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The compulsion to shop: Symptoms of shopping addiction

Shopping addiction often occurs similar to a seizure. It is often associated with certain triggers. This can include stress and frustration, among other things. Everyone knows the situation of the so-called "frustration purchase". Trouble in the office or stress with the partner, then gladly on-line or however in the shopping centre a not compellingly needed pair of shoes or a DVD is bought. In principle, such frustration purchases are unproblematic, they are regarded as so-called compensatory actions and have the function of suppressing problems and eliminating frustration for a short time. Such a compensatory action may not sound reasonable at first, but it is a normal mechanism of the human psyche. If a person would immediately deal with every problem or frustration he experiences, the result would be excessive demands. A short-term distraction through frustration buying is therefore socially recognized and tolerated. Boredom and escaping from the dreary and depressing daily routine can also drive people into shopping addiction.

However, if these frustration purchases become uncontrollable, the boundary to pathological or pathological behaviour is crossed. Usually this transition happens fluently and is not perceived at first. Therefore, a buying addiction usually goes unnoticed for a longer period of time. The inability to regulate oneself and to permanently compensate one's problems by buying is perceived as a pathological element. Fatal is at the beginning of the buying addiction that the addicts often even get recognition and attention from their environment for their purchases. The environment feels envy and respect for the expensive purchases and does not initially come up with the idea that the purchasing behaviour of the person concerned may no longer correspond to the norm. This attitude confirms the shopping addict's behaviour, as he has achieved what he is so desperately looking for: Attention, care, attention. Often these emotions are confused with honest sympathy, but in the long run they are no substitute for the inner emptiness that the affected person feels a short time later. In order to restore the experienced feeling, the next shopping frenzy follows.

The problem of recognising a buying addiction, however, is not only due to the fact that it comes creepingly. The social reputation of shopping addiction is by no means as bad as that of drug or alcohol addiction. There is no stigmatisation of the shopping addict and the critical perception of the environment is by no means as sharpened as is the case with other addictions.

Characteristics of buying addiction

The primary most important characteristic of buying addiction is the urge to buy something that is not actually needed. The shopping addict acts impulsively and purchases excessively, especially at an advanced stage of the disease.

At the beginning of a shopping tour, whether online or in the shop, most people feel feelings such as anger, grief, frustration, loneliness or anxiety. Often the feeling of an inner emptiness, which is to be filled by shopping, is also described.

A typical feature of shopping addicts is that the acquired goods are generally not used and are no longer taken into account after the purchase. For example, it is not uncommon for shopping addicts to accumulate several televisions or 20 pairs of identical shoes. It is even common that the articles are never unpacked or that food from the special offer rots and is not eaten.

It's about the act of buying for the addict, not the goods or services they get. This act is associated with a feeling of strong excitement, tension or excitement. When you buy, you feel relief, happiness and satisfaction. After shopping, there is a feeling of remorse and a guilty conscience. These feelings often occur when leaving the department store, but a return of the goods is often categorically excluded. If they return the goods out of bad conscience, they tend to make a new purchase out of frustration that exceeds the value of the previous purchase. A feeling of helplessness is typical for shopaholics in this context. Although they see through the harmfulness of their behaviour, they cannot free themselves from it on their own.

Typical of the consequences of buying addiction is the feeling of no longer having control over one's own will and having nothing to oppose the urge to buy. Those affected feel powerless against their own feelings and have the feeling of losing control over their lives and over themselves.

Current activities are often interrupted in order to give in to the urge to buy. This can lead to a frustrating argument at work, the work is then interrupted and the person concerned goes to a department store to suppress the frustration and push it away.

Buying is increasingly becoming the centre of life and determines the whole of life. As soon as you wake up, your thoughts revolve around possible purchases. The shopping orgies do not necessarily occur daily, however, but can appear in phases. Particularly at times when shopping is socially normal and deliberate, as in the pre-Christmas period or in special sales, the shopping addict can pursue his addiction inconspicuously.

Those affected tend to justify their behaviour and point out that they have only bought special offers and can therefore save money. The reference to the fact that the money is earned by oneself or that one finally earned this purchase is not uncommon. Also, the intention to save from the next month on and to pay bills and debts are typical for a shopping addiction. Buying addicts tend not only to justify their behavior, but tell lies about their buying behavior or the real price or amount they have spent.

