In human society there is such a thing as mental chewing gum or chewing gum for the brain. What does this mean? In essence, this expression can be called what our thoughts, intellect, and our gray matter are attracted to. We kind of get stuck on this thing. For example, mental chewing gum includes TV series, entertainment shows on TV, YouTube channels of some authors, computer games, crosswords and much more. Also, the essence of the expression chewing gum for the brain can be interpreted as an activity that does not bring any real benefit. By the way, scientifically it is called rumination.
It's good if what you're stuck on brings you benefits. But in most cases, mental chewing gum does not provide any benefit. Time is wasted, vision deteriorates, headaches hurt, the brain becomes foggy, laziness and apathy appear.
The main thing is to stop sticking in time and realize that this will not lead you to your goal. If you have a goal, of course. Just the next time you get stuck on something, ask yourself: “Will this lead me to my goal?” And if not, stop sticking and the mental chewing gum will go away.
Mental chewing gum is when one obsessive thought is spinning in your head that you just can’t get rid of. Only one thing will help here - redirection ! To do this you need to train your mind. Concentrating on one subject for several minutes every day. The time needs to be increased every day. When you concentrate, try to get away from those thoughts that intrude and try to distract you.
How to get rid of mental gum with awareness?
In this section we will talk about getting rid of mental gum. If you cannot escape some disturbing thought, then this section is for you.
Here are the main 4 pillars on which the entire fight against this disease is based:
- Awareness.
- Concentration of attention.
- Adoption.
Step #1
Understand how much do you think? Imagine that you have decided to try one of the diets. By prohibiting yourself from eating a lot of foods at once, you will only do harm and will also blame yourself for the failures you have had. In this regard, you need to initially rewrite what you eat during the week. And remove some products from this list.
To defeat mental chewing gum (mental), first of all, find it in yourself. Write down thoughts related to the situations that generate them. For example, if you were scolded at work, then the thought may arise that you are worthless, that you are not good for anything. In general, during the week, write down the situations and thoughts that they cause. Then look at everything with a healthy eye. In the end, it will come to you whether you like this arrangement of things or not.
Step #2
Now try to train your attention without a pen and a piece of paper. Find a flow of thoughts in your head. Record, realize what prompted you to this particular mental chewing gum. Understand what you are thinking . If you realize that you are thinking and focused on this, and not on the fact that it seems to you that you are a failure, then this is already good. The mental cud will gradually begin to melt away. In this step, simply notice what you are thinking. To help, you can tell yourself: “Stop, breathe and notice.”
Step #3
Through the above steps you can change your mental digestion. Beginners may not be able to turn off the mental flow quickly, but over time you will be able to do it. Everything needs training. In the third step, learn to switch your attention with the help of crosswords, math problems, listing movie titles, knitting. In short, keep your brain busy with computational processes. Scientists' data suggests that only 2 minutes are enough to get away from thoughts of self-flagellation.
Step #4
It will take time to get the effect. Try to do what is given in the above steps regularly. If you have been living with your mental gum for a long time, it will take a long time to eliminate it. Train, this is the only way you will build up your muscles of awareness and attention. Here, just like in sports, each time it becomes easier to overcome the next obstacle.
In this fourth step you must know " acceptance ."
It takes self-compassion and real curiosity about your inner self. This is the best thing for your self-esteem. Understand that you love yourself, which means you can be loved. Accept yourself for who you really are!
What is “mental gum” and how to get rid of it?
Modern psychologists are increasingly faced with the problem of “mental chewing gum.”
Already from the name itself it is clear that we are talking about sticky, viscous, addictive thoughts. The so-called obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) includes the presence of obsessive thoughts, obsessive states, and obsessive internal dialogue. Thus, this problem is an obsessive-compulsive disorder. This mental illness causes the constant occurrence of the same information in a person’s head, which can cause behavior and actions that are uncharacteristic for a person.
