Confessions of a Shopaholic

[gratitude28]

Has anyone read this book????
It's funny, but scary to me too, as I soooooooo understand the cycle (though not necessarily with shopping).

[Ami]

Could you tell us  a little bit about the book, Beth?        Ami

[gratitude28]

Well, in the book, there is a girl who is trying to control her spending, but she is addicted to shopping. She is so much like me with eating - she totally spends a ton of money, then promises she will spend nothing the next day to make up for it, but she finds herself doing it over and over. It shows the cycle of addiction, and all the efforts we make to control it.

[towrite]

Beth - I believe addiction covers a very deep emotional need --- the earlier the trauma which created the need, the stronger the addiction. Need is so deep it is terribly hard to get in touch with. Don't know if you share that belief. My RM at this point in my life is addicted to food, particularly sweets. Her depression becomes blatant if she cannot get sweets. She simply cannot go without them. But it isn't only sweets - if she has $4 in her wallet til next pay day, she will buy a Whopper instead of using it for gas to get to work. It's really an oral fixation - to use the antiquated term. Anything in her mouth with taste will calm her anxiety and banish her depression. She went to the grocery store last week, spent $150 (much of it on sweets) and cried for 3 days 'cuz she couldn't make her house payment.

Carnes says the "monster" that is addiction has to be tamed before any progress can be made, but his method is to go back to the original trauma(s) any way you (the generic You) can and begin the healing. Seeing the addiction up close and personal in my RM is amazing. Now, me - well, I have no addictions -- I'm perfect!  BS - I am addicted to cigs.