Nobody loves a sale more than I do. I relish the idea of picking up something for next to nothing and have even signed up for e-mails that announce all of the discounted items at my favorite shops. For me, discovering that something special -- on sale -- is like finding buried treasure.
But what if you need to feel like you're discovering buried treasure every day? What if you use shopping to feel more control in your life? To help soothe depression? According to a 2006 Stanford University study, shopping addiction affects as much as 6 percent of the U.S. population. And while it seems to be an addiction that affects mostly women, it actually affects both sexes in equal numbers.
According to one article from the World Psychiatric Association compulsive shopping tends to run in families, and these families are filled with mood and substance use disorders. There may also be the tendency for obsessive-compulsive, avoidant and borderline personality disorder types, the article states.
And apparently, researchers have identified four distinct phases linked to compulsive shopping disorder that include anticipation, preparation, shopping and spending.
Other behavior noted by scientists are that most of those afflicted tend to shop by themselves and most typically purchase clothing, shoes, compact discs, jewelry, cosmetics and household items. Compulsive shoppers spend between $90 and $110 per episode.
But it's not necessarily how or what's purchased that determines if you're experiencing compulsive buying disorder, but rather how it makes you feel. Once the act of shopping is completed, there seems to be a sense of let down or disappointment and some of those in studies say they have felt depression, anxiety, boredom, anger and self-critical thoughts.
You may be able to evaluate your shopping habits based on the following questions ...
Do you feel overly preoccupied with shopping and spending?;
Do you ever feel that your shopping behavior is excessive, inappropriate or uncontrolled?;
Have your shopping desires, urges, fantasies, or behaviors ever been overly time consuming, caused you to feel upset or guilty, or lead to serious problems in your life such as financial or legal problems or the loss of a relationship?
One important note from the study is that normal buying behavior needs to be ruled out of the equation for compulsive shopping disorder. Shopping is a major pastime, especially for women and normal buying can sometimes take on a compulsive quality especially around the holidays.
Have you ever felt like your shopping habits have crossed the line into compulsiveness? How did you cope with it?
All user-generated information on this site is the opinion of its author only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for any medical conditions. Members and guests are responsible for their own posts and the potential consequences of those posts detailed in our Terms of Service.
Add a Comment3 Comments
I looked this up because I feel like I have no reason to get out of bed if I cant shop. All I think about is what I can buy next. And how soon. My fiance is trying to help by taking hold of the money, but he seems to give in every couple of days. And on the off days, I'm miserable. It feels so good while doing it, but its like I come down from my shopping high within a couple hours of being home. All I can think of is my next fix. Or recieving packages, makes me happy, but its shortlived as well. What do I do?
June 13, 2011 - 4:24pmThis Comment
What is scary to me is that shopping addiction is just as harmful as alcohol addiction in many ways. I know several people who have been through recovery programs for shopping and alcohol addiction, and both say they weren't acting like themselves.
March 31, 2011 - 10:43amThis Comment
When I was in my 20s, I think I came close to having a compulsive shopping disorder. I had a job and had money of my own for the first time, my work schedule started at 1 p.m., so I had mornings free to explore the town and shop! It started out as fun and diversion but I remember the day I realized that I was walking around the mall and had walked around that very same mall looking at the very same salespeople and the very same racks the day before. I realized that if you're shopping often enough that the salespeople are beginning to recognize you, you're probably shopping too much.
I also remember what broke me of the habit. I saw a blouse, skirt and sweater set that I fell totally in love with. It cost some huge amount of money then -- I think $315 for the whole set, which was far, far out of my budget. But I tried it on, and I can honestly say I felt like i HAD to have it. Even though it didn't make sense, and even though I didn't need it, and even though at that same moment I knew it cost too much, I had to have it.
Long story short, I never did enjoy that outfit much. I think it was a bit like food poisoning -- once you have too much of something and it makes you sick, you have an aversion to that in the future. Sort of the same thing happened to me with that outfit and with my desire to be out shopping and seeing what I could find in the stores on any given day.
Now that credit markets are tightening up, it may be harder for people to come across enough credit to really get themselves in trouble. But I have seen stories of people running up $10,000, $30,000, even $75,000 in credit card debt due to their shopping problem. It wasn't that long ago that credit card offers kept pouring in through the mail, and people would pay one off with another one and go on that way for a long time. By the time it catches up with you, you have debts that take years to clear up and you still have to figure out what emotional need it was that you were trying to fill while shopping.
Here's a good page that identifies compulsive shopping symptoms and tells how to find help if you think you might need it:
http://www.recoveryconnection.org/addiction/compulsive_shopping.php
November 28, 2008 - 5:58pmThis Comment