Chewing on Curiosity

As October draws to a close, I want to revisit the invitation I extended at the start of the month: to chew. Yes, chew. As basic, as comic, as seemingly insignificant as that sounds. But if you’ve been following along, you’ll know this wasn’t just about chewing—it was about curiosity. About noticing. About reconnecting with the simple yet profound process of eating.

Why Chewing?

While food can be our medicine, it’s digestion that determines whether that medicine nourishes us—or becomes a source of imbalance. How we absorb food is critical in transforming it into nourishment. And chewing is the very first step in that process. It changes the temperature of food, warming it up, it breaks down and divides the food into smaller, more digestible pieces. For those eating vegetarian meals, for example, not fully chewing can leave you feeling unsatisfied, leading to a search for equilibrium through sweets, proteins, oils, and probably, in excessive portions.

But digestion isn’t just mechanical or chemical. It’s also deeply influenced by how we feel while eating. Whether we’re anxious, distracted, or calm directly impacts how our body assimilates food. And yet, in the rush of our days, we often eat on autopilot, barely registering the act at all.

The Practice of Chewing

This month, the goal wasn’t to overhaul every eating and health habit overnight. That can feel overwhelming, even impossible. Instead, it was to focus on one small, controllable act: chewing. To approach it with curiosity, not judgment. To notice what happens when we take a little moment, just enough to truly experience our meals.

If you’ve tried this exercise, you might have noticed some surprising things. Maybe you realized you were swallowing bites that weren’t fully chewed. Or that your mouth felt dry until you gave it time to do its job. Perhaps you noticed how the flavors and textures of your food changed as you chewed—or how your body felt after a meal when you chewed intentionally.

Did you find yourself finishing your meal before others? Or were you the last one at the table? Did you crave dessert, or did the act of chewing leave you feeling more satisfied?

And beyond the meal itself—did this practice shift anything else? Did you start looking forward to meals in a new way? Did you feel more connected to your body, or notice changes in symptoms you’d once ignored?

These questions aren’t meant to have “right” answers. They’re simply an invitation to notice. To register. To reconnect with your body in a way that feels approachable and sustainable.

Naturalizing Symptoms: What Are We Ignoring?

This practice of noticing doesn’t stop at chewing. It’s a gateway to something deeper: the ability to tune into our bodies. It’s about recognizing when we’ve been naturalizing certain states or changes in our health.

So often, we dismiss symptoms as “normal” simply because they’ve been with us for so long. We stop questioning them. We stop noticing them. Sometimes this responds to the fact that we do not actually know that a certain symptom is a message from the body reflecting some imbalance. Or worse, we notice but disregard them—until they transform into something more serious.

For me, this realization came in my thirties, when I finally acknowledged a symptom I’d been naturalizing since childhood: a constant buzzing in my ears. I remember lying down for summer naps as a child and thinking, “This is the sound of silence.” Except, of course, it wasn’t silence at all. It was a sound I’d carried with me for so long that I’d never questioned it (and the “sound of silence” thought seemed poetic).

This idea of naturalization isn’t new to me. I first encountered it while studying fashion design, in an anthropology class that explored how we normalize certain social constructs, practices, or ideas over time. And when presented as natural, so they become inevitable, and, in turn, difficult to challenge them, keeping the status quo.

Later, while studying Traditional Chinese Medicine, I saw how this concept revived in the realm of health—especially in relation to female health and fertility. How many of us have naturalized symptoms like premenstrual cramps, irregular cycles, or digestive discomfort? How often do we dismiss these things as “just the way it is,” rather than seeing them as signals from our bodies? (I’ll make sure to share more on this in a future post!)

An Invitation for November

As we move into November, and toward the end of the year, my invitation is this: start registering.

What symptoms have you been naturalizing? What signals from your body have you been ignoring?

This isn’t about judgment or obsessive definitions—it’s about curiosity. It’s about taking small, consistent steps toward understanding your body and its needs. Because, as I’ve learned in both health and investment, it’s the small, consistent actions—taken early and often—that lead to the greatest transformations.

So, as we prepare for the close of the year, let’s carry this practice of curiosity forward. Let’s keep asking questions, noticing patterns, and reconnecting with the wisdom of our bodies.

Because sometimes, the smallest acts—like chewing—can lead to the biggest shifts.