From the author: Nowadays there are two contradictory opinions in society. On the one hand, it is believed that shopping and purchasing new things brings a person a lot of positive emotions and lifts his spirits. On the other hand, a lot is said about the negative impact of shopping as a hobby, because in extreme cases, shopping can become an addiction. What is stress? Stress is a negative emotional state that occurs in a person in the most difficult, difficult conditions. As a rule, the term “stress” is used when a person experiences overexertion for some reason. At the same time, both negative (death of a loved one, divorce, loss of a job) and positive (birth of a child, change of place of residence, new job) situations can be stressful. In all these cases, there is a sense of anxiety and the need to adapt to the changes that have occurred. Shopping: a cure for stress or the illusion of a cure One of the cures for stress is positive emotions, a change of activity, and switching attention to something interesting. Therefore, if shopping brings a feeling of joy and satisfaction, then this method is suitable. Shopping may well help a person temporarily escape from negative experiences. The disadvantage of this “medicine” is that after shopping, a person still returns to his previous unfavorable state. So, going to the shops after a family quarrel will help distract you a little, but is unlikely to solve the problem. The therapeutic power of shopping Shopping has greater therapeutic power if the purchases are in one way or another connected with a stress factor. For example, if you got a new job and all your thoughts are on the first working day, then it’s a good idea to go shopping the day before and buy some nice clothes or accessories. While choosing these things, you will think about work in a positive way, stress will subside, and you will temporarily stop worrying about how your acquaintance with colleagues will go and whether you will cope with your responsibilities. Is shopaholism dangerous? Shopaholism as an irresistible desire to buy something all the time is a type of psychological addiction. It is difficult to say how dangerous he is. If you choose between alcoholism, sects or shopaholism, then the latter type of addiction seems less dangerous. On the other hand, of course, there is a danger, because this addiction is akin to gambling. A player cannot help but play, a shopaholic cannot help but buy. The main danger is that, in extreme cases, the addict’s life becomes subordinated to the hobby, sometimes completely. The line, apparently, is that shopping as an anti-stress is not a regular, episodic phenomenon, in which the buyer’s budget does not suffer too much. With shopaholism, consumerism becomes the main goal of a person. Svetlana loves to go shopping. Her salary is low (Svetlana is a librarian) and she cannot afford to buy clothes or shoes every day. But to satisfy her needs, Svetlana goes to inexpensive stores like Fix Price every day and makes sure to make several purchases. Svetlana's whole house is littered with unnecessary things, but she cannot stop. In this example, there is psychological dependence, but in a relatively acceptable form. In more severe cases, shopaholics begin to “work for a credit card,” lie to relatives, hide purchases, and even steal things from stores. In these cases, it is best to seek psychological help from a specialist. Shopping without buying Shopping as a stress reliever can even be without spending: some people go shopping, are distracted, but do not buy anything. And here there is a downside - asceticism, inability to choose and buy. Shopping trips often cause suffering for such people. They want to buy something, they have the money for it, but they can’t. Hour-long shopping trips exhaust them and take all their strength. Valentina is 30 years old and.