Fu**ing Vapes

[frecklejuice]

I’m so sick of fucking vape companies making this shit so attractive to teenagers, how is it allowed? I know teenagers need to take responsibility for themselves but it’s just there in their face in every shop and everyone is doing it.

My 16 year old promised me he would never do and I stupidly believed him but Wednesday night I found a vape in his room. I lost my shit at him for lying and being an idiot. The vape is now in the bin and he is grounded for a week but has been warned it will be longer next time I catch him.

I asked if it was cigarettes then would he do it because “everyone else is” and he said no because cigarettes are disgusting which just proves my point that vapes are too attractive to kids.

How the hell do we stop kids doing it?

Not even sure what my aibu is!

100% agree with you OP.
You're being a good parent - which I don't think can be said about everyone on here.

for those that think it’s not harmful
https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/e-cigarettes/health-effects.html
https://www.nuffieldhealth.com/article/vaping-side-effects-health-risks
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9584749/

If he wants to try it he will. If you punish him he will resent you and get better at hiding it. The only rational response to this is to have grown up conversations (not a lecture) with him until hopefully he decides he doesn’t want to do it and then support him with that, ie brainstorming why he does it and what strategies might help him resist. You’ve probably fucked it by punishing him, it would take a huge amount of work for him to trust you and respect your input now, and he’s steaming ahead towards 18 at a speed you don’t seem to comprehend

That link is very reassuring about the lack of harm from vaping. Thank you.

Is the harm in the room with us now?

So do we not punish our kids for fear of them resenting us? Me and my son have a great relationship and yes he probably will do it again but while he is still a child I’ll make my feelings clear. We are sitting watching tv together at the moment so I’m pretty sure he isn’t resenting me.

I think posters are suggesting that you can make your feelings clear in ways that don’t involve such childish punishments.

I get that it’s disappointing and frustrating. I’d be angry too (even though I vape myself). But I just think grounding a 16 year old is a bit daft and probably counter productive.

and driving it underground, I didn’t just say he would resent you

I’m with you OP. I’d go crazy. It’s a dangerous, disgusting, expensive and hugely addictive habit. Any parent who thinks it’s a bit of harmless teen experimentation is delusional.

The fact that adults think vapes are OK but cigarettes aren’t, just proves how clever the marketing has been, and also sadly how stupid some parents are.

What’s stupid about it? The NHS recommends them because they are safer than smoking. Obviously not applicable to a teen who has never smoked before but there’s nothing stupid about saying they are better than fags.

Thing is that when you are trying to give up smoking, people almost invariably crave things like sweets and other intense flavours even if they'd never touch them ordinarily. And the inhalers and patches don't do anything to help that, but a flavoured vape, whilst it still isn't the same/as good as the sensations that taking the first drag on a cigarette, are better than those. That extra flavour makes it more likely for them to have a couple of puffs and put it away rather than smoking a whole cigarette and to keep on having a vape instead of buying a packet of 20 again - and after a couple of weeks, the taste of a standard cigarette is not as appealing anymore.

Take away the flavours, take away the ease of accessing them in a place where it could be 20-40 years of saying 'and a packet of...' and fewer people will successfully stay off cigarettes.

Vaping litter everywhere is terrible. There must be a direct correlation between people/children who vape and people who are prepared to wander around the world knee deep in chemicals, plastic and electronic parts.

The absolute worst thing is to overreact to kids doing stuff like this.

All you'll likely succeed in doing is making them much better at hiding it, and not talking to you if they do experiment with something, drink too much etc., and it goes wrong and they need to come home or need your help.

I’m surprised you can see the TV screen through the clouds of noxious gas that your son’s lungs must still be pumping out.

What about the cat? Has that keeled over yet? And I’d imagine the wallpaper must be peeling away after the mustard gas attack your son has brought into your home.

When I was a teenager in the mid-late 80’s, snus was all the rage with the popular, ice-hockey playing boys (I grew up in Scandinavia). They could stuff it under their top lip and have a continuous release whilst in the lessons. I still remember how rank it smelt when you got close enough their mouth . Even back then it was known snus can cause cancer but when you’re 16, it certainly won’t be you…

Get suspended at our local schools if you get caught vaping. Horrible things. So many more teens vaping than smoking. Why market something so addictive to teens when the point of vaping was to help people stop smoking. But must kids vaping would never have smoked

Chemicals, plastic and electronic parts also includes laptops, phones, cars, furniture, televisions, covid facemasks and food/toiletries/cleaning goods/feminine hygiene products bought from supermarkets.

Maybe ownership of a car (because it's an essential adult skill, apparently, according to hundreds of threads) directly correlates to being happy for the same.

Why are you taking my hatred of vapes so personally? I don’t have a cat or wallpaper so we are all good thanks, glad I’m not in your house though with all the shit you’re talking.

I agree. Capes were originally licensed as a tool for giving up smoking, but they are flavoured like fruit pastels (and alcopops) which must be to attract younger users. They should be flavourless or should have a medicinal taste.

There is no way my son and his friends would be smoking cigarettes but vaping massively appeals to them because of the flavours and because everyone does it then it’s obviously “cool” 🙄 they are hugely marketed at teens and it shouldn’t be allowed.

Why are you taking replies to your hatred of vapes so personally?

Vapes are not Satan’s Breath. Calm down.

I've just explained why that would make using them less successful for cigarette smokers.

I don’t think that is a good reason though. The dangers associated with making them taste like penny sweets are far greater than any reduction in addicted smokers succeeding in quitting. Child protection must always come first. They are clearly being flavoured to create child addicts. It needs to stop.

PS
So they can get their sweet hit from actual sweets, or sugar free gum. Whatever floats their boat, but not nicotine laden vapes.

But people don't generally chuck used laptops, phones, cars, furniture, televisions and food/toiletries/cleaning goods/feminine hygiene products down on the pavement in the same volume they do vape litter.

I'm part of a litter picking group and it's a huge part of what we pick up.