I have lots of hobbies. Lots of crafts and things to occupy my time. But i get a lot of downtime while currently unemployed. I am literally home all day. And i have been working out more, and i like it! But when the house is clean, and i've painted a picture, made dinner and accomplished everything to do that day, i'm bored. Super, super bored. And i seem to have some kind of oral fixation.
I eat because i like how chewing feels. Gum does not help this. I don't like how gum makes me burp (???) and it's just annoying.
I have this "Camelbak" waterbottle that i chew on the nozzle of, because it's a gummy plastic like a teething ring. But i've worn it down.. >.>
I used to chew ice as a kid, but i heard it can harm your teeth. And i don't wanna risk that.
I have some job interviews that look promising, but until then, i'm tired of bored eating. Im not hungry at all, but i'll eat four helpings of something crunchy.


Do i need to keep stock in some type of raw vegetable? Carrots get old to me..maybe celery? I do kinda like celery with a teeny bit of peanut butter..Ugh...

I'm an ice-cruncher, myself. I buy bags of crushed ice (Sonic has the best ice) and add a little water to it, so it's not too hard. It helps me get my water in, gives me something to crunch, and my dentist hasn't commented on any issues with my teeth. My family makes fun of my crushed ice addiction!

I don't wanna resort to chewing ice, if i did crack a tooth or something i don't have any insurance, so that's not good lol
I'm thinking about getting some celery and just munching it. Or maybe a cucumber. I do like those with a teensy pinch of salt.

Celery, cukes, radishes, green or red pepper strips?

If you think you can be OK with a spread, 1 or 2 Tablespoons of hummus, or yes peanut butter but it is so calorie-dense even though it does have protein.

I have made a dip of plain Greek yogurt with some flavoring, onion and garlic powder, parsely. If you are happy with just a cucumber with a teensy bit of salt, that is great!

When I'm white-knuckling through a "I wanna snack" urge I've been forcing myself to make a cup of tea, having that, then seeing how I am afterwards.

best wishes!

You mentioned that you have job interviews coming up, so you may not have time for this. Instead of figuring out what to eat, look into volunteering in your community. There are so many agencies, organizations, co-ops, etc. that need help. Our food co-op allows people who want to join to work off their membership fee if they can't afford it. Even after you've started back to work, volunteering can really give you an emotional boost.

Just thought it might be a good alternative to trying to figure out what to do to fill your time instead of figuring out what foods are safe to eat when you're home and bored. Hope your job interviews go well!

PS -- If you do a LOT of volunteer work while you're job hunting, you can certainly use it on your resume to show that you used the time in a productive manner.

My go-to crunchy snack the last month or so has been celery with fresh salsa on it (salsa from the produce dept, not the chip aisle!). It feels like a treat and the taste of the salsa makes me giddy. The one I get is 10 cals for 2 tblspns I think. So a good size snack for about 30 calories (20 for the celery).

I guess you know when you've been on a diet too long, celery and salsa excites you!

That was actually going to be my recommendation. I used to "bored eat" all the freaking time. I work part-time for a non-profit, and ALWAYS have 2-3 hours of spare time before hubby gets off work and kiddo is ou of school, so one day, I decided after work to head over to our day hab program and voluneteer some time. I did that for a few weeks before I realized I wasn't mindlessly munching anymore.