Often when thinking about smoking, people consider the physical impact. This may include the nausea and headaches triggered by nicotine withdrawal. Alternatively, the boost in energy or decreased chance of heart attacks caused by quitting smoking may come to mind. But have you considered the importance of psychology, and how the brain reinforces smoking?
How Smoking Leads to Nicotine Dependency
The reason people start smoking varies from person to person. Many young people begin smoking as a result of their friends or family already smoking. This can be linked to social learning theory, which suggests that young people imitate the observed behaviours their role models carry out. Subsequently, smoking may be positively reinforced by the short-term effect of nicotine, respect from friends or other reinforcers. Eventually reinforcement and the addictive nature of smoking leads to a dependency on nicotine.
Overcoming the withdrawal from nicotine is a huge hurdle when trying to stop smoking. This highly addictive stimulant activates receptors in the brain, which then release dopamine. The positive feeling this causes leads to addiction, with the brain eventually craving and becoming dependent on a certain level of nicotine intake. When the brain does not receive the quantity of nicotine it has become accustomed to numerous side effects occur. These may include:
Irritability
Anxiety
Sweating
Craving nicotine
Headaches
Insomnia
Although nicotine can cause an array of withdrawal symptoms, it is other ingredients in cigarettes which are capable of causing devastating health repercussions. Shockingly, more than70 of the chemicalsin cigarette smoke are linked to cancer. Therefore, quit methods still contain nicotine, while excluding the other toxic chemicals. As the body becomes more tolerant to nicotine, smokers tend to increase the quantity of cigarettes they smoke. The short-term dopamine boost caused by the nicotine creates a positive feeling. However, the long-term impact can be extremely harmful as the intake of these deadly chemicals increases. Before we discuss the psychology of vaping, let’s look deeper into what causes people to continue smoking.
What are Habitual and Psychological Addiction?
Psychological Addiction
Alongside nicotine dependence, smoking can cause psychological dependence. Smokers who experience this tend to feel more relaxed once they have had a cigarette. Their stress is alleviated and they have improved focus.Research shows thats smoking tobacco without nicotine can alleviate cravings and symptoms of withdrawal. This highlights the psychological aspect of smoking and the significance of the action of smoking.
Habitual Addiction
For many, smoking cigarettes plays a significant role in their day. Whether it’s with a cup of coffee or while on the phone, these cues may automatically trigger the desire to have a cigarette. In a similar vain to psychological addiction, people may find comfort in this habit. When quitting smoking this can be a sometimes unexpected obstacle to overcome. Bad habits are said to be hard to break, undoubtably they are even harder when experiencing the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal.
Why Vaping is Effective to Quit Smoking?
There are numerous methods people choose to quit smoking. From going cold turkey, to nicotine spray the options are available to chose between. But which is the most effective option? It’s worth stating that this can differ depending on the person.
A 2019 clinical trialfound that e-cigarettes alongside expert face-to-face support was twice as effective than other nicotine replacement products. Can psychology explain why vaping may be so effective?
Well, let’s think back to the concept of habitual addiction. Despite products such as patches containing nicotine, they completely eliminate the action of smoking. This may be difficult for smokers who find the action of smoking to be an important part of their day. So much so, this could prevent them from continuing the challenging process of quitting.
Replicating Hand-to-Mouth Action
Vaping allows smokers to continue the hand-to-mouth action and sensations associated with smoking. Therefore allowing for a more gradual removal of nicotine and the formed habit. In turn, the process of quitting seems more achievable. The physical, hand-to-mouth action of smoking is almost identically replicated with a vape. Smokers are able to seamlessly recreate the action of smoking while eliminating the toxic, harmful chemicals in cigarettes.
Pod devices are increasingly popular among people looking to quit smoking, as they facilitate the habitual action associated with smoking. They also offer a a compact, easy-to-use and convenient option. Manufacturers of vaping products are becoming increasingly aware the importance of replicating the hand-to-mouth action of smoking. So much so, that products such as the Quawins Vstick Pro Pod Kit go one step further. This vape device has the addition of filters, perfectly duplicating the mouth feel of a cigarette.
Recreating Taste and Inhalation
The recreation of smoking associations doesn’t stop there. The availability of vapeE-liquidsin flavours that resemble that of tobacco can be useful for those who are trying to quit. Along with the action of smoking, taste and smell are a noticeable part of the learned association. Consequently, the inhalation of vapour paired with the familiar taste adds significantly to the overall experience.
Collectively, these aspects play a notable role in the success of vaping when used to quit smoking. Are you a smoker? If yes, maybe this using a vape could work for you!
Are you thinking of quitting smoking? Use our chat function to talk to a vape expert or look at ourStarter Vape Kits.
