"Compulsive shopping disorder" is a mental disorder, which has the following typical manifestations, including being unable to control their shopping desire, having a strong sense of guilt after each shopping, huge debt consumption, spending a lot of time browsing shopping websites every day, etc. In the annual "double 11" Shopping Festival, almost every year, the news of "50000 spent overnight" is exposed, and the shopping desire of some consumers becomes uncontrollable in this consumption celebration. In the view of psychologists, such people are likely to suffer from "compulsive shopping disorder". What is this mental illness? Today we'll find out. It is a kind of mental disorder and addictive behavior As early as 100 years ago, German psychologist Amy krepilin put forward the concept of "shopping addiction". However, it was not until the 1990s that the field of mental health began to formally study this phenomenon, which was called "compulsive shopping disorder". Although the diagnostic and Statistical Manual of mental disorders (5th Edition) formulated by the American Psychiatric Society does not include "compulsive shopping disorder" in the diagnosis of mental diseases, psychologists generally believe that "compulsive shopping disorder" is also a mental disorder. Psychologists Kelly and Bolton gave the definition of "compulsive shopping disorder" in 2009. They believe that it is excessive consumption caused by uncontrollable impulse. Patients spend a lot of time and money on shopping (usually caused by negative emotions), which eventually leads to interpersonal and economic difficulties. Typical manifestations of "compulsive shopping disorder" include inability to control their shopping desire, strong sense of guilt after each shopping, huge debt consumption, spending a lot of time browsing shopping websites every day, etc. Psychologists tend to classify the above behaviors as addictive behaviors. They believe that when these "shopaholics" buy things, their brains will continue to secrete pleasant dopamine (a neurotransmitter in the human brain). Originally, you can get enough happiness by buying 10 pieces, but after forming the habit of crazy shopping, you need to buy 30 pieces to feel happy. If they forcibly stop shopping, they will also have withdrawal reactions such as anxiety and anxiety. This process is as like as two peas in addiction and gambling addiction. Trauma and loneliness make people compulsive shopping From the definition of compulsive shopping disorder, it is not difficult to find that the main inducement is the patient's negative emotion. So, what negative emotions can make people addicted to shopping? One is traumatic deprivation. What is traumatic deprivation? Let's look at a case. There was a girl whose family was poor and lacked food and clothing when she was a child. When she was 10 years old, she was ridiculed by her classmates for wearing patched clothes to school. When she was 12 years old, she wanted to buy a pair of shiny sandals and was severely scolded by her parents. These bad feelings were "engraved" into her subconscious, forming a traumatic experience. When she grew up and had the financial ability, she went crazy to buy clothes and shoes. Even though her family had hoarded hundreds of pairs of shoes, she always felt that she was still short of a pair of shoes. Trauma psychology believes that trauma, if not cured, will always accompany us and drive us to do some irrational things. In this case, what the lady lacked was not shoes, but the trauma of her childhood was not well comforted. Shopping is a way of self appeasement, although it is irrational. The second is loneliness. Loneliness is addictive. I wonder if you have noticed that when you can't feel the connection with people and are swallowed up by loneliness, it's easy to indulge in mobile phones, either shopping, playing games or brushing videos. Bruce Alexander, a psychology professor in Vancouver, did an experiment on mouse addiction. He put a bottle of water and a bottle of poisonous water mixed with heroin into a mouse cage. If the cage is empty and there is only one mouse, the mouse always likes to drink poisonous water and die soon. But if there are many mice in the cage with each other, and there are rich food, colorful balls and various small tunnels, almost all these mice only drink clean water, and no mouse is greedy for the bottle of poisonous water. Through the experiment, the professor found that addiction is not because of poor control, but because of lack of connection and loneliness. The modern social structure makes almost everyone live as an island. People connect with society through shopping or games to alleviate the lonely experience. In addition to trauma and loneliness, stress, anxiety and depression can also promote people's compulsive shopping. To a certain extent, shopping can really relieve stress and get happiness. These methods can help you curb your desire to shop What should we do if we or our relatives and friends have similar symptoms? To what extent do you need professional treatment? The author suggests that first of all, we can establish a realistic social relationship, connect more with relatives and friends, and not be drowned by loneliness; Secondly, we can develop the habit of bookkeeping and adhere to records, which can reduce blind consumption; Thirdly, don't use credit cards and spend cash as much as possible; Finally, use beneficial ways such as reading, sports, talking to people, contacting nature and so on to alleviate negative emotions. Nowadays, there are some irrational consumer support groups on many apps. If you can't control your shopping desire, you might as well try joining these support groups. If none of the above methods can stop you or your relatives and friends from shopping crazily, and there is a debt crisis due to shopping crazily, which leads to severe family conflict and strong pain, it is recommended to find a professional psychologist for treatment. (outlook new era)