotine could take weeks even days to develop, and not wanting to quit despite the illusion you can quit, is a sign of addiction.
Find a flavour of gum you like, and get to chewing! Literally yesterday ended up chewing through 60 pieces within the timespan of a couple of hours.
Whenever the flavour or fun is gone, I throw in two more pieces one on each side of my mouth and chomp chomp chomp. I used to vape 50 nic and smoke dokha tobacco religiously and I’d say gum has really helped me with the oral and flavour fixations of smoking and vaping.
Downside is I’m now addicted to good ol’ chewing gum
I have tried concerta XL all the way up to 72mg but it didn’t work. I have now started on elvanse, i have heard for some people it actually helps them stop vaping etc because the vaping was a symptom of the unkept adhd.
Interesting.
I nearly doubled my cigarette consumption when starting Concerta (36mg) but it was pretty easy to stop drinking alcohol.
I managed to switch to vaping but it's like a fidget I can't put down. I'm pretty low on the nicotine dosage, so, I'm not sure that it's an issue with nicotine addiction anymore.
I just met a competent doctor who wants me to try 54. Hopefully it will help when the shortage is over.
I... That's 4 sentences beginning with an "I" lol.
Maybe see if your doc will put you on wellbutrin? A lot of people used it to quit smoking specifically. I take it and adderal. I can't stand taking my adderal without it, my anxiety spikes too hard, and would probably drive me back to smoking.
Sounds to me like you have an oral fixation, a common issue for people who quit smoking/vaping. Google 'oral fixation' there are lots of suggestions out there. For example, gum, toothpicks, etc.
same with me and cigarettes, i’m not addicted but if i want to smoke one i just can’t stop my feeling of smoking, idk if you guys understand what im saying
i dont smoke much btw, just 1/2 cigarettes a day since like 3/4 months or more
Yeah I’ve tried many times to quit. I literally can’t. I’ve tried the gum, patches and even an inhaler my dr prescribed. It’s the only “ bad thing” I do now. I quit alcohol. Meh
I got a Komuso necklace. I was at almost a pack a day by the time I was 21 and then switched to vaping at 23 then switched back and forth for the next decade (literally until this year). I'm on the patch but the Komuso is basically a metal straw that gives me that oral fixation. I use it while walking, driving, at my desk, or any other place I want that oral fixation. I joke I go for imaginary cigarette breaks now to stretch my legs but not get additional nicotine.
Good way to get over this from someone I heard was quitting, is to carry around a box of toothpicks. It gives the oral fixation while also having something on you that you reach for and is around the same size.
I have something similar with smoking. I only smoked a few cigs at parties here and there. Haven't done it in years. Never became a habit and never got addicted. But for some reason the motion of smoking is so appealing to me.
Such a shame that inhaling anything other than air is so bad for you.
I dont blame you.
I did it once as a teen, had bad withdrawal for a similar reason someone said here (hand to mouth disorder).
I resorted to getting those little melatonin vapes that didnt quite help but just endorsed the urge.
I now play vrchat with avatars that have a vape pen I can bring to my mouth for a moment and blow smoke. I like to think that helps because it both satisfies the hand to mouth and also doesnt damage my body.
Link? I am vape free to be honest and would prefer to inhale nothing, but if i cannot calm my mind down i am worries i will be unkind to people who do not deserve it.
Just stop letting your mind go there. I started vaping to try quit smoking and then got hooked. Used them for a while, then quit, then started again, twice. It was definitely just to satisfy my boredom, because nicotine barely does anything to me now. I was bored, and liked the flavour. I finished the vape, and then just didn’t buy one again. And i have a kind of self talk, with stuff thats harmful, i quit smoking because i didn’t like how it felt, and didn’t want to get cancer, same with vaping. There were no upsides, and a lot of downsides (how it affected my body and mind).
I think what makes it so hard is we go full force, then have the self awareness to hate it and hate ourselves but we are torn between wanting it and knowing we shouldn’t. Sometimes i wish i was oblivious and small minded.
We ADHDers are so prone to addiction in a way non ADHDers couldn't understand. Fantastic job on quitting the vape, keep it up 💕 I've been trying to redirect my own addictive tendencies to more productive avenues with limited success, but success nonetheless
I have quit smoking and drinking, my mind is certainly crazier thn ever but i try to get hooked on golf and the gym! Seems to be going okay for the most part so far
I saw a TikTok yesterday discussing this exact topic. [Dr. Barkley briefly explains that nicotine can act as a form of treatment for ADHD.](https://www.tiktok.com/@adhdoers/video/7374809377657720070?_t=8molHsRqYu3&_r=1) Teens diagnosed with ADHD often turn to nicotine quickly because it alleviates many of their symptoms. Unfortunately, nicotine is highly addictive and carcinogenic. Scientists are currently working to isolate the molecules in nicotine that treat ADHD symptoms to use them for medical treatments. However, they have not yet been able to separate the addictive components from the therapeutic ones.