There is almost always a financial loss, as people who are addicted to buying purchase products beyond their financial means. There is a great danger of cashless shopping with free credit cards, as the inhibition threshold drops. The overview of money already spent is quickly lost, and studies have also shown that credit card holders spend more money on purchases than people who shop with cash. According to studies, those affected actually tend to prefer payment with a credit card to cash. They also seem to develop a certain dependency on their credit card and don't want to leave the house without it.

The shopping addiction is hidden, because beside the shame about one's own behaviour the fear of criticism plays a dominating role. Fear of criticism is closely associated with low self-esteem. If those affected do not live alone, they hide the products in the cellar, give them away to friends or family or sell them again at rock-bottom prices on the Internet. If the household is run alone, Messie syndrome may occur. In contrast to alcohol addiction, which is recognizable by an alcohol flag, or drug addiction, which is associated with many physical symptoms, shopping addiction can be relatively well hidden externally. The person concerned cannot see their addiction from the outside, and the condition of the apartment does not have to be an indication of buying addiction.

For outsiders, the descriptions of those affected are particularly conspicuous. Emotional life seems to depend exclusively on material goods and to be defined by them. In particular, formulations that implicitly indicate that a person is only well when he or she can buy something in particular are a clear warning.

If those affected suffer from shopping addiction for a longer period of time, their self-esteem deteriorates considerably. Depression and suicidal thoughts can result. From a certain point in time, the effects of buying addiction cannot be confined to the financial sphere alone. The previously attacked psyche is pulled further down and fears determine more and more life. The fear of losing one's job, one's family, friends and one's position in life, is now dominant. Especially when the pressure from outside, be it at work or from the family, is increasing, many people believe that it would be a relief for their environment if they no longer lived.

Withdrawal symptoms

If it is not possible for the person concerned to have to buy something to give in to the compulsion, withdrawal symptoms occur. Withdrawal symptoms are another typical symptom and also occur in other addictions. Symptoms of withdrawal symptoms usually occur when the financial means have been exhausted or when those affected are prevented from being able to continue buying.

The objection that there can be no physical withdrawal symptoms in an addiction that is not dependent on a particular drug or alcohol is only partially justified. In the case of shopping addiction, the body gets used to the increased release of dopamine, the happiness hormone, which has a calming or intoxicating effect. If this regular release of dopamine is now abruptly stopped, there will be considerable mood swings. These mental withdrawal symptoms cannot of course be compared to heroin withdrawal, but they are experienced by those affected in a very agonizing way. The withdrawal symptoms of shopping addiction must therefore not be dismissed like shopping addiction itself, but the suffering of those affected is clearly present. The fact that suicidal thoughts and states of despair can occur under drastic purchase withdrawal shows the immense psychological suffering pressure of the concerning.

Withdrawal symptoms primarily include inner restlessness, which can turn into aggressiveness. Irritation and aggression can occur when it is no longer possible for those affected to pursue their addiction. Desperate and driven by inner restlessness, they may tend to develop other disorders, such as eating disorders, under withdrawal, or the underlying disease, such as depression, may worsen drastically in the course of "purchase withdrawal".

As already described, shopping addiction and its secondary and main diseases have an effect on the release of the neurotransmitter serotonin. If there is a clear lack of this transmitter, it can lead to increased impulsiveness and aggressiveness, which can be a further explanation for the withdrawal symptoms in a non-substance addiction.

Sleep disorders and depression can also occur, and withdrawal symptoms can even manifest themselves in psychosomatic disorders. Psychosomatic diseases are all diseases that have no physical but a mental cause.

Differences in purchasing behaviour

The buying behaviour can be very type-dependent and does not follow a generally valid pattern. It's not random, though. A specialization on certain products is usual. Irrespective of gender, there are those affected who only buy special offers, better known as "bargain hunters", or who purchase the goods depending on their emotions, or who start shopping indiscriminately in stressful situations. A collective delusion can also manifest itself in the form of buying addiction. The opposite of the bargain hunters are people who only buy luxury items and who are satisfied by buying high-priced items. Buying addicts, who predominantly buy luxury goods, have most likely cultivated a wasteful lifestyle even before their buying addiction and define themselves above all through their material possessions and strive to demonstrate them to the outside world.

