The Quiet Rise

Gum. I had to quit it. I knew it for years. But I couldn’t because the timing was wrong.

I was always chewing something. I could easily chew a pack a day. I chewed when stressed, when focusing, when cleaning, when starting a difficult task. I wasn’t hungry. I needed pressure on my back teeth to calm down and continue. I mentally understood that I was chewing all the time. I didn’t let my digestive system rest. But I couldn’t stop because life was bringing stresses all the time.

I think to have the right timing is such a thing. I could not remove this coping mechanism while life was actively overwhelming me. I needed a quieter season first. When I was able to sleep more, have more quiet time by myself, removed social media for a while, I was able to have the strength to even think of quitting and still be ok.

Why did I need to quit gum? There are three major reasons:

1. I was chewing all the time! I couldn’t even sit still and concentrate for a few minutes without chewing gum.
2. It was disturbing my gut so much that I was constantly bloated.
3. I started being addicted to the sweet taste of gum, especially when I would start a new piece.

Knowing myself (very important), I couldn’t limit myself to 4 pieces per day (I tried!). It had to be “cold turkey”. And  I did. One day I just stopped chewing gum. It was ok for 4 days. Nothing else changed. But then, when a stress would come or a task would arrive that I wouldn’t know how to start/do, I needed gum.

Techniques that actually helped me:

• 5 – 10 very deep breaths to snap me out of obsessive urge to chew.
• Hot water in any form: hot coffee, decaffeinated tea, hot water with lemon, or just plain hot water.
• I eat more popcorn – I am observing that it is becoming a replacement behavior for focus and as a jump start. I am watching it carefully.
• One more thing I purchased – a chewing ARK BRICK stick for anxiety. This helps a lot when I come home from work and need to eat right away. I sit and chew it for good 5 – 10 min, until I calm down.

It has been 4 weeks so far. It is interesting. So far, I noticed:

• I eat slightly more.
• I am significantly less bloated. 
• I eat more popcorn – I am observing this is becoming a replacement to focus and to jump start me.
• I drink a lot more water.

Overall, I like this change and will continue improving. My current goal is simple: eat intentionally, then let the body rest. Three hours between meals. No grazing. No constant chewing. Food, then quiet.