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Medicine for a Broken Heart

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Within my group of friends,

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when one of us is struggling with a recent breakup

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after a long-term relationship,

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the castaway will be sad and depressed.

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The response to sadness takes one of two courses —

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either appetite fails totally,

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or we eat excessively to quell our yearnings over lost loves.

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If one of the girls in my dorm

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wants to indulge her appetite for food after a breakup,

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we all join in.

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We all eat terrible food in terrible quantities.

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For instance, ice cream, cakes, cookies and potato chips

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all become comfort foods that we consume in excess.

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I think this happens for a variety of reasons.

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To begin with, at my age — nineteen —

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we are all very concerned with our physical appearance.

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We want to be attractive,

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to have the kind of body image our society values.

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To that end, we moderate what kinds of foods we eat,

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how much, and how often;

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and we often overexert ourselves at the gym trying to burn off extra calories.

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We maintain good habits to keep up good appearance

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and thereby maintain a good relationship.

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However, when anyone experiences something as stressful

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and emotionally draining as a broken heart,

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he or she tends to disregard healthy habits

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and takes some pleasure in consuming those formerly forbidden foods.

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Of course, it is all a vicious circle.

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We lose our boyfriends,

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we become depressed,

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we eat, we gain weight (which, in turn, depresses us),

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we struggle to regain our self-respect,

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we enter into another relationship, and the cycle goes on.

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Food is not the only recourse for a sad lover.

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One friend of mine soothes her broken heart by going shopping —

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buying new clothes and new shoes, maybe a piece of jewelry —

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to make herself feel better.

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Whether it’s food or shopping,

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self-indulgence is often good medicine for the blues,

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if it is not carried to excess.

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The worst response is turning to alcohol or drugs.