on emotional support drinks
In my last year of senior high school, I had what I would call my emotional support drinks. Grade 12 was a busy and stressful academic year for me, as I was a graduating student who was balancing her academics alongside a lot of extra-curricular activities. While some people had stress eating as a coping mechanism, I had stress drinking. It was wholesome, but it still was not that healthy. For the longest time, milk tea was my emotional support drink, and we should all know by now that it contains a lot more sugar than is recommended for daily consumption. I have sworn off milk tea now, but one year ago, I could not go a week without at least one order of milk tea.
My school had free shuttle rides to and from a mall due to the number of commuters, but it also meant that I had virtually unlimited access to milk tea shops. It was a constant battle between my id and my ego. My id was completely convinced that I needed that large pearl milk tea, that it would give me the energy and the motivation to get through yet another tiring week. On the other hand, my superego would give me all the reasons why I should control myself and stop literally going out of my way just to buy milk tea—again. It would tell me how milk tea was bad not only for my health, but also for my wallet; while each one costs only around a hundred pesos each, they do add up and cost a lot in the end.
My ego would try to mediate between my id and superego, but usually, my id wins and I succumb to my need for my emotional support drink. As a result, my conscience would act up and fill myself with a sense of guilt for not adhering to the standards that my superego set for me. To cope with the guilt I would feel in this situation, I used rationalization. I would constantly tell myself—and occasionally my parents, both of whom are doctors—that the sacrifices I made on the expense of the weight of my wallet and my actual weight were worth it because I reaped benefits. Drinking more milk tea than I should was okay because it was my method to cope with stress, and I was able to become more productive by drinking it. I did think it was worth it at the time, but now, I regret all those excess milk teas I bought. I still have my emotional support drinks, but right now, I'm doing pretty well with my cold water and unsweetened iced coffees.