Emotional Spending
Myhappyself
An online platform that provides an end-to-end digital tool for mental health care.
What is emotional spending?
Emotional spending is when we spend money during a period of heightened emotions, like stress, sadness or grief but also, even when someone feels happy and wants to celebrate.? It is when you buy something you may not need to ease your emotions, or it is considered a coping mechanism to avoid addressing those difficult emotions.
Experts say one of the many mental health impacts of COVID-19 is a rise in what’s known as emotional spending. The difficulty of visiting stores, as well as the pressure exerted by quarantine, were some of the factors that turned people to use more online services. Many people were locked away at home with little to do—and trying to cope with an increased sense of stress and anxiety. But emotional spending is not a new phenomenon.?
“Have a bad day, get a new pair of shoes. Broke-up with your boyfriend? How about a whole new wardrobe? Spending money to help us feel better has been a long-standing coping mechanism for many Americans,” says clinical psychologist Sheila Forman, PhD. And we're not talking about buying necessities here—typically, emotional spenders shop for things they don't need or even really want. Emotional spending tends to focus on items that are more pleasurable than pragmatic.
领英推荐
Treating yourself to takeout after a tough work day probably won't break the bank, assuming it isn't a daily ritual. It's unchecked emotional spending that's problematic and that causes people to avoid focusing on their real feelings and thoughts.
If you feel that your emotional spending is getting out of control, finding other ways to deal with stress, anxiety, and depression is key, says Dr. Forman. Instead of shopping, she recommends journaling, meditating, or talking to a therapist to help you cope with bad feelings and improve your self-observation.
#Myhappyself clinicians have developed smart questionnaires to detect whether there is a connection? between your emotions and spending patterns and if you feel uncertain about emotional spending, you can reach us out here: Myhappyself.