Some of those affected concentrate their buying behaviour purely on online shopping, while others prefer to shop with cash or credit cards in shops. Which kind of shopping is preferred is very individual as well as the motives. If a childlike feeling like Christmas and unpacking presents is to be evoked, it seems more likely that the person concerned will choose online shopping. He may even resort to the option of having the order sent to him as a gift - many mail order companies now offer this option. Those, on the other hand, who prefer to buy locally and take advantage of comprehensive advice, attach great importance to external perception through contact with the sales staff. Regardless of the purchasing behaviour of the person concerned, the cause remains the same. The self-esteem is to be improved by the self-gift or the recognition from the outside.

Although the state of research on the frequency of buying addiction is insufficient, it has so far been possible to observe gender-specific buying behaviour. Basically, men and women differed in their buying behaviour.

Women often buy clothes, jewellery and cosmetics. Most men, on the other hand, tend to either buy prestige items such as cell phones or cars, or to go for entertainment products such as computer and console games. This buying behavior can be accordingly pronounced with a buying addiction. At a certain point in time, the people concerned buy far beyond their financial means, but at the beginning of their buying addiction, buying actions are oriented towards their social and financial status. Those who have had to live sparingly even before shopping addiction will probably not tend to want to buy several cars or expensive brand watches. A certain personal prevalence is certainly given, despite the fact that the goods are no longer paid attention after the purchase. After all, it would give the shopping addict little pleasure if he could not identify himself at all personally with the goods he is buying.

Since shopping addiction is based on a low self-esteem, importance is attached to the external perception of the products or services at the beginning of the addiction. Those affected try to present a socially conforming and ideal image of themselves, which in reality they do not correspond to at all. Often, however, there is a desire to sketch a picture of oneself that people think they need to be in order to be loved. Therefore, clothing, sporting goods or electronic objects are particularly suitable for improving perception. As shopping addiction progresses, the value of these products is not lost, so people do not switch to other less prestigious products. On the contrary, it may even be the case that shopping addicts are turning to more and more expensive products or the number of things they buy is increasing. However, they are increasingly losing personal value for those affected. The purchase is then in the foreground, no longer the goods themselves. The fact that shopping addicts are buying more and more and more expensive can be compared with an increase in dose, similar to people with a substance dependency. The reason for this is that the brain has already become accustomed to hormone secretion. If the product becomes more expensive, the "kick" for the affected person is greater and the euphoric effect occurs. A clear symptom of behavioral addiction.

At the beginning of the buying addiction, the choice of products and the motivation behind the buying of the affected persons was definitely present with calculation regarding the external perception and representation. These thoughts and feelings, however, are increasingly receding into the background. The affected person switches to a kind of "autopilot" at a certain point of his addiction and only pursues his compulsion or goes to the urge to have to shop.

Getting a shopping addiction under control: How to combat shopping addiction?

Shopping addiction is a so-called "secret" disease that is characterized by the fact that it can be hidden for a long time. In most cases, a longer period of time also passes before those affected become aware that they have a problem at all. If you notice your pathological behavior, you usually use a lot of energy to hide it from your environment. Justifications, secretiveness and lies make the environment suspicious and can lead to a break in interpersonal relationships. A central symptom of shopping addiction is the shame about the impulsive and senseless shopping is and thus closely related to the shame about the actual disorder. Those affected always seek few social contacts and isolate themselves, too great is the fear and shame that the environment might notice the shopping addiction. Or relatives and friends turn away from the affected person, because they reacted aggressively and unintelligently to their clues. However, there is a possibility that shopping addiction may arise as a result of social isolation and that shame may play a subordinate role due to a lack of social contacts. In this case, the insight into the pathological behaviour can only be gained very late, possibly only when the financial situation has become hopeless and the person concerned has to fear criminal consequences.

An insight into having to take action against shopping addiction is delayed by those affected. The social contacts and critical confrontation with the pathological buying behaviour can be missing, which is fatal for the buying addict himself. While in the beginning euphoria and adrenaline prevailed, desperation and remorse increasingly come to the fore. Those affected feel helpless, because at a certain point they are not only aware of their problematic situation, but also become aware that they can no longer manoeuvre themselves out of it alone without help. The feeling of powerlessness over compulsive behaviour places a heavy burden on those affected and, in addition to social isolation, causes conflicts in every area of life. Social isolation, financial situation and despair often lead to suicidal thoughts.