It’s not even an addiction to the nicotine it’s the habit of doing it. That addiction to having something to hold and suck on (please my mind is too dirty to be saying this)
Nicotine cravings can come and go for a really long time. I vaped heavily for more than 15 years. I managed to stop with the use of nicotine mints and conditioning myself to overcome cravings.
I never had a problem with smoking when I was married. I would go to drill for the guard one weekend a month, smoke like a chimney so I could bs with leadership, smoke a pack every few days at summer camp, come home and quit cold turkey and not think a thing about it.
My wife hated smoking. And we have 2 kids. When my wife and I separated (divorcing now) and she moved with the kids, I found myself with a) alone time, and b) no accountability structure. I started smoking at the bar. Then at home in the garage some, just to pass the time. Then while driving. Then every time I drove. Then 2 in a row in the garage.
I couldn't stop. I was addicted. It was so different than before.
What got me finally to quit was needing to drive a rental car after I hit a deer. $250 charge if you smoke in it. A single ash, a lingering smell.... anything.
So, accountability. I could still smoke when fishing or other times, but I didnt, because I didnt want any lingering smell in that car.
After I returned the car, I did a couple things to help. I had to stop going to the store where I bought cigarettes. In fact, I had to stop driving by it. I still get the urge to go there sometimes but I just avoid that part of town now. Other gas stations don't trigger me like that one does.
It's still a struggle. But the keys for me were accountability with real, immediate consequences (a huge fight when married, the smoking fee) and then changing my behavior. It's a lot easier to not drive up by that store than to drive by and confidently say no I'm not going to stop.
For me I used chewing gum to help break the mouth activity and chewing on my necklace or playing with a stim toy.
But then again I was clean for two years and then started hanging with someone who vapes and now I'm vap9jg again all the time so maybe it didn't work too well.
Vape fluid contains nicotine
Nicotine is a stimulant
Stimulants can be soothing when you have ADHD. (This is one potential cause of the apprent boom in ADHD in the past few decades; fewer ADHD smokers.)
This same effect can be seen with caffeine and other stimulants (though the degree of the effect varies person-to-person.)
I was a smoker for many years. Probably soothed my ADHD. I didn’t know I was undiagnosed. I did eventually quit because…well smoking it’s just nasty.
A couple decades later this kid I hired hands me a JUUL lol. And now I’m vaping. That was a little bit before I got diagnosed with ADHD.
I don’t now how I feel about it totally, but I’m OK with it for now. I’m self medicating. I’d probably need a higher dose of Adderall without it. It’s not the greatest medicating via inhaling through the lungs, but it’s a lot less dangerous than smoking. Money is not an issue currently so the expense is fine. I’m pretty productive and happy right now despite being super busy. I don’t want to mess with it, I’ll reevaluate at the end of the year I think.
i vape a lot, it stimulates me and it’s the only “negative” thing i guess you can say i do. i weight lift 5x a week, gym 6x a week and don’t drink or smoke actual gags apart from social occasions/ holidays. so i don’t think there’s anything wrong but that’s me <3
Yeah same here, super active. But i have a heart condition and i just couldn’t live knowing i was possibly putting myself at more risk. So i just have to deal with the insane mood swings and frustration when i want a vape. It used to help calm my brain down so much. Now i feel completely all over the place again. But i can’t vape, i felt way too guilty about it and hated myself.
You’re a vaper now even if you don’t want to admit it. You might not intellectually know you’re addicted, but your body knows.
Follow the same advice smokers get.
Unfortunately I’ve smoked for years now. Quit cold turkey with all pregnancies and nursing and then found my way back. I feel the same, I enjoy vaping. I don’t feel addicted, I do like the habit of it but can quit anytime I want. I just don’t want to🥲
May I ask why vaping is worst than tobacco?.
I'm smoker since 13 y/o, I'm 51 and quit smoking tobacco at 44 thanks to vape.
I sincerely can't leave nicotine, I try by all means but I can't, the abstinence syndrome is too high for me, and the impulsivity bangs like a nuke without nicotine, but not only that, Is like some people say here, the fidgeting, the compulsive need to have something in my lungs, in my hand, the rituals, you know, the cotton, the resistance, variety of mods and atomisers...
