Teenage nicotine addiction is rampant. We just saw our first client whose history of nicotine use involved ONLY Juul. For those of you not familiar, Juul is a small vape device that resembles a flash drive and delivers flavored, vaporized, nicotine-packed hits to the brain. For some time we have been seeing adult smokers who have converted to electronic devices to help them quit without success, but never someone whose nicotine addiction was created initially by an electronic device. I’m afraid this is the new face of nicotine addiction, and today’s face was only 18 years old.
The mother of the 18-year old Juul user called this morning to make an appointment for her son. She indicated that her son approached her about wanting help with quitting, so she made an appointment. At his appointment, I asked the young man how he discovered that he had a problem with Juuling and he began telling me about an afternoon in which he was unable to go on rides or enjoy the fair because of a headache and poor mood. He went on to describe his need to leave the group in search of someone at the fair who also Juuls, since neither he or his friends had brought the nicotine-delivery devices with them. He located another Juuler who was generous enough with his stash to share and, Voila! Headache no more. That was the moment the young man recognized he was addicted to nicotine.
The stories I heard from the teen and his parents are no different from the alarming things on the news about teenage vaping. There is a clear surge of young adults using/abusing electronic nicotine devices (eCigarettes, Vape Pens, Juul). It was even more disturbing to hear about the experiences from the young individuals standing right in front of me. Experimentation with nicotine via electronic devices is more discreet and more potent than cigarettes. These are two reasons why more users will become physically dependent compared with traditional combustible cigarettes of earlier generations.
This new population of customers will require a slightly different approach. Until now, most of our customers are quitting smoking to gain acceptance among peers. In the case of the 18-year old, quitting means losing acceptance among his peers. I don’t believe a Tobacco Treatment Specialist is the right professional to help with this aspect of the epidemic. However, I will work to identify how my skills can better support younger customers. Parents are being caught by surprise by the devastating effects of a nicotine dependency and the behavioral issues that come along with it. Effective treatment should probably include a mental health professional with experience in adolescent drug use.
