I tossed my phone onto the bed, the screen still glowing from the call. My younger sister had just been checking in, but the conversation turned sharp fast: I never call her back, and when I do, I sound distracted. She wasn\u2019t wrong, which only made it worse. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Outside, it was 30 degrees\u2014still freezing, even though it was the first week of April. The cold made everything feel heavier. That familiar flicker of anxiety stirred in my chest, then surged\u2014tight and sudden, like a wave crashing over me. Without thinking, I reached for my phone again. Not to apologize, but to open TikTok Shop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Within seconds, I was hypnotized by a carousel of pastel gadgets and serotonin-spiking junk: the new Rhode lip gloss in a glossy pink, a knockoff red card holder with fake crocodile skin, a mini desk vacuum shaped like a ladybug. Ten minutes later, I\u2019d spent $150 on things I didn\u2019t need, didn\u2019t want, and probably wouldn\u2019t use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I haven\u2019t always been like this. In the 26 years I\u2019ve spent managing anxiety, I\u2019ve tried almost everything\u2014journaling, yoga, meditation, running, therapy. Sometimes those things helped. Sometimes they didn\u2019t. Eventually, the old habits crept back in. Somewhere along the way, shopping became my go-to. I\u2019d grab my phone like it was a life raft, scrolling through TikTok Shop or Amazon, chasing that quick hit of dopamine to pull me out of my head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s something uniquely satisfying about the instant gratification of an Amazon package arriving at my door or the tantalizing promise of a TikTok influencer\u2019s latest product recommendation. It\u2019s like a temporary reprieve from whatever is causing the stress I may feel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But unfortunately, that quick fix has a dark side. As the purchases pile up, often without me even realizing what I\u2019ve bought, I\u2019m left with credit card bills that linger far longer than the fleeting high of clicking \u201cpurchase.\u201d And as much as I tell myself I\u2019ll return things, I never do. Instead, I\u2019m left with more stuff I didn\u2019t need, and my anxiety\u2026well, it\u2019s still there, waiting for the next moment to strike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Compulsive shopping is more than just a bad habit. It\u2019s a disorder that often arises from deeper psychological needs, particularly stress and anxiety. The American Psychological Association links<\/a> compulsive shopping to emotional distress, with individuals using it as a way to momentarily escape difficult feelings or circumstances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This pattern of impulsive buying is often triggered by anxiety or depression, where the act of shopping provides a temporary distraction from whatever is causing the stress. For me, my anxiety usually stems from uncertainty. And right now, the state of the world feels incredibly uncertain.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n With the looming threat of a recession in the United States, the economic climate is uneasy at best. Global tariffs put into place by the Trump administration have shifted trade policies in ways that are already driving up prices. Every economic tremor adds to the sense of instability, leaving me grasping for control in ways that, in a screwed-up paradox, leads me to my credit card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this wobbly economy, my family and friends have banded together to get me to stop. I don\u2019t have as much leeway to spend, and the price of goods in general (even the cheap stuff on TikTok Shop and Amazon) are going up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But it\u2019s so hard<\/em>, mainly because compulsive shopping disorder is categorized as a behavioral addiction<\/a>. Experts say this addiction can create a vicious cycle of emotional highs and financial lows. I\u2019ve felt it firsthand. It\u2019s the dopamine hit when you click \u201cBuy Now\u201d on that ridiculously cheap gadget you\u2019re convinced will change your life, only to realize later that it\u2019s just another item to add to your growing pile of stuff you don\u2019t need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But I think that\u2019s another reason why it\u2019s so hard to stop\u2014it\u2019s so easy to buy things nowadays. With my credit card already linked into my favorite shops, the ease of a purchase and the immediate relief I feel after are intoxicating. The items are a balm: quick, temporary, and satisfying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the face of a recession, this behavior actually becomes even more ingrained in society. During the last recession in 2008, as anxiety about job security and economic stability increased, people turned to online shopping as a form of comfort, similar to what I\u2019m doing now. In fact, during tough economic times, more people find themselves buying more than they can afford to feel in control. While the global economy suffered, retailers capitalized on this<\/a> by offering frequent sales, enticing discounts, and \u201climited-time offers\u201d that preyed on consumers’ anxieties. Yeah, f-d up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As we get closer to another recession, it feels like d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu. With tariffs driving prices up, brands are all over TikTok feeds with \u201climited-time\u201d deals, urging us to buy now before it\u2019s too late. It\u2019s like the pressure\u2019s on to grab what you can, fast. And that pressure just feeds into the cycle of emotional buying, which, ironically, only makes the anxiety we\u2019re trying to escape worse. Experts over at Time<\/em><\/a> are even predicting another wave of \u201cpanic buying,\u201d where people rush to stock up on cheap stuff, hoping it\u2019ll help them feel more in control\u2014even if it\u2019s stuff they don\u2019t need and won\u2019t fix the bigger issue at hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While the economy spirals, I realize my need to keep purchasing only feeds the very anxiety that makes me feel so powerless. I buy because it\u2019s quick. I buy because it\u2019s easier than facing the deeper discomfort of uncertainty or stress. But at what cost? Why I Can\u2019t Stop Shopping My Way Through Stress<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":450,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[39,38],"class_list":["post-272","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-me-you","tag-olivia-tauber","tag-shopping"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=272"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":447,"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272\/revisions\/447"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/450"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=272"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=272"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/editorsvision.com\/frenzy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=272"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
I know they say that acknowledging the problem is the first step, so here I am. The world\u2019s always going to be a bit uncertain, and there\u2019s no getting around that, but I do have the power to change how I react to it. It\u2019s about facing the anxiety head-on, finding healthier ways to cope, and realizing that true control doesn\u2019t come from buying more\u2014 it comes from sitting in the anxiety instead of drowning it in packages.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"