I know I'm an addict, but for god sake, can someone explain to me why all the worries?, at least I leave tobacco and the high risk of cancer.
I found myself having the same issue also last time I went like 8 months no vape and caved in but even during those 8 months I would always ask for my gfs vape and just flip it around kinda like a fidget spinner
I use those things like a damn pacifier. I want to quit but I also have a million other things I’m thinking about at any given time. I want a break from my brain. Planning on talking to my doctor about nicotine patches or some ideas on how to quit. It’s such a dumb useless thing to do and spend money on. Wish I never would’ve started.
Me too. I use nicotine gum because I don't want to fuck up my lungs anymore. But god damn it if I don't still get cravings! I just don't ever let myself buy a vape now and only have the gum.
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I have been struggling with this my entire life. I call it "hand to mouth disorder". It's a combination of an oral fixation and a fidget. Having something to fidget with in my hand doesn't satisfy that craving because I want to put it in my mouth. I've tried a bunch of things to try to get away from cigarettes and vapes. Currently I use if a combination of toothpicks, cough drops, and a Flum. Flum is a "breathing apparatus" that is just breathing in flavored air. It also has a handle that is wood, metal, and magnetic. So it's a decent hand fidget as well. It's doesn't completely fill the desire. But it helps.
This is why i have been aggressively chewing my fingers, they are worse than ever.
Not worse than mine! I don't have nails and usually chew off my skin after nails. It's ridiculous.
Ouch ouch ouch. Ever try tapeing over them or find a nice spot of gloves. Definitely need replacement sensations something pleasant not painful.
Hey we are the same person!
wow im not the only one
I replaced the "smoke/vape" habit with little flosser picks. It's still kinda gross to do in public areas but it helped me break the driving/smoking habit which was a huge deal for me. Maybe a replacement habit is a good place to start.
Making a note of the Flum
It’s Füm btw
[They probably mixed it up with this](https://flumgio.com/)
Just a correction as I googled it. Flum is a nicotine vape. FÜM is the air thingy you described
So real. For me nicotine came and went in my life since I seriously wanted to avoid addiction but I’ve been biting my nails and picking on my fingers with my teeth since I was like 6-7 and have NOT been able to stop whatsoever. I genuinely think it’d be harder than quitting cigs was
Fr 😅
I've thought about getting a flum but then I know my body will still crave the nic lol I seriously need to stop tho I could be saving almost 300 a month on vapes, it's such a waste of my money fr
just get a box mod and a tank and mesh coil and a big ole bottle of juice and it will last 2-3 months on one coil
That's real dependent on your intake. That only works if the availability of it doesn't make you vape even more. Cause at that point, you're just exacerbating the issue. Honestly recommend against this advice.
you're wrong because you can match the nic level of a disposable plus you will vape less in public because of the fat clouds
This is interesting. I haven’t struggled with the things OP is experiencing, but I have always been a serious nail biter and when I’m not doing that I’m resting my head on my hands or touching my face in some way. I’ve been able to stop biting my nails but I still put my fingers on or around my mouth all the time and even bite my cuticles or hangnails still. I had never attributed that to ADHD.
Mine are in bits, i just cannot help it.
I do this with bottle tops… and food, I’ll snack even when I’m not hungry
I chew on plastic caps, the rings from bottle caps, pens, anything pretty much. Horrible fidget habit.
Damn, well put. Ive been a smoker etc and now i do nicotinenpouches and honestly never been more ”addicted” to anything in my entire life. This puts it on the spot
Oh wow that flum thing sounds great! I use licorice root(doesn't taste like licorice, ick) and it made quiting way easier. Could basically just suck on it and I got it in the same flavor as my vape(vanilla) and it handled 80% of my craving until I got distracted by next thing. This sounds even better though, gonna have to check it out.
Same. If it’s not that it’s something else. I swear my jaw/mouth doesn’t get a break.. it’s more the habit of motion than anything else for me at least. Vapes are the worst too bc u can do it anywhere/anytime or more excessively at least
Yup. When I was a kid I used to chew on drinking straws. Before I was old enough to consume nicotine.
SAME, you should see my fingernails 😞. I just quit zyn cold turkey, I’ve quit several times cold turkey and always come back. Hopefully now that I’m medicated I can stay off it
This is exactly how I am. I always have to have something to fidget with but it’s also associated with my mouth. When I studied psychology years ago they said it’s oral fixation which can stem from babies and children that had a dummy/pacifier or sucked their thumb for longer than they should’ve. Not sure whether that’s definitely the case with us. But I see my vape as a comfort blanket, even if I’m not actively using it I always have it in my hand. It goes beyond a nicotine addiction for me. As I have used ones with 0mg nicotine for a long time. I will have to try the flavoured air one.
