Frenzied holiday shopping

"For a compulsive shopper, there are certain higher risk times for behaviours to get out of control... Christmas is definitely one of those times. Knowing and preparing for this in advance can help, if one is prone," says Dr. Peggy Richter, director of the obsessive compulsive disorder and related disorders clinic at Sunnybrook.

Shopping is, for most people, pleasurable. There are many references to the phrase "retail therapy" and quick pick me ups are common for both men and women.

"The problem is when it becomes excessive and one starts to develop buyers remorse," says Dr. Richter, also an associate professor of psychiatry at U of T.

"With our consumer driven society, it's difficult to separate how much is driven by actual psychiatric illness versus what is a social push to buy more and more.

Some people may be trying to fill a void, but for others it could just be the pleasure of walking through stores or finding just the right thing. It's not about how much you spend necessarily... one can be a compulsive shopper at the dollar store," she adds.

The following are hints as to when it may become a problem:

• Spending too much money, accumulating significant debts over time and problems meeting monthly expenses
• Making shopping a priority over other things you consider good for you, like social activities and exercise
• Building shopping time into your day; something you have to plan just to do it, rather than shopping because you need something
• When loved ones say it's a problem

One of the key brain transmitters, dopamine, is an important substance to reward systems in the brain, so it may be that for people prone to this, there could be a higher release of dopamine.

American studies cite about six per cent of their population are compulsive shoppers; there are no reliable Canadian studies to indicate its prevalence.

Read the holiday blog special