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For purposes of discussion only, let's pretend that during days 14, 15 and 16 that although you remained occupied in dealing with an almost steady stream of conscious thoughts about wanting to smoke that you did not encounter any un-extinguished nicotine feeding cue. Although unlikely that you'd notice, wouldn't it be normal to begin to relax and slowly lower your guard?

And then it happens. On day 17 you encounter a subconscious crave trigger that wasn't part of normal daily life. It catches you totally unprepared, off-guard and surprised. You scramble to muster your defenses but it's as if they too are being swallowed by a fast moving tsunami of rising anxieties. You feel as if you've been sucker-punched hard by the most intense crave ever. It feels endless. Your conscious thinking mind tells you that things are getting worse, not better. The thought of throwing in the towel and giving-up suddenly begins sloshing through a horrified mind.

It is then, when things seem worst, that we need to briefly pause and reflect upon what we're really seeing. Things are not getting worse but better. Think about how long it's been since your last significant challenge and how relaxed you've allowed yourself to become. It's likely that this episode is no more intense than prior craves. But you'd taken off your life jacket and you couldn't quickly locate it and put it on. You panicked.

If an event similar should happen to you I'd encourage you to stop, reflect and then celebrate!!! You've reclaimed so many once conditioned aspects of a nicotine dependent life that serious challenges are growing rare. Oh you'll still encounter remote or even seasonal triggers but with the passing of time they'll grow further apart, shorter in duration and generally less intense.