Last night I was with a friend and we went to the movies. During the break, we stepped outside for a cigarette and got locked out (our dumbasses went through the emergency door, not meant to open again). So we left. Then he had this random idea: “let’s drive to Rome.” It was already pretty late, we were in Naples. I said yes.

Somewhere on the highway we stopped for an energy drink. We both got a Monster. I drank mine and I still felt sleepy after a while, so I drank the rest of his too (maybe half a can, not more). Two minutes later, my brain flipped on. I was alert, like unnaturally alert.

We got to Rome. Walked around the Colosseum. He had what he called “the best kebab in Rome,” I didn’t eat since I wasn’t hungry at all. We stayed maybe an hour or so, then got back in the car to head home. During the way back we picked up a lost tourist, he had no phone. We helped him. That part was strangely calm.

Then it hit me as we approached the highway. Suddenly I was freezing. He was sweating. My heart was racing. We stopped at a gas station and I went to the bathroom where I peed a ridiculous amount of clear liquid. Got water, tried to eat something (a pain au chocolat, just a couple bites but it tasted like shit). We stopped again later, same thing.

I genuinely thought I was about to collapse or have some kind of heart thing. I was shaking. My body kept doing this weird thing like it was falling asleep in jolts (I think it’s called microsleep) like falling and waking up at the same time. Not mental, it felt more like something my nervous system was doing by itself.

Near home I managed to close my eyes for 5 minutes, and that short nap made everything a little less intense.

Woke up this morning still wired. Still anxious. Like the experience is stuck in me, somehow.

But I don’t think it was mental panic though, meaning I think it was more physical (my body reacting to too much caffeine, not enough food, no sleep, too much motion).\ I mean 1.5 Monsters, 50 kilos of a man, no dinner. Of course something went wrong.

I’m writing this to remember it. So next time I think I’m just tired, I’ll maybe stop and check what else I’ve ignored.