9 Questions answered on Compulsive Shopping, Habits and Retail Therapy

In 2021, shoppers spent $27.34 trillion. 

Retail spending totalled 19.86 trillion dollars, while online spending totalled 5.76 trillion dollars, for a total of 27.34 trillion dollars.

1. Who goes shopping so much?

Individuals like you and I spent 6.6 trillion dollars on shopping in the United States alone, and 883 billion dollars in India. Shopping is said to be therapeutic; it may enhance your mood and help you relax.

2. But, how true are these arguments?

A scientific study that was published in the journal of consumer psychology, and asserts that making purchases helps people feel instantly extremely happy, as well as fights lingering sadness; in other words, science supports retail therapy, and the science behind retail therapy is a chemical called dopamine. It's a feel-good chemical that is released whenever you go or start shopping, even browsing shopping websites can release dopamine.

Here's what else is fascinating:

• Waiting for the parcel to arrive.
• The anticipation,
• The unpredictability
• What the end product may look like

All of this creates a dopamine-fuelled excitement; and when the parcels actually arrive, it's like Christmas every day. I'm sure you can all relate to the thrill of it of ripping open the package and discovering what's inside or trying on new things that are Retail Therapy.

According to science, Retail Therapy is about the entire experience, from visiting the store to browsing through the selection, trying on clothing or anything you like, and finally purchasing what you like. 

3. What makes shopping therapeutic?

Dopamine is one explanation; the second is that shopping makes you feel in control, which is based on the theory that sadness is associated with a sense of helplessness, as if you can't control what's going on in your life; shopping, on the other hand, comes with a sense of personal control and autonomy - that's a source of happiness; the question is how long does this last?

Another study, published in 2011, found that shopping has "long-lasting positive effects on mood."

4. Do individuals have second thoughts about going shopping?

According to the survey, individuals do make spontaneous purchases, but they do not regret them, at least not in most situations.

5. What happens to the others? When do individuals get second thoughts about shopping?

This is where the issue of money comes into play because a wallet does not like shopping as much as we do. Sure, many of you agree with the concept, “why to earn if you can't spend?” As brave as it may sound, this is not a particularly promising approach. Many of us battle with the saving vs spending dilemma with YOLO - Yolo's entire premise is that you only get one life, so spend it to your heart's delight.

If you spend more than you can afford, retail therapy becomes transient, meaning that while it rewards you with immediate euphoria, that euphoria does not persist. The conclusion of the narrative is that shopping is wonderful, yet like with other wonderful things in life, it must be done in moderation.

6. How do you engage in retail therapy without going bankrupt?

Can you focus on the experience rather than the purchase every time, which is what we call window shopping, and put the purchase on hold? Will it make you feel better? I will let you answer that question for me in the comment section.

7. Have you ever spent hours browsing an online store and then abandoned your card and checkout?

If you have, you will know that the experience of browsing and choosing can sometimes make you feel better; sometimes you have the benefit of retail before you checkout, so even if you're shopping at a mall, try putting your call on hold and stopping shopping the moment you start feeling better.

Another option is saving up, which can also be therapeutic. Just like when you're waiting for a package, you're counting down the days until you can make your purchase, with each deposit bringing you closer to your shopping bag, and this anticipation causes dopamine to be released.

So the underlying premise remains the same: Retail Therapy, like habit-forming drugs, may be addictive, and this is a trap you must avoid. This addiction is extensively chronicled in pop culture; for example, have you seen the movie Confessions of a Shopaholic? Real life is not much different.

Specifically referring to compulsive shopping, there's a blurred line between retail therapy and compulsive shopping, and it doesn't take long to cross that blurred line. When shopping transitions from therapeutic to addiction, it will become the only go-to way for dealing with stress or anxiety. However, when you have control over your expenditures, you may indulge in retail therapy because retail addiction causes you to desire to buy products even when you know you can't afford them.

Retail addiction is frequently followed by buyer's remorse therapy, Shopping addiction is also known as BSD buying shopping disorder; another term Is CBD compulsive buying disorder. Now, as a side note, compulsive purchasing disorder is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, but psychiatrists have been treating it as a condition for over a century.

Emil Kapalin, a German psychiatrist, described obsessive shopping illness as Oniomania in 1915. The etymology of the term is extremely intriguing onio is Greek for sell and mania is insanity, combine the two and see what you get.

A study, which was published in the journal of behavioural addictions, found that a person's desire to shop has grown tightly linked to his or her mental health over time. It claims that those who become addicted to buying, particularly online purchasing, may also have:

• Low self-esteem
• Poor self-control
• Unpleasant emotional states and
• A need for anonymous estimations

8. 6 to 8% of customers are obsessive purchasers. What symptoms indicate a shopping addiction?

• Always seeking something new, 
• Quickly bored,
• Gloomy,
• Reliant on social recognition,
• Reliant on social acceptance,
• Concealing purchases,
• Feeling bad about purchases;

These are not the things you want to be guilty of. Shopping may be a terrific guilty pleasure, but when it becomes an addiction, the fun fades.

9. Breakups and terrible days are common; you must find alternatives to retail therapy. What else can you do to cope with a bad day?

Try yoga to relax, exercise to channel negative energy, or watch the dawn. I'm not sure if you know this, but UV radiation is known to assist enhance levels of mood-boosting chemicals, which can make you feel happy (have you heard of aromatherapy? It is founded on the concept of employing scent smell to help you relax). 

Coming to retail therapy, experts say that while it is useful in cases where a person is sad, it is not effective in instances when a person is hostile. Whether you should engage in retail therapy depends on whether you can afford it and whether you need it.

There's nothing wrong with a little shopping therapy now and again, but don't let your purchases define your value; you're not what you own, and you're not what you carry.