To get rid of obsessive thoughts, some people come up with a certain ritual for themselves, for example, solving mathematical problems, remembering car license plates, counting the number of windows, and saying special stop phrases. Everyone may have their own methods of dealing with “mental gum.”
Very often, such means of protecting against obsessive thoughts themselves quickly turn into obsession.
Thus, the disease only becomes more complicated, since the methods of protection themselves remind of the problem, strengthening it. But in some cases, this method of combating OCD can still help in the short term.
Among the main reasons for the appearance and development of an obsessive state is the habit of mentally communicating with oneself. Such dialogues usually occur automatically regarding any exciting old or new situation. The second reason is attachment to a belief, as well as deep faith in it. Obsessive internal communication is common to many people, but most often they simply do not notice it, considering it the norm.
Having become a habit, such dialogue begins to concern all ordinary daily events.
This problem is more acute with questions that have been worrying people for a long time. Constant monotonous, restless internal dialogue causes severe fatigue. Over time, even fear of one’s own thoughts appears, which only complicates the problem.
A person becomes dependent on an obsessive feeling. He begins to suffer from insomnia, VSD, and feelings of increased anxiety.
Obsessive thoughts arise against a person’s will. Their main feature is monotony.
A stream of obsessive thoughts absorbs all attention, so the events that happen around them become almost unnoticeable.
Such thoughts are irrational and highly emotional. They are most often associated with fear, resentment, anger, doubt, and guilt. Thus, their main basis is strong emotions.
Obtrusive signals are created by nature in order to automatically remind and concentrate a person’s attention on something important.
For example, you took out a loan, but you currently don’t have the money to repay it. In this case, obsessive thoughts will remind you of the loan, stimulating you to find a way out of the current situation.
The most popular causes of obsessive behavior are thoughts about material wealth, career growth, improving living conditions, and personal life.
An obsessive state is dangerous to human health. It indicates the occurrence of mental disorders.
It should be remembered that the body needs regular proper rest.
Otherwise, chronic fatigue, mental disorders, increased anxiety, neurosis, and obsessiveness may occur.
Thus, regardless of the importance and usefulness of your activity, it is necessary to take long breaks, rest physically, emotionally and mentally.
Why do obsessive thoughts of an anxious nature arise? Most likely, some stupid thought somehow came into your head. It was necessary to stop her by saying: “what kind of crazy thoughts are arising in my head.” But in this situation you gave it great importance, got scared, and began to analyze it.
Obsessive thoughts can also arise regarding everyday things. For example, did I turn off the water, the iron, or close the door.
How to get rid of OCD on your own?
Remember that you cannot unconditionally believe all your thoughts. They are only a part of you.
Therefore, everything that arises in your head can be edited, sensibly assessed, condemned and even ignored.
Thus, the main way to combat an obsessive state is the ability to separate yourself from your thoughts.
You cannot resist obsessive thoughts and try to forget them. This way you will save a lot of the energy that you would normally spend fighting them.
If you notice that a thought comes to you every day, it bothers you, but your internal dialogue does not help solve the problem, try to simply ignore it. Look at these thoughts from the outside, do not start a dialogue with them, do not plunge into them.
If some obsession is justified, it points you to a real problem, remember that any problem must be solved by actions, not by thoughts.
02.06.2016 18:48
A couple more tips on how to remove mental gum
- Do something interesting. Direct your thoughts to work, to your activities.
- Find the good aspect of a bad thought. Perhaps you can benefit from a situation that had a negative impact on you. As soon as you find this plus, immediately cling to it. And gradually you will come out of these thoughts.
- Show indifference. Just ignore unnecessary thoughts.
- Use meditation and relaxation when dealing with mental gum.
- Take a break from your hobby. If you notice that you are thinking about the wrong things, start doing what you love.
- Share your experiences with a loved one. When a person talks about his difficulties to another person, it becomes easier for him. Just talk it out, you’ll see you’ll feel better!
In this way, mental gum can be easily removed from your brain. The main thing is not to forget about regular training.
