Recognizing Shopaholism: Signs and Financial Impact

If your closets are overflowing and your spend more time at the mall than you do at home, school and work combined, reevaluate your shopping habits. Look for these tell tale signs to determine if you've gone from casual shopper to shopaholic.

Instructions

• 1

  Calculate whether your shopping habit is starting to cause financial problems and if you've been living beyond your means. If you've been juggling your bills just to cover minimum payments, borrowing money from friends to shop or routinely applying for additional cards and then shopping until you reach their limits, you may have a problem.

• 2

  Listen to your family and friends if they express concerns about your shopping. If you've been lying to others about how much time and money you spend at the mall or find yourself sneaking purchases into the house, it's an indication that you know your habit has gotten out of hand.

• 3

  Write down the times you shop to track your habits. Discover if you've been buying objects just to cheer yourself up, distract yourself from problems or to cure your boredom, for example.

• 4

  Look through your closet to see how many of the items still have their price tags attached or are in the original packaging. This is definitely a sign that you've bought things that you don't really need and are merely shopping just for the thrill of it.

• 5

  Consider how you feel after you shop. If you experience a rush of adrenaline or feeling of peace when you shop, only to feel ashamed or remorseful about your purchases the next day, you may be a shopaholic.

• 6

  Seek professional help if you and your family members agree that your shopping habit has gotten out of control (see Resources).