Insight into buying addiction itself

As a rule, a distinction is made between people who are addicted to shopping and those who are at risk of becoming addicted to shopping. If, for example, you find yourself in many of the symptoms and characteristics mentioned, but have not yet completely lost control over your purchasing behavior, you may be at risk of becoming addicted to shopping. Since shopping addiction goes through different phases and comes creepingly, people who frequently reward themselves with purchases should therefore keep an eye on their buying behaviour.

Buying addiction can basically be divided into three phases. In the first phase the joy about the purchased product still dominates and the act of purchase itself is secondary. However, this weighting increasingly shifts and the joy disappears and the act of purchase itself becomes the centre of attention. At this point, the aforementioned misdirected reward has already taken place in the brain. The act of purchase now releases the euphoric hormones. In the second phase there is a loss of control. The person concerned buys without measure and clearly exceeds his financial possibilities. In the third phase, the financial situation is already hopeless and the affected person recognizes above all his financial imbalance. However, he is incapable of freeing himself from this situation.

At this point it is important to understand that at the beginning of the buying addiction the person concerned is still enjoying his addiction and shopping and may even be happy about the things he has bought. Only when a certain amount of suffering arises as a result of the loss of control does the addiction to shopping begin to become a problem for the person concerned. A typical characteristic of people is that they want to have control over themselves and their lives. A permanent remote control through an uninfluenceable component such as shopping addiction is therefore tormenting for almost everyone.

If unused goods and products accumulate in the cellar or living quarters or the first reminders from the bank flutter into the house, relatives will be pricked up at the latest. In the run-up to the sale, the first lies or contradictory behaviour can already have made the partner or friends suspicious, especially with separate living rooms or separate cellar compartments, the shopping addiction can be concealed over a longer period of time. Some people also give away their purchased goods, so that the extent of the loss cannot be determined and can thus be hidden for even longer.

Buying addicts often develop a feeling very quickly that their behaviour is compulsive and, above all, pointless. Of course, they are not unaware that they have ten different mobile phones in their bedroom, of which only one is in use, or that four televisions in the basement are not necessary. The main reasons are the precarious financial situation, the frustration after shopping and the guilty conscience due to the pointless spending of money. Shame prevails and shopping addiction is swept under the carpet for a long time. The incipient insight into buying addiction can drive the person concerned even further into addiction. The distraction of shopping can cause another shopping frenzy to suppress the feelings of despair and personal inability or even inadequacy for a brief moment.

Thus, in the first place, there is no insight into shopping addiction itself, the problem is known to those affected and suffering pressure exists. Much more the insight must take place that their illness cannot be mastered without foreign assistance from the outside. As a first important step they have to learn to reduce their sense of shame and to become aware of addiction in all its facets.

If the obligation to buy is very pronounced, those affected cannot manage to escape this obligation permanently without outside help. Friends and family should carefully and above all empathetically seek the conversation, without throwing accusations around. If the affected person is in an unstable and depressive state, he needs outside support, as he is no longer able to free himself from this misery. For self-protection, some first aid measures should be observed in order to protect the person concerned from himself. If thoughts are expressed that point to self-endangerment in the form of self-injury or even statements about suicide, it may even be necessary to treat the affected person in hospital for a certain period of time. It should be noted that this description is not intended to panic, but only the extreme case. Buying addicts do not have to compulsively develop suicidal thoughts due to their overall mental condition. However, if there are strong accompanying symptoms or if the shopping addiction is clearly based on a psychological problem, an inpatient stay for shopping addicts can be a sensible option.

Shopping addiction is an addictive disorder

At the beginning of this guide it was mentioned that shopping addiction, unlike drug or alcohol addiction, is not recognised by the World Health Organisation as a separate disease. It is medically counted as an impulse control or obsessive-compulsive disorder and is not listed for addictions. Efforts are being made to change this, but this has not yet been achieved. Psychologists, however, argue that pathological behaviour should be considered an addictive disease because of its effects on the psyche and life.

An addiction is generally understood to be dependence on substances or behaviours. An addiction is a learned behaviour in which the affected person repeatedly rewards himself for his destructive behaviour. It takes place in three phases, in the first phase there is a loss of control, then tolerance development and withdrawal symptoms. An addiction is characterised by a vicious circle in which the various factors reinforce each other and ensure that the person concerned is pulled further and further downwards. It has already been mentioned that the loss of control when