Need help with anything vape related or have a question about our products? Click the button in the bottom-right corner to chat with one of our UK-based vape experts and get real-time advice by speaking to an actual human.
Can psychology explain smoking and how vaping can help you quit?
Often when thinking about smoking, people consider the physical impact. This may include the nausea and headaches triggered by nicotine withdrawal. Alternatively, the boost in energy or decreased chance of heart attacks caused by quitting smoking may come to mind. But have you considered the importance of psychology, and how the brain reinforces smoking?
How Smoking Leads to Nicotine Dependency
The reason people start smoking varies from person to person. Many young people begin smoking as a result of their friends or family already smoking. This can be linked to social learning theory, which suggests that young people imitate the observed behaviours their role models carry out. Subsequently, smoking may be positively reinforced by the short-term effect of nicotine, respect from friends or other reinforcers. Eventually reinforcement and the addictive nature of smoking leads to a dependency on nicotine.
Overcoming the withdrawal from nicotine is a huge hurdle when trying to stop smoking. This highly addictive stimulant activates receptors in the brain, which then release dopamine. The positive feeling this causes leads to addiction, with the brain eventually craving and becoming dependent on a certain level of nicotine intake. When the brain does not receive the quantity of nicotine it has become accustomed to numerous side effects occur. These may include:
Although nicotine can cause an array of withdrawal symptoms, it is other ingredients in cigarettes which are capable of causing devastating health repercussions. Shockingly, more than 70 of the chemicals in cigarette smoke are linked to cancer. Therefore, quit methods still contain nicotine, while excluding the other toxic chemicals. As the body becomes more tolerant to nicotine, smokers tend to increase the quantity of cigarettes they smoke. The short-term dopamine boost caused by the nicotine creates a positive feeling. However, the long-term impact can be extremely harmful as the intake of these deadly chemicals increases. Before we discuss the psychology of vaping, let’s look deeper into what causes people to continue smoking.
What are Habitual and Psychological Addiction?
Psychological Addiction
Alongside nicotine dependence, smoking can cause psychological dependence. Smokers who experience this tend to feel more relaxed once they have had a cigarette. Their stress is alleviated and they have improved focus. Research shows thats smoking tobacco without nicotine can alleviate cravings and symptoms of withdrawal. This highlights the psychological aspect of smoking and the significance of the action of smoking.
Habitual Addiction
For many, smoking cigarettes plays a significant role in their day. Whether it’s with a cup of coffee or while on the phone, these cues may automatically trigger the desire to have a cigarette. In a similar vain to psychological addiction, people may find comfort in this habit. When quitting smoking this can be a sometimes unexpected obstacle to overcome. Bad habits are said to be hard to break, undoubtably they are even harder when experiencing the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal.
Why Vaping is Effective to Quit Smoking?
There are numerous methods people choose to quit smoking. From going cold turkey, to nicotine spray the options are available to chose between. But which is the most effective option? It’s worth stating that this can differ depending on the person.
A 2019 clinical trial found that e-cigarettes alongside expert face-to-face support was twice as effective than other nicotine replacement products. Can psychology explain why vaping may be so effective?
Well, let’s think back to the concept of habitual addiction. Despite products such as patches containing nicotine, they completely eliminate the action of smoking. This may be difficult for smokers who find the action of smoking to be an important part of their day. So much so, this could prevent them from continuing the challenging process of quitting.
Replicating Hand-to-Mouth Action
Vaping allows smokers to continue the hand-to-mouth action and sensations associated with smoking. Therefore allowing for a more gradual removal of nicotine and the formed habit. In turn, the process of quitting seems more achievable. The physical, hand-to-mouth action of smoking is almost identically replicated with a vape. Smokers are able to seamlessly recreate the action of smoking while eliminating the toxic, harmful chemicals in cigarettes.
Pod devices are increasingly popular among people looking to quit smoking, as they facilitate the habitual action associated with smoking. They also offer a a compact, easy-to-use and convenient option. Manufacturers of vaping products are becoming increasingly aware the importance of replicating the hand-to-mouth action of smoking. So much so, that products such as the Quawins Vstick Pro Pod Kit go one step further. This vape device has the addition of filters, perfectly duplicating the mouth feel of a cigarette.
Recreating Taste and Inhalation
The recreation of smoking associations doesn’t stop there. The availability of vape E-liquids in flavours that resemble that of tobacco can be useful for those who are trying to quit. Along with the action of smoking, taste and smell are a noticeable part of the learned association. Consequently, the inhalation of vapour paired with the familiar taste adds significantly to the overall experience.
Collectively, these aspects play a notable role in the success of vaping when used to quit smoking. Are you a smoker? If yes, maybe this using a vape could work for you!
Are you thinking of quitting smoking? Use our chat function to talk to a vape expert or look at our Starter Vape Kits.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________