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Let's face it - we've all been there. Whether it is Black Friday, or the day after our birthday when we walk into a shopping mall armed with five or six gift cards, all ready to be used, we have all experienced the overwhelming feeling of a buyer's rush and the urge to "shop til we drop". The inviting atmosphere of shopping malls can also be very pleasurable, because the glittering environment can act as a mood-uplifting experience. But when does a thrill of shopping become something more dangerous, something that no longer thrills and excites, but actually harms us and our health?

For some, shopping is the new addiction. To each their own, and while some struggle with cigarette, booze, recreational drug, and food addictions, a growing number of people is realizing a new threat to their health - a shopping disorder. It may not be taken seriously at first, because after all, the general assumption is that if one has a shopping addiction, one also has the means to spend - the money. Of course, what is not immediately obvious is that some people with legitimate shopping disorders live burdened by heavy debts, unable to control their addiction to shopping, unable to stop.

Just like with "real", more widely accepted and recognized addictions, excessive shopping can ruin relationships and health. And contrary to a popular belief, a shopping disorder is more common than one might initially perceive it to be. An estimated eight per cent people in the United States are affected by this disorder. Though both sexes can fall victims to compulsive shopping, most of them are women, some of whom have rooms full of unused purchases - with the price tags still on. A shopping addiction starts off typically - it gives a person a temporary sense of escapism, an elusive grip of power, a rush of adrenaline.

Compulsive shopping or spending may result in interpersonal, occupational, family and financial problems in one's life. Impairment in relationships, of course, occurs as a result of the effort to cover up the debt problems that stem from excessive shopping. Often, the extent of the financial damage become evident only after a shopper has already accumulated a substantial amount of debt that necessitates a dramatic lifestyle change.

A shopping disorder occurs more commonly to people who are already under the influence of depression. It is not surprising since those are the people who are more vulnerable and who might be looking for immediate solutions to their underlying problems.

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