In a world where people who never liked smoking in the first place have fallen under the nicotine trap of sweet, sugary flavours that can be whipped out at any point, as this new nicotine trend has affected everyone almost all around the world, I thought it would be interesting to discuss how relationships have been impacted by vaping and everything that comes with it. As a person who has been involved in a relationship between vaping and non-vaping, I feel qualified enough to discuss all the things that are different in this aspect of my relationships.
While everyone’s experience is unique, that is not to say your current relationship is negative in any way, but there are definitely some points in here that are worth considering, or even worth a discussion with your partner about how this habit is impacting your relationship.
Overall, my relationship with vaping has been short and sweet in comparison to others when they were first introduced. My habit started at university and ended with the university a quick couple of years later, but I found that everyone I surrounded myself with at that age and in those environments always had a vape in their hand and if they didn’t, they were snatching it out of yours after a go. So it goes without saying that when I did date, they were vapers and enjoyed it beyond just socialising and drinking, or even to relax after work.
I quickly began to realise that vaping affected both my mental and physical health. I would wake up tired and I would stay tired the entire day. With little to no breaks from vaping throughout the day, all I could do in the comfort of my own home was sit, watch telly and, you guessed it, vape. I became so tired as a result that my life just felt like it was passing by and I didn’t have the energy to do anything. I noticed a huge difference in my mood, motivation and relationships when I began to take a step back from nicotine and it did wonders for me.
But enough about me for a second, I want to discuss how exactly my vaping habits affected my relationships so let’s dive right in.
Here Are Way’s Vaping Can Affect Your Relationship
Partner’s Health
If your partner isn’t really into the whole smoking and vaping debacle, filling up their personal space with your vapour and second-hand smoke can still, in fact, impact their lung and throat health. This can, in turn, cause them to feel fatigued, have sore throats and potential breathing problems. In cases where a partner might have a medical condition such as asthma or cystic fibrosis, this is extremely serious.Â
The last thing you should want to do is put your partner’s health at risk and therefore, you should keep your vaping habits away from them unless they have explicitly said they do not mind. Although you need to make sure they aren’t swishing down their needs to suit you, in a sense, I find it more selfish to expose people to secondhand smoke if they aren’t smokers. When it comes to vaping, you can almost do it everywhere without the impact of stinking up a room or your clothes so it’s gotten to the point where vapers are doing it everywhere they so please, which shouldn’t be the case. You should always put your partner’s needs before your own when it comes to secondhand smoke; therefore, when you are in their presence, you could try smoke-free solutions such as nicopods or patches, which seems like a fair compromise.
Financial Strain
Especially during the current economic crisis and for couples, families and so on, there can be struggles with money. Therefore, during times of need and the last week before payday, you tend to be much stricter with your money. If your partner wants to eat out or wants you to pick up the bill once in a while and you refuse, that could create some strain. They will see you pulling out of your pocket for this harmful nicotine addiction but you are not willing to go the extra mile for them.
This can also be the reason why people are struggling until the end of the month. Buying into their bad habits and then still struggling to pay for the rest can be unattractive to a partner and could lead to arguments about budgeting and money management. While this habit isn’t all and end-all, it’s very hard for people who aren’t addicts to understand or even sympathise with so many solutions to the problem.
General Disagreements
Whether you’ve always been a smoker or you’ve just recently decided to pick up this bad habit. This could create general arguments or disagreements about the topic of vaping. It might be something they’ve never wanted in a partner or they’re just really passionate about the side effects of this bad habit.
They’ve said that vaping can lead to a lot more than just laziness and a bad cough and I never see this as a control thing if this is a more than once-a-day bad habit. Either way, this could create problems down the road. Hence, you really need to get your priorities in order and truly evaluate whether vaping is more important than the relationship. If that’s the case, then fine, other people enjoy his habit as much as you do.
Cause Resentment
Over time, alongside the general disagreements, this might cause your partner to slowly start resenting you. It’s always hard to explain to a partner that you are worried about their health, that you don’t like something or that, as a whole, it’s affecting your relationship. If still nothing has changed after these discussions, it could be a straight path towards the end, and as blunt as that sounds, it’s the truth. Some people can look past things and others are stuck in their ways so it could be the route to a whole relationship’s demise.Â
As vaping isn’t entirely like smoking, it’s still a sister of it and has huge health, environmental and social impacts. As it’s a whole new phenomenon and more and more research is discussing the new impacts it’s having, I do not blame others for not wanting to be with a vaping partner, and that’s not too silly for those who vape out and do it occasionally on a weekend, which is the same as drinking in my eyes, although an everyday vaper is the same, if not worse than an everyday smoker.
How Do I Mention This To Your Partner?
If you are wondering if you should stay with your partner or how you can bring it up, it’s generally the way you’d bring up difficult conversations. Try to understand where the habit comes from and get down to where you fall on their priorities. Bring it up as early as possible and put your boundaries all on the table.Â
Taking the necessary steps forward could prevent a lot of these negative effects in your relationship and as everyone says, communication is key. Try not to insult your partner or turn it into a lecture; this can come across as patronising and push them in the opposite direction. Focus on your feelings and why exactly vaping isn’t something you want to be around in your relationship. This could end well or it could take a few conversations for you both to realise where you are and where the relationship stands as a whole.
Final Thoughts
Bringing up tough conversations can be hard but it’s completely necessary, as the last thing you want is a difficult relationship due to your partner’s addiction to vaping. Find some common ground, as there will be a million ways to get around this.
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