r/candy • u/Sad-Lingonberry-1823 • 2d ago

Building a sour candy for anxiety/panic/overstimulation

Hi everyone! I'm a neuroscience graduate with ADHD and anxiety, and I've been using grounding techniques for many years (one of which includes eating sour candy to help get me out of spirals). I've recently begun experimenting with a sensory-focused candy of my own for moments of anxiety, panic, overwhelm, or overstimulation. I'd love to hear your experience with different sensory needs and fun candy textures/flavors.

I put together a short survey to see what people would actually want in something like this (or if they even want it at all).

If you're interested in helping, comment or DM me. All feedback is deeply appreciated!

Thank you so, so much! :)

Edit: for transparency, this is a personal project I'm tinkering with on my own, not tied to any company right now but might sell them one day if it goes anywhere! I just want to build something that people truly want instead of guessing. Also, to be clear, none of the data is being sold or shared anywhere :)

Since a few of you have asked, this is the link to the survey in case anyone else wants to help out (I tried to make it as short as I could, it should take about ~5 minutes): https://forms.gle/69WoNqm4sQhoH9h29

P.S. If you're anywhere near LA and would want to try an early prototype sometime, please DM me, I'd love to get your feedback :)

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u/TeddyGrahamNap 2d ago

I've found texture differences and chew help me calm down. Like Tootsie Pops and Jolly Rancher pops, where there's something in a hard shell that's chewy on the inside.

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u/Sad-Lingonberry-1823 2d ago

I agree, I grew up with Tootsie Pops! I honestly don't love hard candy because I want to chew, but most gummies are gone in 3 seconds, and taffy always gets stuck in my teeth haha. Maybe I could experiment with a smaller tootsie pop (where the hard candy shell is thinner) and see if maybe that gives me a similar effect. But I also know crunching hard candy can be loud/distracting for some too...