A Little Bummed

[shells]

So, this is the third day in a row I've gotten sick from smoking my new and first hookah. Not just a headache, but makes me light-headed/nauseous/puking sick. I know, gross.

It's sort of turning me off from smoking hookah. I have smoked hookah with friends, and haven't had this happen.

My boyfriend has smoked from the same hookah, same shisha, and doesn't get sick. He also smokes cigarettes regularly (or used to), and has no problems at all. I've smoked two different brands of shisha: Romman and Starbuzz. I just don't understand how I didn't have this problem before, but now I do. I understand that my tolerance might be low, is there any shisha that might not give me an intense buzz?

I would like to be able to enjoy smoke-time, especially with my boyfriend, and not turn the experience into a drag.

I'm also having problems getting thick smoke clouds, instead I am getting hardly any smoke. I tried to check for leaks by exhaling into the hose, and there was a bit of smoke coming from the heart (?), where one of the valve nodules are. The thing is, it's on as tight as it can be. Sorry if that's confusing, I'm trying my best to explain.

Any suggestions?

[rahl071]

How often are you inhaling? if you don't take enough cleansing breaths between pulls you can actually get CO poisoning I think, which has the symptoms you're talking about. When you were smoking with friends you probably weren't hitting it as hard/heavy. Next time, try to be conscious of how often you hit.

Next, try other brands. some people have had problems with dyed shisha.


Generally, less clouds equals insufficient heat. what kind of coals/how many of them are you using?

Finally, what kind of pipe is it?

[Tom1]

Clean your hookah thoroughly.
Switch to a washed shisha.
Use natural coals and make sure they are fully lit all the way around.
Make sure you aren't smoking with a rusty hose.
Make sure you're packing your bowl all the way, if you're underpacking the bowl it can give you a headache.

Try this list out and if all goes well, it should fix your problem.

[Arcane]

1. Smoke more. You're probably not used to nicotine, your dude is. Which is why you're getting sick and he's not.

2. If there's smoke coming from ANYWHERE but the purge valve when purging or the top of the bowl, you have a leak. If it's coming from the base, hose port, stem...it's a leak. Also, you'll want to polish your packing techniques and heat mgmt, which can be done by following Step 1.

[shells]

[quote name='rahl071' date='09 May 2010 - 10:38 AM' timestamp='1273430300' post='467337']
How often are you inhaling? if you don't take enough cleansing breaths between pulls you can actually get CO poisoning I think, which has the symptoms you're talking about. When you were smoking with friends you probably weren't hitting it as hard/heavy. Next time, try to be conscious of how often you hit.

Next, try other brands. some people have had problems with dyed shisha.


Generally, less clouds equals insufficient heat. what kind of coals/how many of them are you using?

Finally, what kind of pipe is it?
[/quote]

I start feeling nauseous/light-headed after about the fourth pull.

I was using golden instant-light coals, and I was only using one coal, and smoking with this hookah:

Mya Gyro

http://www.hookah-shisha.com/p-1742-mya-saray-hookah-gyro-2-hose-hookah.html

[quote name='Tom16689' date='09 May 2010 - 10:52 AM' timestamp='1273431133' post='467339']
Clean your hookah thoroughly.
Switch to a washed shisha.
Use natural coals and make sure they are fully lit all the way around.
Make sure you aren't smoking with a rusty hose.
Make sure you're packing your bowl all the way, if you're underpacking the bowl it can give you a headache.

Try this list out and if all goes well, it should fix your problem.
[/quote]

It shouldn't be rusty, is it's new, but I think I could be underpacking the bowl. Thanks for the heads up.

[quote name='Arcane' date='09 May 2010 - 11:03 AM' timestamp='1273431798' post='467342']
1. Smoke more. You're probably not used to nicotine, your dude is. Which is why you're getting sick and he's not.

2. If there's smoke coming from ANYWHERE but the purge valve when purging or the top of the bowl, you have a leak. If it's coming from the base, hose port, stem...it's a leak. Also, you'll want to polish your packing techniques and heat mgmt, which can be done by following Step 1.
[/quote]

Not being used to nicotine could be it. I just have no idea why I didn't get sick with friends and am now. Like rahl071 said, it could be because I'm not taking enough cleansing breaths.

And the leak seems to be coming from where one of the hose ports is, not where the adapter is, but one that is closed off.



Thanks for all of the tips and suggestions, everyone.