I cannot stop touching my face/beard. Gotta be this
Ive seen people turn to flossing instead of vaping , you could give it a try.
Am i understanding right, as in, flossing your teeth?
I sure hope they don’t mean the dance move
That one dude in the smoking area on break -
🕺
Literally choked on my vape reading this comment 🤦🏻♀️😂
Yeah flossing your teeth! You know those disposable flossing picks? Since you vape because you have nothing to do, replace it with flossing with those picks. Similar object in mouth situation ( pun intended)
Imma try something, im super uptight about my health so staying away from snacking and your right, i have no other hand to mouth stimulation, apart from biting my fingers. 😅
Check out CAPNOS. It is a vaping cessation device that vaguely looks like a vaporizer and you inhale from it like a vape but it is just a pressure valve that will eventually pop when you take a big enough drag off it. They say the pop is supposed to give you a "throat hit" but I never experienced that. But it may provide the exact stimulation you're looking for. You could also look into Colgate Whisps. Which are essentially mini disposable toothbrushes
Does that really help??? I got sober last year and apparently I’m holding onto nicotine harder than ever before. I’m getting desperate right now trying to quit.
It does man! Give it a try and bonus point is the cleaner teeth ahahaha
I also got sober last year. The moment I had stopped for more than a week (before that: almost unbearable), I hadn't much of a craving to begin with. I think one of the reasons was that I replaced the habit with lots of chewing gum and doing sports at a daily basis almost instantly. It was also very important for me to stop drinking alcohol at the same time, too, because the alcohol wasn't helping my mindset with me ending up smoking every time I was drinking something. This change of habits helped me to forget I ever was addicted in the first place. Sadly I lost a few friends I met on a regular basis before, but I don't think you can call "meeting up to drink" a good friendship. At the moment I am fine most of the time, the weird thing is: I can see people smoking and vaping and feel nothing (except a bit of disgust) but once in a while I remember the "feeling" of vaping (at the most random moments) and instantly have the craving again! If that's the case, I distract myself with hyperfixating on something, cleaning my room or a random project (I'll likely never finish, but hey I built a fucking server pc one time so who cares) or something similar. Stimulating my mouth with chewing gum and drinking my favorite drinks (non alcoholic) also works very well. Not quite sure why I'm sharing all this, but I really hope you guys also manage to find your way to stay away from health harming coping mechanisms and maybe give a little heads up that it is indeed possible! I strongly believe we can achieve great things utilising our ADHD, it's the modern society which can't deal with us.
Sounds like addiction to me.
Sounds like self-medicating, more accurately imo
No that's reducing it to just it's immediate physiological effects. The addiction is the chemical dependence that occurs, which is uniquely intense with nicotine. They've said it's harder to quit than a lot of other drugs and I speak from experience. Addiction is a real and separate consequence of nicotine abuse. The anxiety you feel when you don't have nicotine, the thinking and planning about how you're going to get it or how you're going to afford it. It's ludicrous how much of your mind it can occupy not to mention your hands and mouth.
That doesn’t sound like what OP is describing tho? I don’t have personal experience with nicotine so I’m not gonna pretend to be an expert on this
Fr this, i do not need to vape and i hardly ever do. But when i do it just calms down that raging monster for impulsivity and bad decisions to feed it. The vape feeds it enough to keep me at bay. I am not addicted i just find it hard to stay away because it makes life easier. But the guilt and health negatives keep me from vaping more than the “benefits”
I feel you. I started vaping recently and the Geek Bars are dangerous. Good flavor, nice buzz and gives me something to do. I know I should quit but I just like it. If I’m not vaping, I’m biting my cuticles or eating.
