Activation of the (seemingly) present-day child-ego occurs when we revert to a childlike state. This does not mean that adults abandon all logic or hide in a corner, sucking their thumb. Activation of the (seemingly) present-day child-ego results in adults making decisions based on emotions, whims, primitive fears, deference to parental figures despite their own opinions or a refusal to think about the consequences.
• Stimulants
The most extreme example of this is someone high on drugs going out and blowing money on mindless consumption. They may be partying hard, committing acts of violence with a view of invincibility or giving in to raw urges for sexual contact without thinking about the risk of disease or pregnancy. Decisions made when high from stimulants are rarely wise, which is one reason why most stimulants are illegal.
• Depressants
The effects of depressants ranging from beer and wine to prescription drugs are mind-numbing. One cannot think well when under their effect unless they were previously manic. The adult ego holding the child ego in check weakens or fades away, resulting in wild behavior as the child-ego is activated. Think of all the stories of crazy stunts carried out while drunk that the survivors regretted once sober. Activation of the (seemingly) present-day child-ego while the adult ego was suppressed by depressants is the primary cause of this.
• Fatigue
Have you ever been too tired to think? When we are tired, poisons are literally building up in the body. Exhaustion clouds the mind. Children who approach tired parents to ask for desired things discover this time can result in parents saying yes to something they would refuse earlier in the day, just to be allowed to rest or to sleep.Fatigue can cloud judgment in the evening. After a long day, adults may choose to rush through work just to be done with it.
They can also suffer the activation of the (seemingly) present-day child-ego. The tired person who wanders with friends to a bar or party as a reward for their hard work is giving in to the child ego, when their adult ego would dictate going to bed instead.
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