Take two and call me in the morning.

The call back.

Waiting. Hoping. Hurting. Smarting.

Near to impossible to connect when the line is always busy. The pecking order pokes hard and “ouchy” for some rather than others.

In earlier times before today’s border crossings of this and that and who or whom, bringing who knows what in who knows bags of powders and plants, medical doctors made this verbal prescription to patients complaining of this or that. Or him or her. A headache or a backache.

Way back when, around the 1800’s, salicin, an ingredient of willow bark was being chewed and chewed and chewed. (Sm) The remedy of the day for fevers and pain. Around this time, scientists developed aspirin that is still in use today.

”Take two and call me in the morning.” It was the simplest directive for seemingly trivial maladies and changed the course of pill popping for many humans and animals.

Progress takes time.

We have come so far and yet have many miles to go.

After all, the doctors of old could have meant a prescription of something like, “take two bananas and call me in the morning, or take two cigars and call me in the morning or take two bites of chocolate and call me in the morning.”

Everyone needs a vice.Some more than others. Some less than others.

Thank you Felix. For getting the ball rolling. In 1897, a German chemist Felix Hoffman created a chemically pure and stable form of salicylic acid-the main ingredient in aspirin. Chemists and scientists each intelligently latching onto a remedy for the benefit of mankind.

As there is no such thing as a miracle drug, aspirin could have qualified as one. Four thousand years ago, Sumerians wrote about how the willow tree could be used for pain relief. (wc) (sm)

Willow bark.

I don’t know about you but I feel like planting a tree.

A tree of hope.

Chew. Chew. Chew.

Eat two leaves and call me in the morning? Maybe. Maybe not. In the end progress depends on the morality of the moment. When a patient did not take care of himself or herself, and the doctor was not equipped to handle it over the phone, like tele-health is the norm of today, the only thing that may have been left to do in the interest of the Hippocratic oath was suggest “Take two and call me in the morning.” Hoping upon hope the patient will have figured it out by the morning.

For the confident patients, it may have had a placebo effect. A shot in the arm effect, or a “hey I just needed to vent” effect.

Either way, fast forward to the now, and

Chew. Chew. Chew.

Did you know?

It is actually the chewing and not the willow bark that wakes us up? (Still, thank you Felix Hoffman)

Maybe it is time to thank wrigley? Not so fast.

Chewing itself has a host of positive pathways for the brain.

Let’s take two, and not call in the morning, huh?

When we take a big bite of whatever, chewing isn’t just about digestion; its rhythmic action boosts brain activity, increasing blood flow to areas of the brain like the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus, improving focus, memory, mood and reducing stress. Improved alertness, memory, learning, increased blood flow to the brain.(ai)

The fancier term for chewing?

Mastication.

Take two and call me in the morning. Two what?

Exactly.

The doctor will see you now.

In human studies throughout the ages, some humans continue to chew while they sleep resulting in an inability to stop chewing. The stress reflexes do not stop during rest nor does the movement force ease.

The doctor will see you now.

”Just spit here.”

When the loud bang invites the jawline to swing like the pendulum of doom to make the sound “go away.” After all, chewing time affects the response of the endocrine system to mental stress.

Chew. Chew. Chew.

Did you know? Emotional eating causes the muscles to keep on keeping on long after the excitement of the moment has past. Depends on who you believe. There is newer evidence that links chewing to memory to stress to the only way out is

out.🤮

The good news. Chew.Chew. Chew.

As it stands on the shelves of our grocers today, right before we check out, it has been proven in some medical circles, chewing gum has an alerting rather than an anti-stress-reducing effect.

A pinch here. A pinch there.

A pinch of forgiveness. An ounce of prevention.

The remedy?

The remedy is the experience? In addition, the little remedies that bite and poke along for the ride.

Achoooo? yes. That too. We live in glorious modern times of discovery and research of all that is good and healthy.

Why not take a bite (or two) and call someone in the morning. Why? In addition to the hippocampus liking to chew on this or chew on that in the interest of blood flow, why not…..

Phone a friend. Just to “shoot the poop.” Have a simple conversation about the weather. What the heck. One man’s hunger is another man’s steak. In the end, what goes on in a beautiful mind goes on in a beautiful mind.

Thoughts and feelings are our bodies way of keeping the score. We may win some and we may lose some. Day to day or whatever.

Wrapped up tightly or wound up? Depends upon the situation and circumstances.

For a quiet moment, ask yourself

”Take two _____________and call me in the morning.

Fill in the blank:

Two hotdogs?

Two lipsticks?

Two pretzels?

Two popsicles?

Two cupcakes.

Two bacon?

Two pieces of bark?

Pick your poison.

The food stealing began long ago and so whining about it now will not,

”Make it all better.”

Like a mother’s gentle kiss on her child’s “boo boo.” Sometimes, the pain darn lingers and there is not much one can do about it. Chew the fat?

How ‘bout hunger for truth? Not just consequences.

Why not chew on that for a bit. Or a bite?

Maybe.

At least it is chewing on something with legs.🙂