e-Cigarette Explodes and catches fire (again...)

 Oklahoma City - Cold Turkey may yet prove to be the safest way to stop smoking.  At least that how it's going to go for Theressa Chastka who's e-cigarette blew up when she plugged it in to charge up.  Theressa says her e-cigarette could have killed her after it exploded and sparked a small fire in her home.

“The battery shot out and hit the wall,” she said.  Notice the damage left behind after the explosion and small fire.  It left her wall charred, carpet singed and disintegrated part of the device.

One thing that can cause this is using the wrong charger but Chastka won't be using an e-cigarette anymore to kick the habit.  She says she’s better off going cold turkey.

“It’s going to hurt somebody or kill somebody,” Chastka said. “If I would have plugged it in and left, the house would have burned down.”

OK, so here we go...  this is the second time I've reported on the exploding e-cigarette.  Last February the same thing happened to Tom Holloway when his e-cig blew up in his face.  Theressa was lucky, Tom lost a couple teeth on that deal.

So, here's the deal, smokers and soon to be non-smokers AND you guys and gals going to the e-cigarette.  Healthier alternative to smoking aside, you're only prolonging the inevitable which is a one-on-one no holds barred death match with nicotine.  Why would you want to replace nicotine anyway?  Ultimately it's a poison and you don't need it to feel happy or satisfied or relaxed or what ever it's done for you.  You have the power to feel that way on your own.  The question is, are you willing to use that power and let the real you out?

Dear, Theressa - good for you!  Cold Turkey is the way to go and I want to help!  If you see this message, I'd like you to get a copy of my book, How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone on me.  This will have everything you've ever needed to kick the habit!  How would you like to say, "I haven't had a cigarette in 11 years?"  That's what I said this May.  My book will show you how I did it and how you can too.

Sometimes Trying To Quit Smoking Can Blow Up In Your Face (literally)

Imagine enjoying a cigarette after a nice meal with your wife and suddenly BOOM!  The cigarette blows up on you!  Teeth get knocked out, parts of your face are charred and some of your tongue is missing.  You wind up in a burn center...

Well this is what happened to Tom Holloway earlier this week when his e-cigarette lit up like a bottle rocket on the 4th of July, shooting across his home office, starting a small fire and leaving him severely injured.

While this is rare and should never happen to anyone...  allow me to observe that the injuries Mr. Holloway received as a result of him trying to quit with an e-cigarette would have happened either way.  Meaning what?  All this e-cigarette exploding did was speed up the process.

• Cigarette smoking is a known cause and trigger of periodontal disease which results in receding gums, bone loss and eventually tooth loss.  So his teeth were coming out one way or another...

• Tobacco smoking is one of the leading causes of oral cancer and the first step in fixing that is tissue removal.

• Smoking also speeds up the aging process.  You know how meat and fish get smoked?  Consider that and then look at a heavy smokers face...

Seem insensitive?  Sometimes a reality smack down is in order...

Look, here's what set me off: 

"Holloway, a Vietnam veteran, photographer and father of three, reportedly stopped smoking two years ago and turned to e-cigarettes to kick the habit."

This came from ABCNews.com.  What the hell are they talking about?  Kick what habit?  He didn't kick anything!  Jeffrey Wigand put it best when he deemed a cigarette "a delivery device for nicotine."  Mr Holloway simply had not kicked anything and because of switching delivery devices, damn near kicked the bucket sooner than if he'd have simply continued to smoke regular cigarettes!

They did redeem themselves later though when they said, "Electronic cigarettes have become a popular crutch for many who have quit smoking" 

To which I say, here, here!  The e-cigarette is just that.  A crutch.  At some point you will need to go it alone and stop!

So what did we learn today?  E-cigarettes are just as dangerous (if not more so) then regular cigarettes and sooner or later you're going to have to go cold turkey.  Stopping smoking is like pulling off a band-aid.  It's no fun either way, but it's better to do it fast and get on with it.

Need help ripping off the band-aid?  Try my book!  Get your copy at www.stopdontquit.com or on this blog!