[chosenbreed]

> It relieves stress and anxiety, and also gives me an excuse to step out of the office for a few minutes for a break or to collect my thoughts.

Should we really need excuses to step out of the office to get some fresh air, collect our thoughts, etc for a few minutes?

I think there is much to be said about cigarettes relieving stress and anxiety...

[krrrh]

There does seem to be suspicion around leaving your desk to do “nothing”.

I once worked at a place where a lot of my colleagues would take smoke breaks and thought it was unfair. I loudly started taking gum breaks where I would go outside and smack peppermint gum for 5-10 minutes before throwing it in the trash and going back inside. Sometimes I would head out at the same time as the smokers so that I got to participate in the chitchat (which was unreasonably valuable from a professional perspective), and I would complain about how it wasn’t socially acceptable to chew gum at your desk like in the eighties when everyone did it. It was softly mocking, but no one objected.

[ThePadawan]

As often as it is mocked, this is one of the things I really value in the whole "micro kitchens away from the open-plan office" lies.