When shopping and spending go too far

Laura T. Coffey • Profile • E-mail

“Shop ‘til you drop.” “Shopaholic.” Those are just funny expressions, right? In some cases, they’re anything but.

Compulsive shopping can range from an occasionally budget-busting diversion to a drop-dead serious addiction. At its most extreme levels, a compulsive-buying problem can lead people to hide or lie about their purchases, max out numerous credit cards, live on the edge financially and stockpile items that never get used and often still have the price tags attached.

Variations of this addiction affect people from every income level – including people who have no trouble paying all their bills. And while plenty of people out there haven’t reached such a severe state of affairs, they nevertheless find themselves grappling with sky-high levels of unsecured debt because of their spending habits.

“What is so challenging here is that a compulsive spender is like a compulsive gambler who is forced to spend 12 hours every day in a casino and not gamble,” said Daniel Wishnatsky, a certified financial planner in Phoenix.

“Compulsive spenders are surrounded by a consumer-driven economy and an American marketing machine that is constantly trying to get them to spend more. … It can be argued that compulsive spending or over-spending is the drug of choice in this country.”

Spending and debt problems have existed as long as money has existed, so in a very real sense, this issue isn’t new. That said, the onslaught of advertising images bombarding people each and every day — in combination with easier and easier access to credit — have conspired to make the problem much more dire for growing numbers of people, experts say.

Researchers from the University of Florida reported that between 2 percent and 8 percent of the U.S. population spends money compulsively, and the average compulsive spender is carrying $23,000 in debt. (That debt doesn’t include mortgages on homes.)

“Spending addiction is probably the fastest-growing addiction we’re treating, along with maybe addiction (to narcotics) for chronic pain,” said Rick Zehr, vice president of addiction and behavioral services at the Illinois Institute for Addiction Recovery at Proctor Hospital. The institute offers a comprehensive in-patient treatment program for compulsive shoppers and spenders.

Zehr said that as with any kind of addiction — be it alcoholism, gambling or drug dependency — addictive spending is often rooted in punishing feelings of low self-esteem and problems with impulse control. For many compulsive shoppers, their habits start out as something manageable — and immensely enjoyable.

Over time, it becomes second nature for them to turn to shopping and spending to elevate their mood when they’re feeling depressed, anxiety-ridden, angry or lonely.

“They often describe feeling a rush of euphoria or anxiety when they’re making a purchase, just as other addicts talk about feeling a rush of euphoria or anxiety as they’re driving to the casino or making that cocaine purchase,” Zehr said.

“And afterward, the feelings are the same — the feelings of guilt, shame and being embarrassed or confused as a result of their spending. There’s also serious emotional and physical withdrawal when you take away their credit cards for the first time. They might even vomit. It’s really not very different from the heroin addict or the gambling addict.”

In their darkest forms, spending addictions lead people to do everything they can to hide the whole truth about their circumstances from their closest family members and loved ones. A spouse often will have no idea that his or her significant other has furtively opened multiple credit-card accounts, along with a post office box where the mounting bills are piling up.

“This can be just devastating for families,” Zehr said. “And unfortunately suicide rates are higher with spending addicts. … They experience devastating shame and humiliation ... and sometimes they think, ‘Well, I’m so far into debt I can’t get out of it. The only thing I can do is kill myself to give the life insurance money to my family to help them pay off this debt.’ It becomes a thought that’s not just fleeting.”

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