Logan J. Davisson - The Colors Of A Optimistic World

No statement can be made about the exact duration of the psychotherapy without considering the individual case. In principle, the duration of psychotherapy depends on several factors. Among other things, the course of therapy and the therapy goal determine the individual duration. The course of a therapy is not predictable, difficult situations in everyday life can cause the shopping addict to relapse again and again, which prolongs the process again and again. If there is also a lack of family or friendly support, a longer duration can be assumed. Ultimately, the extent of the buying addiction determines the duration of therapy and the agreed therapeutic goal. The therapy goal is usually agreed between patient and therapist at the beginning of a therapy and should at best be abstinence and safety with the learned measures and the resulting control. Patients should assume a minimum duration of six months regardless of the course of therapy and the therapy goal. A therapy session usually lasts 50 minutes and in the case of behavioural therapy usually takes place once a week. If desired, the frequency can be increased to two to three times a week, especially at the beginning.

The costs of psychotherapy are borne by the statutory health insurance funds, despite the fact that shopping addiction has not yet been classified as a recognised disease. Privately insured persons must pay for psychotherapy themselves, depending on the range of services offered. If the financial possibilities are limited, a group therapy would be the cheaper alternative.

After the end of psychotherapy, many people still feel unprepared for life without therapy. However, those affected should not be impressed by this, as it is a completely normal sensation. It is important to be aware that the therapy was of great importance for personal development. The affected person has learned a lot about himself and his life and has been given the necessary measures to deal with his obligation to buy. Therapy should always be seen as an opportunity to learn something about yourself, your fellow human beings and life. Despite the fact that psychotherapy is not yet fully recognized in today's society and that some people have many prejudices, it is the best way to come to terms with yourself. The fear of relapse accompanies most people who have undergone therapy for the rest of their lives. In fact, an addict is never completely cured. It is precisely because buying is a socially recognised act that the person concerned will be repeatedly exposed to offers and temptations. Probably he will have to fight against this feeling again and again his whole life. However, those who become aware of how successfully they have already defeated their obligation to buy and resisted some attractive things on a number of occasions will gain the self-confidence to be able to resist this obligation.

Self-help groups

Another important step in the fight against shopping addiction is to go to a self-help group. Self-help groups can also be visited as a supplement to individual therapy. However, they should continue to be visited especially after the end of behavioural therapy as a long-term measure against shopping addiction. An addiction is never considered to be completely cured and anyone who has ever been affected by buying addiction is always in danger of relapsing. Particularly in difficult or stressful life situations, those affected should not shy away from addressing their thoughts and fears within a self-help group if they fear being able to relapse again.

Self-help groups are self-organised associations of people who suffer from the same problems and serve the exchange of information, mutual motivation and sympathy. Although the anonymity of most groups does not demonstrate any scientific effectiveness, many people affected perceive self-help groups, not least because social contacts can be established in this way. Self-help groups can be the right step, especially when those affected have largely isolated themselves socially as a result of their addiction. The feeling of finally being understood and not being alone in the world with this disease is a great relief for many addicts.

Those who are not yet deeply in the debt spiral, have a slightly pronounced shopping addiction or consider themselves to be at risk can visit a self-help group in addition to the first aid measures mentioned above. There, those affected have the opportunity to exchange information with others about addiction and possible everyday strategies. There, an open dialogue can develop about the community feeling that develops and through conversations about addiction and one's own behaviour, shame can be reduced step by step.

The sharing of successes, i.e. having resisted the compulsion, can also help in such successes. Affected people can have the courage to talk, get tips from others and learn that other people can deal with shopping addiction and have accepted it. The leader of the self-help group is usually an affected person who has already successfully defeated the addiction and can therefore act as a mentor.

If the persons concerned have isolated themselves socially, a self-help group can be important in order to re-establish social contacts. However, contacts and friendships from the past should be taken up again in order to bring a certain normality into everyday life. If the addict only has contact with people who were or are also addicted to buying, it can quickly happen that the resulting friendship is only about the addiction. There is too great a danger that dealing with addiction will become a central issue in everyday life for those affected. Often, relationships among addicts are merely purposeful relationships that serve self-affirmation and are marked by lasting comparisons among themselves. With the help of a therapist, shopping addicts should try to re-establish their social structure, which may have fallen apart, or work out a new one. For new social contacts, for example, hobbies can be used, where contacts can be made easily and without having shopping addiction in mind. However, new acquaintances should be quickly informed of the shopping addiction in order not to risk a relapse through joint leisure activities.

Although shopping addiction has not - yet - been clearly classified as a disease, the clinical picture with its symptoms is relatively clear and easy to grasp. It can mainly be described as a vicious circle and a downward spiral that only comes to an end after years. Shopping addiction comes creepingly and often unnoticed, it begins with the socially recognized frustration purchase and ends in real shopping rushes, in which the affected people ask themselves at the end: "What the hell have I actually bought everything for?

The first important step in the fight against buying addiction is to realize that you are addicted to buying. To have the insight, to have a problem and to want to take action against it is a big challenge for those affected. Once those affected have understood that they are addicted to buying,

further steps follow. The analysis of the shopping behaviour, the financial conditions, the application of first aid measures and the attendance of a behavioural therapy should help in the long run to get his shopping behaviour under control.

Purchasing addiction only occurs in societies that are capitalist, consumer-oriented and have a questionable attitude to material things and money spending. In these societies, in which a purchase is socially recognized and even wanted, many people threaten to slip into an obligation to buy. In the beginning there is often only the urge to buy, possibly as a valve in the form of a frustration purchase or as a self reward. The positive feelings from the shopping quickly lead to an actually unwanted reward in the brain, which has a large part in the development of the addiction. The body is then not dependent on a substance, but on its own feelings of happiness.