Shopping Addiction is the compulsive desire to shop, more commonly referred to as compulsive shopping or shopaholism.
Compulsive shopping may be considered an impulse control disorder, an obsessive compulsive disorder, a bipolar disorder, or even a clinical addiction depending on the clinical source.
While initially triggered by a perhaps mild need to feel special and less lonely, the failure of compulsive shopping to actually meet such needs may lead to a vicious cycle of escalation, with sufferers experiencing the highs and lows associated with other addictions. The ‘high’ of the purchasing may be followed by a sense of disappointment, and of guilt, precipitating a further cycle of impulse buying in the quest for a sense of special identity. With the now addicted person increasingly feeling negative emotions like anger and stress, they may attempt to self-medicate through further purchases, followed again by regret or depression once they return home – leading to an urge for yet another spree.
