Drug addiction

His old friend, over 60, was still very energetic. He often played badminton in the mornings, then arranged to meet him at a coffee shop near his house. Today, as usual, he was dressed all in white sportswear : white Adidas shoes, a white cap, only his badminton racket bag was black. As soon as he entered the shop, he sighed heavily and said, "It's fun going out, but it's stressful coming home."

He looked up from his smartphone screen, and before he could ask anything, the old man launched into a tirade: "My mother almost ended up in the emergency room yesterday." Then he went on and on, explaining that his elderly mother, in her late 80s, was thankfully very healthy for her age, but she was always obsessed with the idea that she had some illness and needed medication. Every month, she insisted he take her for a routine check-up to put her mind at ease. After the check-up, she was usually prescribed a whole bunch of supplements, from vitamins to joint pain medication. He sighed, usually buying enough for her to take gradually. Yesterday, she somehow mistakenly took a handful of pills; luckily, it didn't cause any serious consequences.

He reflected, realizing he had encountered a similar situation before, and calmly told the old man: "Well, that's still better. My aunt spends all day watching TV commercials for health supplements, and she orders all kinds. Now her house is full of supplements, many of them expired and lying around in drawers, ready to be thrown away. She refuses to listen to anyone who advises her to buy less medicine. Actually, these are people who aren't sick at all; their only illness is the constant fear of being sick."

After listening, his voice softened: "Perhaps as people get older, as they approach the end of their lives, the obsession with illness and health becomes more pronounced. We know it's an unavoidable law of nature, but deep down, unconsciously, people still resist it. At that point, taking medicine and supplements becomes their main reliance, giving them hope. Well, since he's like that, we'll just go along with it."

Seeing his pensive expression, he smiled and said, "Uncle, you exercise so much, rain or shine, I bet it's because of your obsession with health, right? Everyone has obsessions in life, it's just a matter of what kind of obsession!"

Source: https://laodong.vn/van-hoa-giai-tri/nghien-thuoc-1375910.ldo