If just reading Elizabeth Hartney’s fictional account of “the day to day experience of shopping addiction” on about.com leaves you feeling exhausted, try to imagine what it’s like to really have a shopping problem. Here’s a sample of what Hartney describes: Wake up and make yourself two cups of coffee in your expensive new coffee… Continue reading A Day in the Life of a Shopaholic
Author: Carrie Rattle
Carrie Rattle is a Principal at BehavioralCents.com, a website for women focused on mind and money behaviors. She has worked in the financial services industry for 20+ years and hopes to inspire women to better prepare themselves for financial independence.
Things to Know About Compulsive Hoarding
Compulsive hoarding is an anxiety disorder that affects nearly 1.4 million Americans. That number demands more research. There’s a lot to know about hoarding that could help you or a loved one. It is only linked to OCD in some cases. The OCD Collaborative Genetics Study reported that there is a different genetic link between… Continue reading Things to Know About Compulsive Hoarding
Eat, Shop and Be Merry? (Part II)
My first conscious awareness of the relationship between eating disorders and compulsive shopping came in the early 90’s at a national conference on eating disorders. Catherine Steiner-Adair, in her keynote address, asked the audience what we thought were the two major ways women had for dealing with the ups and downs of life. The silence… Continue reading Eat, Shop and Be Merry? (Part II)
‘High-end’ Hoarder Buried Home
Many women -and men too – love shoes, but when you have over $20,000 worth of them, it’s probably time to reconsider your consumption. Monte, a retired teacher, had “mountainous piles” of shoes. “I was shopping myself to death,” Monte admitted in August of last year. She attributes her shopping addiction to a painful divorce,… Continue reading ‘High-end’ Hoarder Buried Home
Retail Therapy Is Not Helping
Blogger Amy Hoover dates the rise of shopping addictions to the 1990s. It’s no coincidence that this is the same time the internet made shopping a 24/7 possibility. Society has long encouraged “keeping up with the Jones,” and commercials try to convince us that we are only as good as our shoes or purses and… Continue reading Retail Therapy Is Not Helping
When Shopping and Saving Get Extreme
A one-time shopping spree is probably not a symptom of a behavioral addiction; neither is getting pleasure from using a helpful coupon to save money on a planned purchase. Saving can be a good habit too. It can help you to think about your consumption habits and you might find a way to repurpose an item… Continue reading When Shopping and Saving Get Extreme
You’ve Stopped Overshopping…Now What?
Today I’d like to focus on a topic that can cause real anxiety in people who are addicted to shopping: what to do when you stop. If you shop to ease anxiety or soothe grief, what will you do when you feel down if that outlet is no longer available to you? If you shop… Continue reading You’ve Stopped Overshopping…Now What?
Why Compulsive Shopping and Spending?
The internet, TV shopping channels, and credit cards have made shopping even easier. While this has been great for businesses, it hasn’t been so great on consumers, who now face the temptation to purchase at any time of day, from anywhere. Easy availability of credit and a popular culture with a strong material focus have… Continue reading Why Compulsive Shopping and Spending?
Seasonal Shopaholic?
Not everyone is a year-round shopaholic. For many people, this addiction only comes along during the holidays as an emotional response to seasonal loneliness or anxiety. Shopping desires are triggered by an increased influx of commercials and advertisements in the mail, on walls, on television and the radio. Additionally, the holiday season can feel like… Continue reading Seasonal Shopaholic?
Understanding a Shopping Addiction
A shopping addiction can provide entertainment for television and movies as in the show “My Shopping Addiction” and the popular movie “Confessions of a Shopaholic.” Far from being glamorous, this disorder can cause serious trouble in real life. It can be hard to spot this addictive behavior, but it is more common than you may think. Behind… Continue reading Understanding a Shopping Addiction