I was watching Tyra yesterday on Singapore channel. The topics they covered was very interesting.

Shocking ways people engage to relieve their stress.

And the people they brought in and talked to shocked me. All my life, I’ve known of drug abusers which they then be hauled off to the nearest drug rehab from the victim residential location. I also knew of Sex-Abusers, people who engage in sex as stress relievers and lived on it literally even though they don’t prostitute themselves. I’ve also heard and encountered cutters since some of my friends in Secondary School were part of that little group.

But I didn’t know there’s such thing as a shop addict. I’ve heard of shop-a-holic, since most women can go head over heels in shopping spree especially if it’s on someone else’s account. Yesterday, they brought in a shop addict who spends like there’s no tomorrow and ended up with credit card debts and had filed for bankruptcy twice. She even stole her mom’s id just to apply more credit cards for herself.

It’s a sad thing really. There’s other ways to relieve the stress and the pent up frustration and anger.

I used to be in that category; keeping all of my problems, frustration and anger bottled up. Always smiling and laughing, nobody really knew the instability which I had perched on. While I became the forced listening ears and problem solver, no one became mine, not even a shoulder to just lie on when everything became too much to handle.

But at least I got my mom to dig out the restlessness in me. Mothers always have a detector in them specially built in to monitor their children. AND I thank GOD for that. NO matter how much I smile and laugh, she still knew there are problems haunting me with every step. Without her support and warm comfy hugs, I didn’t think I could handle anymore of those stress.