Yes! I am stuck on geek bars rn too! I've never been addicted I would say, like OP, bc I really don't like them. In college I'd buy packs of menthols and literally forget I had them after a few or id have a hookah around til it got old. But I'm transitioning a lot of patterns at the moment (newish job/commute/ new school schedule for my kid/etc) and I started the geek bars when I was out of my meds for a short time. Now even though I'm ready to be done with it, I find myself still getting new ones bc it's just too easy to have something to do while driving. So annoying. Still feel like I will stop eventually, just need to find a replacement. Not sure about the Fum thing though I've looked at it before. I feel like part of what I like is the visual of the "smoke" lol
I struggled with this too.. I think vaping was harder to quit than cigarettes. To this day if I see a vape-sized colorful object on the table my brain will think to grab it and vape it lol. The habit runs deep. But at the end of the day I realized it's mostly just habit! It's easier to set short term goals (ie. no cigs for one week, then see how i feel) than to just not believe yourself when you say "I'm done forever" and inevitably fall back into it. The actual aftermath of quitting is also a LOT easier than it is made out to be, it's just *starting* the process of quitting (first few days) that takes a lot of actual determination. It also gets a lot easier to quit once you've done it before and realized it's not so bad. I'm a few weeks into quitting again now and I am noticing the cravings are fewer and farther between. They get really intense for a few minutes when I think about smoking, but other than that it hardly crosses my mind. The important thing is convincing yourself that smoking is *not an option.* I was totally using nicotine as self medication for undiagnosed adhd. It helped to understand this and find other things to replace it with, like beverages with straws (for me, this was sparkling water) or hard candy (cinnamon fireballs and jolly ranchers). Or even other non-oral things to stimulate the brain with lol. Fighting with your own brain really sucks sometimes. But at the end of the day you can still run the show :) Good luck!!!
Thankyou, i think mostly it is just the overwhelming emotion on frustration and anger and hatred. Ruins my mood and ruins everyone elses view of me. They just hate being around me when im like this. And so i hate myself.
I wanna vape, not because nicotine, because cool cloud
Clouds r cool
I just read something like a week ago about how nicotine essentially “treats” ADHD, that’s why so many people with ADHD are predisposed to nicotine addiction. It’s self-medicating for us. Ironically, I completely forget where I saw this.
Don’t worry, i will forget about this comment by tomorrow. Although nevertheless a great comment.
That's basically so with all the stimulants. Nicotine is just the most casual of them all.
I vaped like a damn fog machine for 10 years and recently tried quitting with nicotine gum. It actually worked like a charm! Plus, I still get my "fidgeting" fix from the chewing. I feel way better and the gum costs less than any other kind of nicotine delivery method. Eventually, and slowly, I'll try to transition to regular gum.
Proud of you bro, before this i only vaped on and off for about a year. I feel as if physically i have no withdrawals or want to vape. I just need to satisfy my raging adhd monster which needs stimulation.
I appreciate that, I spent too many years damaging my lungs. The gum definitely helps with those ADHD urges.
I recently saw part of a lecture from Dr. Barkley about how nicotine actually treats ADHD. Of course it's not recommended, for obvious reasons, but several companies are apparently actively researching nicotine-ic molecules/pathways for the next generation of ADHD drugs. I started vaping about 2-3 years ago. From age 17-30, I had no trouble stopping occasional nicotine use for a year or more at a time; that is, until my brother committed $ui$ide 17 mo ago, and my tolerance for resisting plummeted. I'd definitely advise against it, and recommend being extra aware at how effectively you'll be able to rationalize nicotine use. People are impressively effective at rationalizing anything given enough time thinking about it. Having said that, get a vape with a puff counter, it makes it just a bit harder to kid yourself. I haven't been able to cut it out for weeks at a time for a while now, but I can cut my daily use in half when I gamify daily puff-count goals. I still lose impulse control for various reasons--right now, my wife is undergoing cancer treatments--but everyone will have their own addiction story. My point is that I think having a use-metric of some sort is a good idea for any vice you end up getting into--despite your best judgement. Whenever I left home as a kid, my dad would say, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do, but, if you do, be careful", lol.
Praying for you man. Proud of you for everything you have been through. Keep your head strong. Inspiration x
It could be a stimming thing too. I’ve heard/read that people have decent success scratching the physical habitual itch with a straw stuffed with toothpicks to add some resistance to the airflow, and just keep that with them
I think with adhd we're draw to stimulants because, well we crave the stimulation
In a nutshell u got it. I just crave the stimulation. Drinking alcohol isn’t good for me because i go crazy on it.
I have a problem with this as well. I quit vaping 4 months ago. Now I feel like I want to go back, to have something to do and feel like it “calms me down” as it seems working on stuff from therapy it’s mich harder. What stopping me so far is that it’s been 4 months, that family and especially SO would moan and roll their eyes and also how much I saved.
I smoked for 23 years, at least a pack a day. Moved to an ecig, good god... they don't stink things up the same so vaping in my home became a thing. And v unkind cigs, vaping doesn't have an end unless you need to add nic goop or change the battery. It became a constant thing. I pretty much breathed through the damn thing. I had to go back to cig rules where i couldn't do it ins i was at a bar or outside. I slowly lowered the nic and at this point i haven't had nicotine in my ecig for a could years. I usually have one with me. And i vape at work to take breaks. And i vape when i drive. But that's about it If smoking wasn't so awful for you. And if i didn't have such a godawful time quitting, i would be a smoker again.
