Creative visualization

Thirteen years ago, on her 28th birthday, Claire Celsi smoked herself sick. "I puffed 10 cigarettes in one hour," she says. Afterward, she crumpled up her almost-empty pack, threw it away, and never lit up again. She found the strength for this drastic move with something decidedly healthier -- visualization.
Four months before that smoky birthday, Claire started using a technique she had read about in "Creative Visualization," a book by Shakti Gawain. First thing in the morning and whenever she caught a quiet moment, she imagined a huge cigarette wearing boxing gloves, bullying her. Next, she visualized being equals and punching back. Finally, she pictured herself growing larger than the cigarette -- she was wearing the gloves, knocking it out. "The technique took only a few minutes and helped me realize that I was in control, not my cravings," she says.
By the time her birthday arrived, Claire felt so confident that once she stubbed out her last cigarette, that was that. She's never smoked again.