Shopaholism: what is it and how to get rid of it?

Man evolves, changes, and mental disorders change with him. One of the last, entered in the reference books of psychiatrists, was shopaholism. A seemingly innocuous occupation — to go shopping and make purchases — is capable of disfiguring the life of a person, his relatives, and unrecognizably change his personality.

In the language of doctors and scientists, shopaholism is called the beautiful word oniomania. This definition comes from the Greek words “onius” - “for sale” and “mania” - “madness”. Thus, the problem is an irrational irresistible desire to buy at least something. At the same time, the shopaholic does not ask about the appropriateness of the purchase, its necessity; The positive emotions that accompany it become a kind of drug, dependence develops on them.

As a medical term, the definition of “oniomania” was first proposed in the 19th century by a psychiatrist from Germany Emil Kraepelin, who, with his colleagues, was the first to notice the strange behavior of some people in shopping centers and shops. Psychiatrists around the world agree that shopaholism is a mental disorder, and only representatives of the American Psychiatric Association for a long time refused to recognize the excessive painful passion for shopping with the disease. And only in 2009, American doctors first recognized that the behavior of a shopaholic is identical to the behavior of patients with manic symptoms.

Statistics say that with the development of large shopping centers and large shops, shopaholism has gained almost epidemic proportions.In Germany alone, about a million people suffer from oniomania, in the USA there are about 13 million such people, in the UK there are about 700 thousand such patients, in Italy, Spain and Scotland up to 40% of women aged 15 to 35 suffer from one form or another oniomania. And the number of shopaholics is growing, because now to enjoy shopping you don’t even need to go to the store, just order everything on the Internet.

The consequences of shopaholism are very similar to the consequences of alcoholism, drug addiction, gambling. And this means that oniomania cannot be considered a bad habit - it is a mental disorder. Here are just some of the common consequences of an unstoppable craving to buy:

• huge personal and family debts (a monthly salary can go in a matter of minutes);
• the crime of the law is shoplifting, fraud, extortion, prostitution, because a shopaholic in search of resources for purchases is ready for anything like a drinking person for a glass of alcohol, and a drug addict for a dose of a stupefying substance;
• divorces, family breakdown, personal disorder and loneliness - and psychology here is powerless.

Sociologists and doctors have noticed that pandemic outbreaks of oniomania are recorded during periods of holiday promotions and sales. Due to an irresistible craving for purchases, the wife of the famous football player David Beckham Victoria had to lay her house for debts. Singer Britney Spears has become a shopaholic fleeing depression, which fell into during treatment for drug addiction. Shopping helped her cheer up. But not for long. Great debts formed very soon, Britney suffered a severe nervous breakdown and again went to a psychiatric hospital.

Hollywood actress Cameron Diaz - shopaholic with experienceShe brings purchases home and doesn’t even unpack numerous packages. There is no need for this - the pleasure of the process is received. Newspaper tycoon William Hurst, who died in 1951, suffered from severe oniomania - he bought completely unnecessary things. The peak was the acquisition of "from the longing" of the Spanish monastery of the X century in Segovia for 40 thousand dollars. In order to deliver the purchase to the tycoon, I had to dismantle the monastery on stones, number them and send Hirst along a specially constructed branch of the railway.

Women often suffer from shopaholism, while the age is not significant. The peculiarity of this mental disorder is that shopaholics themselves proudly admit their weaknesses, they make themselves victims of addiction and easily demonstrate dependence to others. Alcoholics and drug addicts, admittedly, are more modest in demonstrating their addictions.

The reasons that can lead to an unhealthy attitude to shopping are numerous. Doctors believe that the cornerstone of this kind of dependence is a lack of attention, a feeling of loneliness, an inner void empty of anything. Shopaholics are in dire need of love and recognition, in realization. Another common reason that German experts point to is a state of depression. A person can immerse in it due to a variety of life circumstances. And at some point it may seem that shopping gives a feeling of illusory happiness, so necessary for depressed individuals.

Among the other reasons that make the obsessed shopaholic “no brakes” out of the ordinary buyer are several factors.

• Reduced self-control. Enthusiastic personalities often do not know how to stop at the right time.
• The need for an adrenaline surge. A real chemical dependence is produced from this hormone, and the more often a person “catches” adrenaline, the higher the need for it.Buying is a mini-stress, and it is also accompanied by an increased level of certain hormones.
• The illusion of omnipotence and power. Pay attention to how shopaholics choose purchases - they do not just take things, they take things that can be conditional symbols of power. In addition, at the time of purchase, sellers are helpful to the buyer, praise him, respect and flatter - in such an environment, it is easy to feel like a more significant person.
• The illusion of freedom. The shopaholic respects himself, he has the illusion of choice, freedom of choice. It is especially pleasant when he acquires not what is needed, but that "he just wanted to."

The prerequisites that lead to the development of oniomania are also numerous. These are the features of parenting in childhood, and relationships with peers in adolescence, and personal experience of love relationships. Quite often, shoppers become people whose parents used to save money on everything - that’s how they break personal stereotypes, and the wrong attitudes borrowed from youth that “fashion clothes make you more popular and more desirable”, “money solve everything” make it possible to compensate for failures in personal life, childlessness, a failed career.

It is impossible not to note the social factor - we are literally imposed on buying: advertising, promotions, sales and discounts for impressionable and in their own way unhappy people with great inner emptiness - this is an outlet, and for entrepreneurs - only a way of enrichment. Advertising has an obsessive effect on the psyche, indicating not only that the purchase will make a person happier, more successful, give it a status, but also dictate and shape tastes. This is a massive manipulation, but many do not realize the simple truth - our minds are mercilessly manipulated. Advertising promises to improve well-being, life, appearance, gaining success and recognition. Only one thing is needed - to buy, and all problems will be resolved.