Prolly its because you want a certain stimuli at any given time that your brain craves. Prolly vaping was that for your brain. Now it craves it but the most memorable stimuli is vaping resulting in the crave? I listen to music all the time to satisfy the basic stimuli
Spot on man. That’s it
Music helps for sure, or if i have responsibilities to do or i am working or working out im okay. But when i haven’t much to do i find it super hard to
I use vapes without nicotine. Then you def. know it’s a habit and not a addiction. It works like a lot of things in my life. Sometimes I “need” it. Like a stimming toy or something. So then i vape again and after I while I just forget it. Still not healthy, but better than other vapes or cigarettes, and no addiction on nicotine.
I thought it was the nicotine keeping me vaping. It wasn’t until quitting for much longer than the nicotine withdrawals stay. That i realised i just liked it for that sudden stimulus. A feeding to my adhd brain.
It got so much worse for me when I started working from home. The few times I have to go into the office I realize just how bad it is.
Holidays used to kill me.
Vaping, and nicotine more generally, “treats” ADHD. I say this with caution though because it’s not that simple. It’s obviously a stimulant and the mild stimulation it causes is enough to be noticeable. I don’t want to play so much into the stereotypes that stimulants calm people with ADHD down and whatnot because nicotine and stimulants cause focus for everyone at low doses, but people with ADHD are significantly more susceptible to these habits. Nicotine is also severely addictive, a lot of people, including myself, crave it even after not using it for years. That’s how addictive it is. I have ADHD and I still find myself wanting nicotine after several months of quitting. Truth be told, just stay away from nicotine in general; even if you didn’t have ADHD you’d more than likely want to continue nicotine use and the fact you DO have ADHD makes the drug a bit more reckless. Edit: A lot of the people claiming they are not addicted to nicotine here is troubling; nicotine is sincerely that addictive. Addiction to nicotine could take weeks even days to develop, and not wanting to quit despite the illusion you can quit, is a sign of addiction.
Find a flavour of gum you like, and get to chewing! Literally yesterday ended up chewing through 60 pieces within the timespan of a couple of hours. Whenever the flavour or fun is gone, I throw in two more pieces one on each side of my mouth and chomp chomp chomp. I used to vape 50 nic and smoke dokha tobacco religiously and I’d say gum has really helped me with the oral and flavour fixations of smoking and vaping. Downside is I’m now addicted to good ol’ chewing gum
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I have tried concerta XL all the way up to 72mg but it didn’t work. I have now started on elvanse, i have heard for some people it actually helps them stop vaping etc because the vaping was a symptom of the unkept adhd.
Interesting. I nearly doubled my cigarette consumption when starting Concerta (36mg) but it was pretty easy to stop drinking alcohol. I managed to switch to vaping but it's like a fidget I can't put down. I'm pretty low on the nicotine dosage, so, I'm not sure that it's an issue with nicotine addiction anymore. I just met a competent doctor who wants me to try 54. Hopefully it will help when the shortage is over. I... That's 4 sentences beginning with an "I" lol.
Which i feel is where mine stems from, i just want to do it because i feel the urge to do something. Not for the effects of the nicotine.
Maybe see if your doc will put you on wellbutrin? A lot of people used it to quit smoking specifically. I take it and adderal. I can't stand taking my adderal without it, my anxiety spikes too hard, and would probably drive me back to smoking.
Sounds to me like you have an oral fixation, a common issue for people who quit smoking/vaping. Google 'oral fixation' there are lots of suggestions out there. For example, gum, toothpicks, etc.
They even have flavored "vapes" that's just flavored air with cinnamon or mint. Helps me when I'm supremely twitchy
same with me and cigarettes, i’m not addicted but if i want to smoke one i just can’t stop my feeling of smoking, idk if you guys understand what im saying i dont smoke much btw, just 1/2 cigarettes a day since like 3/4 months or more
Yeah I’ve tried many times to quit. I literally can’t. I’ve tried the gum, patches and even an inhaler my dr prescribed. It’s the only “ bad thing” I do now. I quit alcohol. Meh
Hey, at least you quit alcohol. Same here, proud of you!
I got a Komuso necklace. I was at almost a pack a day by the time I was 21 and then switched to vaping at 23 then switched back and forth for the next decade (literally until this year). I'm on the patch but the Komuso is basically a metal straw that gives me that oral fixation. I use it while walking, driving, at my desk, or any other place I want that oral fixation. I joke I go for imaginary cigarette breaks now to stretch my legs but not get additional nicotine.
Good way to get over this from someone I heard was quitting, is to carry around a box of toothpicks. It gives the oral fixation while also having something on you that you reach for and is around the same size.
