Interesting. Lots of questions come to
mind from that post but I will just stick
to your question. While I seriously
doubt there is a medical condition that
creates an urge to frequent only
convenience stores, there is a possibility
it could be a byproduct of a well known
mental condition. Obsessive
compulsiveness can take many many
different forms and, I think, could be a
reasonable explanation for frequenting
convenience stores. To be considered an
obsessive compulsive disorder (ocd), it
would have to be an uncontrollable urge
that the person knows is strange and
unnecessary but feels they are unable to
get on with their day until they satisfy
it.
Ocd can take many different forms and have
many different degrees of severity. A
minor example could be someone who cracks
the knuckles of one hand but cannot fight
the urge to crack the knuckles of the
other hand, even if they don't feel like
they need to be cracked. Some people
feel like to just do one hand would make
the other "jealous" so they must do the
other one.
A major example could be someone who is
obsessive about many things - such as
making sure all the fringe on an oriental
rug is perfectly straight or washing their
hands everytime they touch something or
even leaving for work but having to come
back inside 10 or 15 times to make sure
the coffee pot is turned off.
As long as the obsession doesn't interfere
with a person's daily life or consume all
of one's time such that they are unable to
work or have a normal life, it is
sometimes best to chalk it up to being
that particular person's little tic.
Everyone has a little tic - something that
is just a part of them, the only
difference is that it doesn't consume
their life. Mine is even if I know I
already set the alarm clock, once I get
into bed I have to get out just one more
time and make sure it is turned on. I
only do it once, but I do it every single
night and I can't sleep unless I check.
Everyone is crazy in their own right, but
maybe that makes being a little crazy
actually normal
