Yedasentience is Alchemy

I've written a couple of articles about yedasentience, from my personal perspective and experience, but also from my own understanding of it as a psychological construct. And this time, I want to take it to the next level!

An easy definition of yedasentience is the feeling of "enough".

It could be -

• Feeling full after eating a meal or snack,

• Reaching a nice state of relaxation after drinking water, caffeine, or alcohol,

• Being energised by physical activity,

• Waking up after a good sleep or nap.

Hopefully, you get the picture.

Yedasentience is not evident in stuffing your face with every biscuit in the packet, in one sitting. It's not in getting drunk, or hoarding. If you need 6 cups of coffee a day, you're not getting it. And if you spend an entire day working out, then you're not getting your yedasentience.

People who engage in addictive behaviours, like gambling, don't get their yedasentience either.

The neuroscientist in me is reminded of the "dopamine theory", but it's actually more complex than that.

Why would you be engaging in behaviours that could potentially damage your health? How can you get out of the spiral?

If I speak from my perspective, then I don't feel that I have a yedasentience problem with "comfort eating". It's definitely a thing, but not my thing. Comfort eating might be linked to attachment and not feeling loved; you don't feel like you're getting enough! It might loop back to when you're a teenager and your feelings of attachment security. Worth looking into, if that resonates.

It might be something you developed, during a relationship. Maybe you and a partner ate together, drank together, did drugs together ... and then when you split up, you tried all these things to fill the aching chasm of loneliness. And it didn't fill anything.

Maybe, you fill your life with being busy. You say yes to everything that comes along. Being busy can make a person feel important for a while, but it can also fill your mind with stuff to do instead of stuff that hurts.

Or, it could be that you go snacking because life is boring. The less we do in life, the less inspired we are by life, and the less motivated we are to seek healthy forms of stimulation. We shop, and fill our homes with things we don't need. Our sheds become storage for broken and useless items that gather dust and attract vermin.

Do you want a way out? I thought you might, seeing our conversation was turning toward the possibility of mental ill health.

Remember a previous article about changing behaviour? I mentioned Antecedents, Behaviours, and Consequences.

Now, in the "Behaviours" category, I want to include thoughts, words, and feelings as well as actions. Actually, they could all be in Antecedents and Consequences too.

The idea is, once you know why you overdo something, it's worthwhile considering when you do it, and what are the conditions that directly precede the action of overdoing. What you're doing here, is considering the Antecedents. List them, and really think about each in terms of it's power over you.

Absolutely no item on that list actually has any power over you. Stop letting it.

Next, consider all the Consequences of overdoing. All of them. Again, please write them down and now consider how much power you have over each item on your Consequences list.

You have power over every Consequence of your actions. Reclaim your power.

Now that you are owning your power, it's time for the ALCHEMY. I have a magic number for you and this is the single thing to keep in mind when tackling any type of overdoing.

2

You know that I struggle with postmenopausal weight gain, and more specifically with not reaching weight loss targets. Did you know that that's very common? Chat with anyone who has ever been to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, and they'll tell you that we all slip back into old habits.

Habits are entrenched behaviours, exquisitely linked to many other contextual things (like other behaviours). But habits are broken every day.

The Quitline, a phone coaching service for people who are trying to quit smoking, will tell you that every time you try, you are getting better at it. The same message comes from all the weight loss services.

Maybe, they're all spinning us a line so they stay in business. It's a great marketing ploy afterall.

But, Number 2 is a magic number for 2 magic reasons.

• Things are always easier with a buddy,

• 2 is the best maximum number for anything.

Whatever we're trying to reduce, having a buddy or a coach can help to give us accountability. That's a pretty powerful ally!

Having a maximum number of 2 makes us stop when our brains are still capable of developing yedasentience. Oh yes indeedy!

Take alcohol, and I'm assuming you're over 18 here! Drinking alcohol is bad for your brain, and worse the younger you are. 🍸How much can you drink before you get silly? 🤪 How much before you make poor choices?

If you learn to count your drinks, and stop at 2 standard drinks, you will still have the nice feelings without the awful consequences. Please remember, I'm talking to people aged 18 and over here! If you drink water in between each standard drink, it will be easier and healthier (and so much cheaper)! Slow it down with other things. If you're in a pub, go play pool between drinks.

It's the same, whether you overdo food, chocolate, ice-cream, cake, cookies .... what adds up to 200 calories? That's your maximum snack. For the day? Yes. Any other snacks should be healthy fibre, protein and calcium. Check in with a dietician, and remember to use smaller plates and cutlery when you are eating. Fill up on fuel, fibre and water.

What if you're a horder? If it's taking over your life, then you need a clinical psychologist. But again, if you go shopping 🛍 and bring home everything that takes your fancy, then maybe you need the power of 2, too. Do the window- shop first (do the "recon"), with a pal or coach. Just look. Then decide which items you don't already have (you could discuss with your pal or coach). Then allow yourself to look at them more closely. After that, only allow yourself to touch 2 items. If you still need them, and they're perfect, only then buy them. Oh, and ensure you can return them!

I've given a few examples, and if you feel you need to discuss others, you can always book in with me for a free strategy session.

I mentioned earlier, that comfort eating is not my thing. For me, it's boredom. And when I recognise it, I know that I need to learn something. It's got to fascinate me to sustain me. For instance, I've been using a free app to learn German since June this year. But you know that psychology is my jam, and I'm planning something big! Watch this space!