Anyone who has a shopping addiction can attest to the fact that they want to bring it under control. Shopping addictions wreck people’s finances and personal lives. They are a form of dysfunction that cannot sustain a person for long without their lives caving in around them. The sad part is, when shopping is done responsibly, within a person’s means and personal space, it can be a valid hobby. A passion and an eye for assembling outfits is a gift, as is furnishing a home or knowing one’s way around kitchen gadgets. The dysfunctional version of this is someone who cannot control their spending in one or all of these areas. Shopping addicts want to be functional people, and the good news is they can be, but it does require work and focus. See more specific advice below:

• Beat your denial by admitting that you are a shopping addict. If you have tried to cope with your addiction by denying it, here is no time like the present to come to terms with it if you want to recover. Look yourself in the mirror and tell yourself that you are a shopping addict. It is something you already know deep down and will not come as a complete shock to you. Then tell your support system that you are a shopping addict and that you need their help in order to get better.
• Begin addiction treatment and take it seriously. This can mean something as minimal as self help for moderate to mild shopping addicts, or something as immersive as counseling or rehab for severe shopping addicts. It is imperative that this is taken seriously if you want to recover. Do not pay attention to the opinion that shopping is not a “real” addiction. If it is negatively impacting your life, it is a real addiction. People in wealthy demographics statistically struggle with shopping addiction more, and treatment options are available in shopping addiction counseling in Beverly Hills, Miami and New York.
• Manage your triggers and your urges to relapse. All addicts must face down triggers and the desire to relapse. The same life stress and opportunities to shop that you have always encountered are not going anywhere. You must become strong enough to resist them by avoiding them and having healthy coping mechanisms in place for when you cannot avoid them.