Nicotine and Me

I was a heavy smoker for almost thirty years.

Three decades of a twenty to thirty a day habit. That's over a quarter of a million cigarettes! I tried to quit many times and as anyone who has tried to quit cigarettes knows -it's bloody difficult.

I'd managed three months a few times, a year a couple of times. I got pretty fat whenever I gave up as my brain seemed to confuse nicotine cravings with hunger. My best was three years. It took just one really bad, really stressful day at work and I was back to a whole pack a day by the following week.

I tried vaping a few times too. The early "cloud chaser" vapes made me physically sick. "Maybe you have too much nicotine" people would say. Trust me -I know what that feels like  there was something else in that juice that made me sick as a dog and dried my throat out.

I was more successful a few years later and I did manage 100% to get off the tobacco which was great. After about a year, the euphoria of this fact wore off somewhat and after feeling a few strange side effects including chest pains and shortness of breath (which I never even had with smoking), I was left with some nagging doubts about what was actually in the concoctions I was vaporising and breathing into my lungs. But it was still many multitudes better for me than smoking.

The first time I ever tried tobacco "snus" was a few years ago in a pub in Brighton. There were some Swedish guys on a table next to us and one of them asked our group if we knew anywhere he could buy snus. Tobacco snus has been illegal to sell in the UK for a while so of course, we didn't know anywhere. But he let me try one, albeit with the warning that I might find it quite strong. Well, he wasn't wrong! It was quite intense and made me feel quite light headed. A bit like your first cigarette after a long haul flight -and I didn't need my vape for several hours afterwards. It was tobacco so it also tasted of tobacco (and aniseed I think) and stained my saliva and stung my throat somewhat -but I still quite liked it and thought it could be a good way to get off the vape if only it was available here.

A couple of years later and I asked a friend who was going to Stockholm for work to bring me back a few cans of snus. When I eventually picked them up there was an assortment of traditional tobacco snus but one of the cans was white. It was a can of Skruf Superwhite Cassice and when I opened it up I was struck by the wonderful smell and surprised to see that the pouches inside were completely white. Most of writing on the can was in Swedish but after some online research I discovered that this was a new type of snus that was completely tobacco free. After the first day of using them, I knew I would be needing some more. After a bit more research I found out that being tobacco free, they were legal in the UK. I managed to order some online from a Swedish company and about a week later I had a months supply!

That was back in 2019 and I have not vaped or smoked since. I've tried a wide range of brands, strengths and flavours. It wasn't difficult. It's a bit like switching from smoking to vaping -after switching, you lose interest in the thing that previously had such a hold over you. And I love that I no longer need to worry about charging batteries and all that nonsense. And as an added bonus -I can use nicotine pouches wherever I like as nobody will even know. Cinemas and flights are all the more enjoyable for it.

So I still enjoy using nicotine. But being free from inhaling nicotine whether in smoke or vape form has had a really positive impact on my life. I've hugely improved my fitness. I enjoy cycling, snowboarding and hockey. My lungs feel clear and light. My own experience with tobacco free nicotine pouches and that of many of my friends and family members gave me an urge to share these products to a wider audience so I decided to set up Nic Pouch UK.

I hope you enjoy nicotine pouches as much I do!

Cheers!

Tim