Shopping Addiction Treatment

Counseling and support groups are some of the methods that will help you overcome a shopping addiction.

There are actually many different methods that are currently being tried and tested for use in treating individuals who suffer from shopping addiction. While shopping addicts should first admit that they have a problem, there are many programs that can treat these individuals with one or more treatment methods and help them stop shopping at the destructive level they are currently doing so.

The common treatments for shopping addiction are

Medication

There actually have been many tests and successful cases of the use of antidepressants to treat shopping addiction. Tests have been done on the use of antidepressants to help shopping addicts cut down on their spending and control their compulsive behaviors. According to Stanford University, a test was done on the effectiveness of citalopram “the newest SSRI on the market at that time––by conducting a seven-week, open-label trial followed by a nine-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.”

The results seemed effective, and there are many treatment facilities and psychiatrists who allow the treatment of shopping addicted patients with these medications.

Despite these results, treatment with SSRIs and other medications are not as common as treatment with therapy, though both can be beneficial (especially when used together).

Therapy

There are several different types of therapies used to treat shopping addiction. “Interest in CBT (cognitive-behavioral therapy) has largely replaced earlier interest in psychodynamic models” (NCBI). However, both types of therapy are valid and may be used to treat different individuals with different needs.

Some people may choose to attend individual or group therapy in a treatment facility while others may decide to see a counselor or therapist a certain amount of times a week. Counseling is extremely beneficial to those with behavioral addictions because it helps them learn more about their behaviors and learn how to change them.

Mutual-help groups

Groups like Shopaholics Anonymous and others use the methods of peer help and the 12 step program to treat patients with shopping addictions. Many individuals seek these programs because they provide treatment (usually at no cost) and a constant environment of support.

Those who experience shopping addiction often encounter financial as well as emotional and psychological issues as a result, but once they are able to reach out and gain help, it becomes much easier for them to change their problematic behavior.