My Future Self: An Optional Free Imagery and If-Then Worksheet for Stopping Smoking and Vaping
Behavioural Addiction · Practice-informed · Practice-informed
An optional page. The client picks a real ordinary day in the next one to four weeks when they are nicotine-free, pictures it for one or two minutes, names the most likely obstacle and writes an if-then reply. It is a gentle practice, skipped if it does not suit the client, and future-self imagery for smoking is at an early stage of evidence.
Underlying mechanism: Future-Self Imagery with Mental Contrasting and an If-Then Plan for Nicotine and Vaping Cessation (Optional)
What it helps with
- Giving clients who like imagery a short way to picture an ordinary nicotine-free day.
- Naming the likeliest obstacle and planning a reply, which is the useful part of mental contrasting.
- Keeping imagery light, short and optional.
- Being honest that the evidence for smoking is at an early stage.
How clinicians use it
- Offer it only if the client likes imagery, usually at Session 4 or 6.
- Choose a real, ordinary day and keep the picture to one or two minutes.
- Name the obstacle and write an if-then reply.
- Stop if a picture brings distress or a sharp craving, and say that a picture is not a promise or a test.
Clinical Implementation Guide
- Offer it only if the client likes imagery, and pick a real ordinary day.
- Picture it for one or two minutes, then name the likeliest obstacle.
- Write an if-then reply and stop if it brings distress.
What the worksheet looks like
| I see | I hear | I feel in my body | Who is with me, and what I am doing |
|---|---|---|---|
| My kitchen in the morning | The kettle and the radio | Calm in my chest | My partner, making coffee in the window seat |
Clinical cautions
Stop if imagery brings difficult memories, distress or a sharp craving, take a few slow breaths and open the eyes. A picture is not a promise or a test. Evidence for future-self imagery in smoking is at an early stage, so do not oversell it. Medication and nicotine replacement decisions belong to the client with their GP, pharmacist or stop smoking service. If the client reports hopelessness, self-harm or suicidal thoughts, follow local risk procedures. Take complex cases, pregnancy, serious mental illness and under-18s to supervision.
References
- Cross, A., & Sheffield, D. (2019). Mental contrasting for health behaviour change: A systematic review and meta-analysis of effects and moderator variables. Health Psychology Review, 13(2), 209-225. https://doi.org/10.1080/17437199.2019.1594332
- McWilliams, L., Bellhouse, S., Yorke, J., Lloyd, K., & Armitage, C. J. (2019). Beyond "planning": A meta-analysis of implementation intentions to support smoking cessation. Health Psychology, 38(12), 1059-1068. https://doi.org/10.1037/hea0000768
- Stein, J. S., Wilson, A. G., Koffarnus, M. N., Daniel, T. O., et al. (2016). Unstuck in time: Episodic future thinking reduces delay discounting and cigarette smoking. Psychopharmacology, 233(21-22), 3771-3778. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-016-4410-y
- Aonso-Diego, G., González-Roz, A., Martínez-Loredo, V., Krotter, A., et al. (2021). Episodic future thinking for smoking cessation in individuals with substance use disorder: Treatment feasibility and acceptability. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 123, 108259. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2020.108259
Copyright and use in research
© 2026 Dr Richard Pomfret and Third Wave Therapy Tools. May be used in research with the author and site cited. Version 1.0, approved 12 October 2026, revised as the evidence develops.
Suggested citation (APA 7th edition): Pomfret, R. (2026). Quit Without the Fight: A third-wave protocol for stopping nicotine and vaping (Version 1.0) [Therapist guide and worksheets]. Third Wave Therapy Tools. https://thirdwavetherapytools.com/
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