Experts share effective tips to prevent online shopping obsession amid the pandemic

Due to Covid and the quarantine, our patterns of behaviour have drastically changed in the past year. We have been confined to our homes, our social engagement has dropped off significantly, and how we fill our time looks rather different.  One of the behaviours has induced online shopping and how much time we spend online looking for things to buy to fill the void between work and house chores. 

Yes, online shopping is not something new, but it has seen a sudden increase for a few of the following reasons: social distancing, the country-imposed closure of all non-essential businesses, avoiding lines in the supermarket, and families being quarantined were advised not to leave home.

When looking at online spending addiction, it is critical to be aware of your patterns, behaviours, and emotions. Think about your mood, the triggers that cause you to react and overspend, and how your actions impact your financial wellbeing. For instance, when you are bored or anxious, do you pick up your computer, phone, or pad and start shopping? Is there a certain time of the day or night you prefer to shop online? Is there a certain time of the week or month you get excited about shopping because you have money due to it being a payday week? When you see an ad or sale, does this excite you and do you impulsively shop?

How to recognize if online spending is negatively impacting your life:

You find the idea of online shopping preoccupying most of your waking thoughts.

You feel like your online shopping is out of control.

You spend a good portion of your day shopping online.

You are overspending to the point that it is impacting your ability to pay your bills.

You are hiding your purchases.

Your behaviour is impacting others and your relationships with family and friends.

Your family and friends are concerned about your behaviour and your preoccupation with online shopping.

You feel an intense amount of guilt about your online shopping yet you continue with the same.

You become irritable, anxious, and upset if you can’t shop online.

Here is what can help curb online shopping addiction:

Address your behaviour by acceptance

First, it is important to be able to recognize if online shopping has become a problem. Review the above list and see how many of the identified issues are impacting your life. If you find that you meet some of the identified factors, it is time to make a change.

Lean into your emotions about online shopping

This means that you want to embrace your guilt, overwhelm, fear or angst about your behaviour and understand it. Stop pushing the feelings away and pretending as if they will go away on their own. It will feel uncomfortable at first to confront and work through the feelings, but it is an important part of the process when you want to break a pattern and start the healing process.

Maintain a journal

Write about how your feelings, experiences, and what steps you can take to change your behaviour. Everyone has their own journaling process, so have fun with it. What you want to remember is that journaling is a way of working through your feelings and a healthy way to address your behaviour. Journaling is a forward-moving process, so keep at it. 

Listen to your inner voice

If it doesn’t feel right, don’t do it! Many times, we forget to listen to our inner voice or what some might call intuition and this can take us back down an unhealthy path. Pay attention to your intuition. If you are triggered and want to online shop then immediately stop. 

Identify your triggers

Create a spreadsheet and identify your triggers and a list of alternatives to those triggers. For instance, boredom may be a trigger for you, so an alternative may be to talk to a friend, go for a walk, play a game, journal, or go to an exercise class. Being proactive about your triggers will reduce how you react versus respond to the urge to shop online.

Create a budget and stick to it

Write your budget out and stick to it. Once you write it out, it serves as a visual and a reminder about how you plan to pay off online shopping debt. It also supports your short-term and long-term financial goals.

Ask for help

If you are so deep into your online shopping addiction and feel like you need some support, ask for help.  Look for a professional or to your network of support to talk to about what’s happening in your life. It may feel uncomfortable asking for help but try it. You may be surprised by how willing others are to offer their support or a resource that might be just what you need to get through this unique time in your journey.

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