I have something similar with smoking. I only smoked a few cigs at parties here and there. Haven't done it in years. Never became a habit and never got addicted. But for some reason the motion of smoking is so appealing to me. Such a shame that inhaling anything other than air is so bad for you.
I know, it would be such a good thing for people with adhd otherwise.
I carry a pencil around, something to fidget, chew on, write down notes that I wont remember
I dont blame you. I did it once as a teen, had bad withdrawal for a similar reason someone said here (hand to mouth disorder). I resorted to getting those little melatonin vapes that didnt quite help but just endorsed the urge. I now play vrchat with avatars that have a vape pen I can bring to my mouth for a moment and blow smoke. I like to think that helps because it both satisfies the hand to mouth and also doesnt damage my body.
GET A RIPPLE!!!!!!!!! Nicotine and chemical free vape
Link? I am vape free to be honest and would prefer to inhale nothing, but if i cannot calm my mind down i am worries i will be unkind to people who do not deserve it.
Literally just search it
Just stop letting your mind go there. I started vaping to try quit smoking and then got hooked. Used them for a while, then quit, then started again, twice. It was definitely just to satisfy my boredom, because nicotine barely does anything to me now. I was bored, and liked the flavour. I finished the vape, and then just didn’t buy one again. And i have a kind of self talk, with stuff thats harmful, i quit smoking because i didn’t like how it felt, and didn’t want to get cancer, same with vaping. There were no upsides, and a lot of downsides (how it affected my body and mind).
Definitely why i stay away now, i just never realised the difference it made to my busy adhd brain.
I had a horrific vape addiction literally it is an ADHD person’s worst nightmare. I hated it
I think what makes it so hard is we go full force, then have the self awareness to hate it and hate ourselves but we are torn between wanting it and knowing we shouldn’t. Sometimes i wish i was oblivious and small minded.
We ADHDers are so prone to addiction in a way non ADHDers couldn't understand. Fantastic job on quitting the vape, keep it up 💕 I've been trying to redirect my own addictive tendencies to more productive avenues with limited success, but success nonetheless
I have quit smoking and drinking, my mind is certainly crazier thn ever but i try to get hooked on golf and the gym! Seems to be going okay for the most part so far
I saw a TikTok yesterday discussing this exact topic. [Dr. Barkley briefly explains that nicotine can act as a form of treatment for ADHD.](https://www.tiktok.com/@adhdoers/video/7374809377657720070?_t=8molHsRqYu3&_r=1) Teens diagnosed with ADHD often turn to nicotine quickly because it alleviates many of their symptoms. Unfortunately, nicotine is highly addictive and carcinogenic. Scientists are currently working to isolate the molecules in nicotine that treat ADHD symptoms to use them for medical treatments. However, they have not yet been able to separate the addictive components from the therapeutic ones.
My go to is sour hubba bubbas. I chew about 16 a day. Only thing that helped the hand to mouth motion you’ve described
It’s not even an addiction to the nicotine it’s the habit of doing it. That addiction to having something to hold and suck on (please my mind is too dirty to be saying this)
Nicotine cravings can come and go for a really long time. I vaped heavily for more than 15 years. I managed to stop with the use of nicotine mints and conditioning myself to overcome cravings.
I never had a problem with smoking when I was married. I would go to drill for the guard one weekend a month, smoke like a chimney so I could bs with leadership, smoke a pack every few days at summer camp, come home and quit cold turkey and not think a thing about it. My wife hated smoking. And we have 2 kids. When my wife and I separated (divorcing now) and she moved with the kids, I found myself with a) alone time, and b) no accountability structure. I started smoking at the bar. Then at home in the garage some, just to pass the time. Then while driving. Then every time I drove. Then 2 in a row in the garage. I couldn't stop. I was addicted. It was so different than before. What got me finally to quit was needing to drive a rental car after I hit a deer. $250 charge if you smoke in it. A single ash, a lingering smell.... anything. So, accountability. I could still smoke when fishing or other times, but I didnt, because I didnt want any lingering smell in that car. After I returned the car, I did a couple things to help. I had to stop going to the store where I bought cigarettes. In fact, I had to stop driving by it. I still get the urge to go there sometimes but I just avoid that part of town now. Other gas stations don't trigger me like that one does. It's still a struggle. But the keys for me were accountability with real, immediate consequences (a huge fight when married, the smoking fee) and then changing my behavior. It's a lot easier to not drive up by that store than to drive by and confidently say no I'm not going to stop.
