How many times do you find yourself wandering into a McDonald’s and ordering large fries at 2 am, when you’re in a ‘questionable’ state of mind?

Too many times for me.

It’s after a big night out and all the clubs are closed, I’m walking home and I spot a bright yellow ‘M’ sign, offering a glimpse of hope. I could walk another 200 meters to reach that M sign, or I could just turn left into my apartment and forget all about it. But who am I kidding? I couldn’t fight the urge even if I wanted to. The M sign calls out to me, and with my fuzzy & blurry mental state, it doesn’t take much to ignore my better judgment and walk towards it.

I step inside and I see other people like me. Whose legs have dragged them here against their better judgment. Standing there, eyes half closed, trying to balance themselves as they wait their turn to order.

Finally after some time, I get my large order of fries, and devour them like it’s my last meal. I know that when tomorrow morning comes, I will wake up feeling guilty and disgusted at myself. But right now, at 2 am, I am absorbed in my fries and I don’t care about how I’m going to feel in the morning.

It’s the same as calling that ‘forbidden’ number on your phone at 2 am. You know what I’m talking about. We all have that one number that we forbid ourselves from calling. Even erase their number from our phone, but we always seem to have it tattooed in our memory. And for some reason, we’re always tempted to call that number at 2 am. Doesn’t matter if it’s a call to tell them we miss them, or a booty call, or sometimes a prank call :-p

Even if we know that in a few hours, when our brain starts to function again, we’re going to regret making that call. But in that moment, we’re willing to give in to our desires and press Dial.

Which leads me to my point : Nothing good ever happens at 2 am. Whether it be pigging out on fries – or calling that forbidden number. But why does it need to happen at 2 am? I think it has something to do with the guilt. We know that we shouldn’t be walking towards that M sign or dialing that number on our phone book.. that’s why we stop ourselves from doing it during normal hours. But it’s soooo much easier to give in to temptation at 2 am. When we’re under the influence and not thinking straight. We tell ourselves we don’t have to feel guilty because we can blame it on the alcohol or whatever substance induced our behavior.

Is there a cure for this 2 am madness? Well.. you could always stop drinking. Or stop going out. Or take a cab straight home. Or keep your phones away. But these measures are a bit extreme, wouldn’t you say?

If you ask me, I think the first step is to be true to yourself and admit that you’ve been craving it all along, it’s just that you only allow yourself to act on it at 2 am. Once you’ve admitted this, think back to one of the mornings you woke up regretting what you did. Think about how terrible you felt, even if you tried to dismiss it by blaming the alcohol, you know in your heart that it’s not entirely the alcohol’s fault. Now remember this feeling, save it somewhere in your memory. So the next time you get your 2 am cravings, you can at least attempt to think back to this awful feeling.. and maybe that will inspire you to walk straight home or put your phone back in your pocket.

If the above doesn’t work, then hell, I say just indulge in your 2 am cravings. How long can it go on for anyway? One day – sooner or later – you will come to your senses and eventually stop having the urge to order those fries or call that number. And the next time the clock strikes 2 am, your past behaviors will be a distant memory, and a reminder that nothing good ever happens at 2 am.

P.S. I’d love to hear all about your 2 am madness.. please do share your stories 🙂

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