by Cherie Camins

Created on: February 15, 2009

Practically everyone has seen the commercials on the television set of fancy stores with their equally fancy merchandise that they sell. The entire point of those commercials are to tempt the average consumer to get off their couches, head into their cars, and drive to their local malls to purchase the merchandise they saw on the television as well as much more. Everything, from the commercials to the layout of the store to even the music, is designed to get people to want to spend their money. It is simply the truth.

Yet even with all these facts, there are many people out there who are not aware of the dangers of retail therapy. What is retail therapy? Basically, retail therapy is the situation when someone who feels like they need a pick-me-up decides to head to their mall and buy things to make themselves feel better. This is where the danger lies.

This mechanism of buying things to make one feel better about themselves will only hurt that person in the end, the least of which being their financial power. Retail therapy does not solve the root of the problem which is whatever it is that made you retreat to the nearest mall to shop in. That problem will only continue to linger while the rush of buying that pretty outfit that cost far more than you should have spent will fade, and fade quickly. Then you are still left with the problem at hand and an outfit you probably should not have bought.

I have friends out there who love to go shopping and use that as their way of coping with whatever is bothering them. They have shown me their credit card statements and I was and still am amazed at the amount of debt they are in, simply because they went about the wrong way in dealing with their problems.

If you need something to fall back on to keep yourself calm and happy after a difficult situation like a fight with a friend or losing a promotion, do not turn towards retail therapy. It will only hurt you. Take a jog through the park or head to the gym, or even curl up with a good book and some soothing music. These are options that you can do that can help you get back to your happy place without being harmful to your body or to your wallet and credit score.

Do not fall for the lies that commercials tell us everyday with their silent words. We do not need to mindlessly shop to make ourselves feel better. We do not need material things to make ourselves happy. We can do better than that.

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