[thecoalition]

its not about rust atm - new hookahs typically have crap in them like lubes or what ever they use when welding. you should always clean a new hookah thoroughly before use.

instant coals are known for making people feel sick for a few reasons....1. the coal is not done lighting before people start smoking - coals should be completely orange before using them to smoke - instants have magnesium in them and if you are inhaling burning magnesium before its all burnt out then yea...thats not good.

are you eating/drinking before or during your session? - smoking on an empty stomach is only for the strong at heart.

thin to no smoke means either you have packed too much shisha in the bowl or not enough. OR you are not using the proper amount of heat. when packing the types of shisha you listed you should be letting the shisha fall from your fingers into the bowl until its about 1/4-1/2 inch above the rim. then tightly foil the top.

finally, smoking non-stop is bad - theres little to no oxygen getting to your brain so your blood cells are recycling. you need to pull in and breathe out then wait 20-30 secs before pulling again as a beginner. make sure you are taking good deep breathes in between hookah pulls so that your body isn't suffocating.
these are typically the mistakes made by people new to their own hookah.

[joytron]

I would switch to a natural coal, and cut down on how often you inhale

[agunn1231]

avoid the instant light coals unless your smoking somewhere with out a coil burner. Switch to some good stove-top natural coals. work on packing techniques. make sure the hookah is clean. remember to breathe in between pulls, drink water(or anything really as long as you stay hydrated), just keep trying things, the feeling stops the more you smoke.

[no longer welcome]

one of the biggest reasons i can think of for getting headaches is having coals lit all the way. make sure they are lit all the way. also, try some different brands and methods. with the advice you are getting here you will make it happen sooner or later. hookah takes a bit of trial and error to get your method down.

[bobbo21]

[quote name='shells' date='09 May 2010 - 12:19 PM' timestamp='1273429154' post='467336']
So, this is the third day in a row I've gotten sick from smoking my new and first hookah. Not just a headache, but makes me light-headed/nauseous/puking sick. I know, gross.

It's sort of turning me off from smoking hookah. I have smoked hookah with friends, and haven't had this happen.

My boyfriend has smoked from the same hookah, same shisha, and doesn't get sick. He also smokes cigarettes regularly (or used to), and has no problems at all. I've smoked two different brands of shisha: Romman and Starbuzz. I just don't understand how I didn't have this problem before, but now I do. I understand that my tolerance might be low, is there any shisha that might not give me an intense buzz?

I would like to be able to enjoy smoke-time, especially with my boyfriend, and not turn the experience into a drag.

[b]I'm also having problems getting thick smoke clouds, instead I am getting hardly any smoke.[/b] I tried to check for leaks by exhaling into the hose, and there was a bit of smoke coming from the heart (?), where one of the valve nodules are. The thing is, it's on as tight as it can be. Sorry if that's confusing, I'm trying my best to explain.

Any suggestions?
[/quote]

If you're getting hardly any smoke, the smoke that you DO get is almost purely CO. We may have a higher tolerance, but on a smaller girl, especially without eating anything beforehand, CO poisoning will happen VERY quickly.

Concentrate on your packing technique. When you try a new technique, give the coals a few minutes to heat up the shisha, and then take the first pull. If you're still getting barely anything, stop and assume something is wrong. This should avoid getting sick from testing new packing methods. I haven't smoked either of those brands you listed, but there was a mega starbuzz thread (search for it) a few weeks ago that outlined how you should pack it correctly.

[Josh Hamilton]

lit coals is the way...natural coals even better nomore headaches for moi

[F16WarBird]

[quote name='Arcane' date='09 May 2010 - 10:03 PM' timestamp='1273431798' post='467342']
1. Smoke more. You're probably not used to nicotine, your dude is. Which is why you're getting sick and he's not.[/quote]

+1

[redjako]

[quote name='joytron' date='09 May 2010 - 01:47 PM' timestamp='1273434424' post='467351']
I would switch to a natural coal, and cut down on how often you inhale
[/quote]

Quick lights can make a HUGE difference in poor hookah-manship

Packing will be your next struggle, check out the many tutorials here.

[ih303]

More than likely, your problem is your coals. Like others said here, quicklites are terrible even when they're fully lit, and moreso when they're not.

Also, did you mention what kind of tobacco you're smoking? I'd recommend finding some Starbuzz. IMO, it's the mildest of all the brands and therefore easiest to smoke.