Friday, March 16, 2012

Chewing Gum and My Son

For those of you that read about my son here. I have an update.
Last week at his therapist we learned all about the subconscious and how it interferes with everyday life.
You know the saying “think with your brain and not with your heart” or the round-about sayings referencing it? Well she explained your heart is your subconscious and this sick little pesk likes to eff your life up every once in a while. (Those were not her exact words) It makes you over evaluate things like tests. It also makes you think scary stuff or causes nightmares. Which most of this we know or have been told before. What I didn’t know is that you can train your brain with a “safe word”.
Yesterday was my sons’ second appointment and at this session he was hypnotized but not put all the way under. I missed the action due to me having all of my kids and waited in the waiting room.
This is how he explained what happened…. She told him to close his eyes and count down. He did. Then she said he didn’t need to pay attention to what she was saying because she was talking to his subconscious. She continues and says “you can think about what you’re having for dinner if you want”. He did. He said while she was talking he was trying to figure out is he wanted a half sandwich and soup or a full sandwich at the deli. He doesn’t remember what she was saying and when she told him to open his eyes, he felt happy and calm.
She explained that she told his “heart” to listen to him when he uses his “safe word”. For example: “My mom is not going to die in an accident. Purple.” (No my sons’ word is not purple.) You speak or think what is causing you your anxiety and you finish with your “safe word”.  And then you surround yourself with things that reflect your word. Purple – you go out and buy some grapes, eat them. Wear things that are purple, buy candles that remind you of purple. Lilacs for instance. Etc.
During test chew grape flavored gum. Also, did you know that while chewing gum, rolling a worry stone in your hands, etc, can help you perform better on tests? Yup, chewing the gives your subconscious something do instead of taking over your decision making. Neat, huh.
So next time you are worrying about something or taking a test or for us writers out there… chew that gum!

23 comments:

  1. Whoa! This is awesome! Looks like I need to stock up on that gum :)

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  2. Huh. I need to chew more gum. I usually go for mints, but you've got me thinking...I need to chew!

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    1. I'm sure mints work the same but I'm no expert. Either way I'm sure your subconscious is occupied and not distracting you.

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  3. I didn't know you could condition your subconscious! I guess chewing gum all the time in high school actually paid off.

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    1. I didn't know either. When she was explaining the "whats" and the "whys" of it all, my mind clicked and I had an "aha" moment.

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  4. I'm so glad it's helping him! *hugs*

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    1. Me too. He really seemed "lighter". Like the world had been lifted.

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  5. I wish we could chew gum in school or during standardized testing. That would be awesome.

    I'm so glad your son is learning how to cope better. It's such an important life skill. Congrats to you for staying strong through this too. My best to you both.

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    1. My kids' school district lets them which makes me feel better.

      Me too. He now has a grasp on what needs to be done. Thanks so much for you kind words.

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  6. I actually did know about the gum thing. That is so great that your son is being helped and is feeling a positive affect from it.

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    1. Thanks! He has had a great weekend too. Very calm and relaxed.

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  7. I guess I learned something new today!

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  8. Wow, so I guess it gum therapy? Not to be confused with that from an orthodontist. Anyway, all joking aside, this sounds way, WAY better than Ritalin. And it looks like it's helping! Yay! :D

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    1. Absolutely! I would never dope my kids up on meds anyways. So this seemed perfect.

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  9. Thank you for this great post! I recently went and bought a couple books to help my 7 year old with his anxiety. Funnily enough, though he has a writer mama, he gets major anxiety while writing a story and will erase it over and over, so I am trying to figure out how to build his confidence. This is quite helpful, and I know his teacher would work with me on allowing him something to worry at, like a stone, during tests and such.

    Shannon at The Warrior Muse, co-host of the 2012 #atozchallenge! Twitter: @AprilA2Z

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    1. There is also this drink called CALM. It's like a tea and comes in flavors. I have ordered some thru Amazon. Also vitamin B will help lift spirits too. Hope his teacher always the gum.

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  10. I chew gum all the time when I write. Mainly it's so I won't eat brownies, but it's not fool proof. Great post!

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    1. I need gum cause I would go for the brownies as well.

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  11. Wow this was a very deep post. Glad your son's doing ok and hypnosis is an interesting option to deal with stress.

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    1. Thanks! He's doing better. I see a change in him. He sleeps through the night so that's a huge relief.

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  12. I'm glad your son is feeling a little better.

    Also, worry stones are great. I still have one with me and sometimes I need it while I'm on a train. I don't like too crowded places and when there are too many people it's really calming me down :)

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I heart me some good comments... and pumpkin spice latte's too!