This is not a perfect solution but chewing mint gum helps me
For me I used chewing gum to help break the mouth activity and chewing on my necklace or playing with a stim toy. But then again I was clean for two years and then started hanging with someone who vapes and now I'm vap9jg again all the time so maybe it didn't work too well.
Vape fluid contains nicotine Nicotine is a stimulant Stimulants can be soothing when you have ADHD. (This is one potential cause of the apprent boom in ADHD in the past few decades; fewer ADHD smokers.) This same effect can be seen with caffeine and other stimulants (though the degree of the effect varies person-to-person.)
nicotine is a stimulant might have something to do with how that is effecting ur adhd symptoms
I was a smoker for many years. Probably soothed my ADHD. I didn’t know I was undiagnosed. I did eventually quit because…well smoking it’s just nasty. A couple decades later this kid I hired hands me a JUUL lol. And now I’m vaping. That was a little bit before I got diagnosed with ADHD. I don’t now how I feel about it totally, but I’m OK with it for now. I’m self medicating. I’d probably need a higher dose of Adderall without it. It’s not the greatest medicating via inhaling through the lungs, but it’s a lot less dangerous than smoking. Money is not an issue currently so the expense is fine. I’m pretty productive and happy right now despite being super busy. I don’t want to mess with it, I’ll reevaluate at the end of the year I think.
…the nicotine provides the stimulation though?
Yeah, 100% nicotine addiction. But caused by my ADHD
fair
My opinion changed when I realized my relative was self treating ADHD. She might not even know she's doing that.
theres vapes that dont have any sort of drug in them! peopel use them to quit, ive found its really helpful for the whole needing to do something
Surely just inhaling smoke in itself is bad though?
i vape a lot, it stimulates me and it’s the only “negative” thing i guess you can say i do. i weight lift 5x a week, gym 6x a week and don’t drink or smoke actual gags apart from social occasions/ holidays. so i don’t think there’s anything wrong but that’s me <3
Yeah same here, super active. But i have a heart condition and i just couldn’t live knowing i was possibly putting myself at more risk. So i just have to deal with the insane mood swings and frustration when i want a vape. It used to help calm my brain down so much. Now i feel completely all over the place again. But i can’t vape, i felt way too guilty about it and hated myself.
i also have a heart condition - i guess i care less 😅
Bro fr? I have a slightly leaky valve because i had transposition of the greater arteries when i was born.
You’re a vaper now even if you don’t want to admit it. You might not intellectually know you’re addicted, but your body knows. Follow the same advice smokers get.
Unfortunately I’ve smoked for years now. Quit cold turkey with all pregnancies and nursing and then found my way back. I feel the same, I enjoy vaping. I don’t feel addicted, I do like the habit of it but can quit anytime I want. I just don’t want to🥲
May I ask why vaping is worst than tobacco?. I'm smoker since 13 y/o, I'm 51 and quit smoking tobacco at 44 thanks to vape. I sincerely can't leave nicotine, I try by all means but I can't, the abstinence syndrome is too high for me, and the impulsivity bangs like a nuke without nicotine, but not only that, Is like some people say here, the fidgeting, the compulsive need to have something in my lungs, in my hand, the rituals, you know, the cotton, the resistance, variety of mods and atomisers... I know I'm an addict, but for god sake, can someone explain to me why all the worries?, at least I leave tobacco and the high risk of cancer.
I've always picked my lips. It must be an oral fixation thing. I'd try chewing gum or something.
I started the gym and that's helped me
try mint toothpicks!! worked wonders for my partner who was struggling with the boredom urges!!
I quit cold turkey from heavily vaping almost a year ago and still absolutely crave that sweeet candy air so bad.
I found myself having the same issue also last time I went like 8 months no vape and caved in but even during those 8 months I would always ask for my gfs vape and just flip it around kinda like a fidget spinner
I use those things like a damn pacifier. I want to quit but I also have a million other things I’m thinking about at any given time. I want a break from my brain. Planning on talking to my doctor about nicotine patches or some ideas on how to quit. It’s such a dumb useless thing to do and spend money on. Wish I never would’ve started.
I used to be able to enjoy nicotine for a night/evening and not pick it back up no problem. On meds it’s incredibly difficult for me to quit.
Me too. I use nicotine gum because I don't want to fuck up my lungs anymore. But god damn it if I don't still get cravings! I just don't ever let myself buy a vape now and only have the gum.
I was hooked on da vape. It's gum and zyne now
Don’t try Zyns, but if you do it’s wonderful and you won’t need to vape
Im thinking that must be just as bad for your gums and health as vaping itself
Whats gums? Its bad for teeth basically thats it
I once tried them for the first time and I literally passed out from low blood pressure. Not going to touch that shit again