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What is mental chewing gum?
Mental gum is a thought that arises in the head and is difficult, and in some cases almost impossible, to get rid of. They are intrusive, appearing in the head regardless of a person’s desire.
These thoughts are groundless, arise on their own, and do not carry even a shred of rationality. Apart from nervous exhaustion, there are no consequences. They can spin in their heads for hours, i.e. they are as long-lasting as chewing gum. Oddly enough, this phenomenon affects both adults, children and teenagers equally.
For example, an unpleasant situation happened to you in a store or public transport, you were rude. It has already passed, but you suddenly begin to replay this situation in your thoughts. You imagine what might have happened if they had answered this way or that way. Or maybe you should have ignored this moment altogether and remained silent, then the outcome would have been completely different? Or maybe, on the contrary, you had to enter into conflict and defend your opinion to the end? What's better? What is the right way out of this situation?
The thing is that there is no “right” way. All that you can achieve by thinking about some situation, thing or person is simply nervous tension, fatigue and exhaustion. This is a real “mental chewing gum” that does not leave our heads at our request. She persistently returns and returns again. How to live with this? How to get rid of it? How to minimize negative emotions from this phenomenon?
Rumination is pointless
Constantly “chewing” the same event is pointless. We cannot influence the situation and waste time and energy thinking about it. Intrusive thoughts exhaust a person and make them vulnerable to stress, anxiety and depression. We evaluate events in a negative way, reasoning:
What if?
Dr. Guy Winch talks about rumination in his TED talk:
Spending so much time focused on upsetting and negative thoughts puts you at great risk for clinical depression, alcoholism, eating disorders, and even cardiovascular disease.
How to overcome rumination
You can work on your thinking style at home. Psychologists have created many exercises on this topic. But such exercises need to be carried out daily and every time the brain again tries to “chew” negative thoughts.
These are the tips presented in a number of psychological publications:
- don’t dwell on negative things, but when a disturbing thought arises in your head, immediately switch your attention to how you managed to resolve a similar situation in the past (or imagine how you would solve it - with a good joke, a timely find, etc.) ;
- “go deeper” into negative thoughts, increase your anxiety. This technique is often used by psychologists, despite the fact that it is negative thoughts that you are trying to overcome. The fact is that the maximum negavitization of the phenomenon “shows” the subconscious that you are safe;
- set an anchor. When thoughts or anxiety arise, imagine a pleasant and safe place, a joyful event or a loved one and snap your fingers or pinch yourself. Next time, as soon as anxiety makes itself felt, repeat the ritual. The subconscious will quickly switch to a positive side;
- think about what the worst thing can happen if a particular situation arises or if an existing problem is not solved. As a rule, nothing serious will happen, so the subconscious mind will relax and will not tone the body at the slightest hint of negativity;
Giphy
- determine which thought is haunting you. Formulate it clearly and turn it into a task. This is a more tangible category that gives a signal to the subconscious - there is a task, which means you need to find a solution
For example, the phrase “It’s so terrible that this happened!” transform into - “What can I do to prevent this from happening again?”;
- in those moments when obsessive thoughts visit you, formulate a stock of positive statements so that if negative thoughts arise, you can instantly find a positive solution;
- Once a phenomenon occurs, you need to focus your attention on meticulous work. This could be doing crossword puzzles, putting together puzzles, drawing or coloring anti-stress patterns. You can also read rhythmic poetry. These activities help bring the psychological state into balance, even out breathing, stabilize blood pressure;
- Keep a diary where you can pour out your experiences. It may seem strange to you to suggest that you pay even more attention to intrusive thoughts, but writing them down is useful.
Photo by ActionVance on Unsplash
In addition to the above techniques, you can try meditating, doing yoga or swimming. This will allow you to take control of your own thinking. But if you cannot cope with the problem alone, if you feel that obsessive thoughts are seriously interfering with your life, then you should turn to a professional.
