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Quarantine Confession (Part 1/3)

March (A Normal Habit or a Full Blown Addiction?)

By Michelle ChaparroPublished 4 years ago 4 min read
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Strange, strange indeed. That's the word I would use to describe how it feels to suddenly and seemingly out of nowhere cut yourself off from regular habits and routines that used to make up your normal day to day life. Shoot, quitting any habit cold turkey can lead to some pretty intense responses as a result of such immediate change. So I believe it's safe to say confining oneself to their home for an undetermined amount of time, able only to leave for "the essentials" would start to make anyone a bit stir crazy. Some might say they went a bit "cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs", they might say "Things got weeeeird really fast man!" and others may have started to question their sanity just a teeny tiny bit, I know I did. This kind of forced isolation can do (and there's that word again) strange things to people and have them reacting in ways they never thought themselves capable of. What I'm about to share with you are some of my reactions that I encountered personally during my time in self quarantine and maybe you can relate.

MARCH(A normal habit or a full blown addiction?)

Routine, ugh sounds like a boring word! And yet, a majority of us simply can not function the same without some level of it in our lives. Perhaps you have that same morning date with Starbucks for that coffee and bagel, or maybe you're more the long term, steady and committed to your gym type. Then there are those who have an extremely personal, possibly unhealthy and wonderful relationship with your barber/hair stylist or nail technician that you see every to every other week. For myself, I fall into the first category, that's right mama loves her coffee! Waking up to the smell of a freshly brewed pot of coffee lets me know I'm starting my day off right. However, when I became pregnant for the first time last year, my doctor informed me I could only have 200 milligrams of caffeine per day, PER DAY! Now, for someone who tends to enjoy a smooth, rich cup of feel good morning, noon and night....I had to figure something out and quick!

Que entrance to Starbucks! Now, I've always enjoyed my cold coffee fix from Starbucks and as it turns out their venti iced chai latte was the answer to my pregnant during summertime needs, containing 120 milligrams of that sweet sweet caffeine. It became my almost everyday go to, even after I gave birth to my beautiful son. To put it mildly, I was hooked. App downloaded, check. Personal Starbucks cup for extra discount, double check. Ready to be able to only go through drive thru and possibly wait 30 minutes or more for my fix because of the shutdown, ABSOLUTELY FREAKING NOT! I mean I love my coffee just as much as the next person who has partially accepted they might have a problem but how darkly brewed and deep does that love run? It was then, I confess, that I realized Starbucks had become my high quality escort and my Starbucks coffee tumbler the (probably over priced) hotel room I purchased to always take her to. I would drive around the parking lot of my nearest Starbucks like a prowling creeper just to see what the line looked like that day and other days. I'd even go at different times! Alas, there were always twenty cars or more in line between us and I could never bring myself to wait.

Where do I go from here? Like any jaded lover, the only place I can always rely on, Target. That's right I choose to walk the isles of good old Target and purchase packs of Starbucks cold brew coffee in Vanilla and Caramel. Only to then take them home and pour them over ice in my (yup, you guested it) Starbucks tumbler just so I could remember what the sensation of it used to feel like on my lips. So, is this a normal reaction or do I possibly have a full blown addiction? Some of you may say, "At least you weren't one of the many in line!" while others will ask,"Why didn't you just make your own at home?". Thoughts may vary but there are those of you who may have done the same as me.

Just a Girl and Her Coffee

While now I can look back and laugh as I find the humor in writing about it, the truth is my actions stem from a place of wanting to get back to a sense of normalcy. Something I think even now we are still attempting to get back to in our own ways. So whatever phase of quarantine you may still be in I hope you are able to find that one thing that brings some peace, normalcy and even routine back into your life. Stay Safe and Healthy out there folks!

If you enjoyed the read there are two more confessions to go in the Quarantine Confessions so keep a look out and feel free to share the love by doing any the following:

  • Sharing the story on your social media!
  • Following me on instagram @happymom.healthylife
  • Leaving a tip in support of publishing my first book
  • OR just keep reading!

Thank You!

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About the Creator

Michelle Chaparro

Just an Imperfect Person trying to Inspire & Encourage Others.

You want to know more? Well, I'm a mother to one beautiful son & wife to one very blessed Hubby! I'm a LMT born in Chicago & raised in AZ. I like my days warm & my coffee iced

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