Listen up! Guided imagery may help you kick cigarettes for good

Of course, you have to want to quit. But for those who can't seem to give up their smoking habit with help from patches, gum and other common cessation aids, guided-imagery recordings may offer hope. A study by researchers at the University of Akron College of Nursing in Ohio, published in the Journal of Nursing Scholarship, found that smokers who listened to guided-imagery recordings daily as part of treatment were more likely to stay smoke free for at least two years than those who did not.

The study divided 71 smokers from an outpatient clinic into two groups, 38 with guided imagery and 33 without. Both groups underwent educational and counseling sessions. Two years later, rates for staying smoke free were twice as high for those in the guided-imagery group.

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