How to distinguish a shopaholic from an ordinary shopping fan is an obvious and predictable question. It is not difficult to do this, because for a dependent person manic acts are characteristic. Shopaholic can:

• to go to the store just like that, without a purpose, without a clearly formulated desire to buy something specific;
• the shopaholic spends a lot of time in the store until he inspects, tries on, touches most of the goods presented, he does not calm down;
• when a choice is made, a true shopaholic will not be able to answer the question, for what reason, for what criteria he chose what he chose, he simply does not have a single objective valid reason for such a choice;
• oniomanes can study fashion magazines with great interest for a long time, while an ordinary person can be quite fluent in viewing such publications;
• the dependent person after the purchase can spend hours and even several days discussing their purchase with others;
• if it is not possible to go to the store or make a purchase, the addict becomes depressed, characterized mainly by apathy - everything loses its meaning, nothing is interesting;
• addicted to shopping do not know how to save, they sometimes squander money to the last penny, without thinking about how they will continue to live.

After a day of shopping, when the euphoria passes, the shopaholic may regret the purchase, spare the money spent on an unnecessary purchase, and promise that it won’t happen anymore. But the need for adrenaline soon makes itself felt again, and he again completes the shopping cycle in a state resembling a trance. When negative consequences ensue - debts, divorce, conviction, rejection by relatives, the addict begins to experience signs of personality destruction.He falls into aggression, which is replaced by apathy, sleep is disturbed, there are problems with blood pressure, headaches, sleep disturbances, obsessions, hallucinations are possible.

Oniomanians are different, but the division is very arbitrary. The end of such a story for any type will be one - loneliness, illness, dependence on alcohol or psychotropic substances, debts, ruined life. So, conditionally dependent can be divided into several categories.

• Conscious Shopaholic - understands the problem, does not deny that he is acting illogically, erroneously, is well aware of the possible consequences, but also knows that he will not be able to cope with the next attack of mania. Often uses weakness to relieve tension, fatigue, finds excuse.
• Spontaneous shopaholic - Trying to control himself, even shopping lists can make. But all the same, he will gain too much, justifying his actions with stocks, discounts, sales.
• Purposeful shopaholic - does not differ in an adequate perception of his problem, does not recognize it. Denies the consequences, perceives criticism as a manifestation of hostility. He spends everything up to a penny, cannot justify after an attack, why, in general, he went to the store, how much he bought, and why he did it.
• True shopaholic - he buys for the sake of purchase, sometimes without trying, things are not suitable for him in size, but this does not bother him. The further fate of the acquired goods is uninteresting. Only the acquisition process is important.
• Latent shopaholic - a person does not recognize himself as such, he always plans purchases, and takes only what he planned, but in huge quantities that exceed several times reasonable limits. They always have an excuse for this - there was a campaign “buy 10 for the price of 1” or “the prices were so reduced that I decided to take it for the future”.

You can get rid of oniomania, and the problem is solved in the same way as most other behavioral problems. First of all, you need to understand that shopaholism is not just a bad habit, it’s a disease, and therefore just taking and stop shopping and buying up everything that you liked will not work. A person cannot stop getting sick at will. First you need to take the word - this is a disease, and it must be treated. Having understood this, you do not need to look for excuses, but you need to contact a specialist who can prescribe adequate treatment - a psychiatrist or a psychotherapist.

For the treatment of shopaholism, various methods of psychotherapy are used. The doctor can determine the circumstances in which the desire to go shopping most often occurs. Further, work with the patient will be aimed at the precise exclusion of the causes that most often lead to a breakdown.

Cope with the problem quickly will not work, it will take a long time to fight. At the second stage, the therapist creates new, correct attitudes so that the person can change his view of the purchase process as a whole.

Psychotherapy without fail includes working with the sensual sphere - it is important to reduce the influence of guilty feelings, fear of loneliness, a person must learn to live correctly and negative feelings.

At this stage, sometimes medical support for the psychotherapeutic course is required - antidepressants, sleeping pills to normalize sleep, sedatives. But medicines will only be useful if their use is combined with psychotherapeutic treatment. It is impossible to overcome oniomania with medicines alone.

At the rehabilitation stage, it is important for a person to visit a support group, to learn how to correctly and clearly plan their time, their budget, especially its expenditure. If a person has a motivation to get rid of shopaholism, he will be able, the forecasts are favorable.

Prevention of the disorder includes a few simple, inherently, tips that all customers should take note of, because a potential shopaholic lives in each of us.

• Always plan your purchases. - whether it’s a major acquisition or a household “trifle”. Study the market in advance, look at models, prices, assortment. Well imagine what you want to buy. Try to find at least two places where such a product is offered cheaper than the original price. This takes time, and it will help to avoid a spontaneous purchase. When planning to buy something, do not even try to justify in your thoughts the opportunity to buy additionally some kind of accessory to the main purchase. Need an accessory - buy it later, going to the selection on the same principle.
• Remember that a promotion and a discount are not a reason to make a purchase. Because the product suddenly dropped in price, it did not become more needed just for you.
• Do not shop for the future - there is a high probability that the thing will never come in handy.
• "New collection" - This is a concept from which, in general, you need to stay away. This automatically means high prices. If you want exactly the thing from the new collection, wait a little, in a month this collection will participate in the sale.
• Stop using credit cards. It is convenient to borrow. But it is precisely this opportunity that contributes to the development of addiction. Paying only with a debit card or cash will help you better understand how much you spend and how much you have left.
• Do not take large amounts when leaving the house. Limit yourself to a minimum - for travel, for lunch, for food for dinner. So there will be no temptation to urgently buy your favorite dress from the window that you were walking past.