|
health and beauty |
|
|
|
family and relationships |
|
|
|
business and money |
|
|
|
general topics |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Emotional Shopping
 Diane B. Meehan, HON Editor
Diane B. Meehan, M.Ed. holds a Master’s Degree in Education, specializing in Counseling.
Most women do it, in one form or another. We try to soothe, to forget, to punish or to reward ourselves, and we can meet this wide range of needs with one thing. Chocolate, you say? No. Shopping.
There is a lot of talk about emotional eating, but relatively little about emotional shopping. I actually find it easier to walk away from the chocolate bar than to walk away from a purchase. It doesn’t need to be luxurious, a splurge, or even personal. It can be cleaning supplies, or a bedroom drawer organizer, or some new socks. Hardly items that one would consider irresistible (well, except to my friend with the sock fetish). Walmart, Kmart, CVS, Target….these are my Cold Stone Creameries, my Cinnabons, my Kentucky Fried Chickens.
I can rationalize almost any purchase, and make it seem as though it will save my family something in the long run. A new tablecloth? Well, it extends the life of the table, of course. A craft organizer? It keeps the living room more tidy, which will make the room seem bigger and allow us to put off purchasing a new home. A new Dustbuster? It will ultimately reduce the chance of needing to pay a psychiatrist when going crazy from the messes my family leaves behind for me to clean.
What purpose does emotional shopping serve? The same as any other emotional habit: it allows us to quickly fill a void in our lives. Sublimating our needs for love, fulfillment, satisfaction into an item. If I had X, then that would make me happy. As most psychologically healthy adults know, it’s pretty rare that X makes us happy. You could even say that item X has the same draw as the drug X: both provide a high which masquerades as satisfaction. Sadly, both are fleeting, and both leave you wanting more.
So what do we do? Similar to those who eat, drink, or drug to fill a need, we shoppers need to figure out what the void is in our lives. Do you know what you need to feed your soul? It’s not going to come in the form of a body lotion, a new mascara, or a Devil Dog.
- Do you enjoy your work?
- Are you doing what is important to you?
- Do you feel like you make a difference in the world?
- Have you surrounded yourself with people that you genuinely like?
- Is your partner one with whom you share values, trust, dreams, love, and good kisses?
- Are you spending quality time with your children?
- Do you actually take time to smell the clichéd flowers?
- Are you making sure that you are spending your time in a meaningful way, or are you just getting through the day?
These are the questions I continue to ask myself. For me, it helps to write it down - if I’m writing then I can’t be shopping!
Other Articles in Health and Well-Being
 Women's Health - Smoking
Breast Augmentation – Cosmetic Surgery
Overcome Depression with a Team Approach
Women's Health - Insomnia
Women's Health - Melatonin, Sleep Enhancement, and ADHD
Women's Health - High Blood Pressure
Women’s Health: Cervical Smears
Women's Health - Rheumatoid Arthritis
Women's Health - Mammograms
Women's Health - Weight Loss and Fitness - Facts not Fiction
Women’s Health: Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery
Women’s Health: Facelift
Emotional Shopping
Emotional Awareness
Welcome to Ask Sam!
|
|
