Compulsive Buying Disorder

What Causes Compulsive Buying Disorder?

The cause of CBD is still unknown. However, some scientists believe that the disorder is linked to the action of brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. These chemicals are responsible for passing signals between nerve cells in the brain. Certain neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine have been associated with other mental disorders. CBD bears similarities to those other disorders, leading some scientists to believe that a similar chemical mechanism is at play in CBD.

Serotonin has been associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). CBD shares some characteristics with OCD, and the same medications used to treat OCD are sometimes used to treat CBD.

Other researchers believe that CBD is more closely related to addictions and substance use disorders. These disorders are typically associated with the action of the neurotransmitter dopamine.

Other theories suggest that CBD is a mood disorder similar to major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder, or it is triggered by early-life traumatic events such as sexual abuse.

Risk Factors for Compulsive Buying Disorder

Certain factors appear to increase an individual’s risk of developing CBD or experiencing more severe CBD symptoms. For example, one study found that participants with below-median income suffered the most severe CBD symptoms. People with CBD also often suffer from other mental disorders, suggesting that these disorders may be risk factors. Commonly associated disorders include:

• Major depressive disorder
• Anxiety disorders
• Substance use disorders
• Eating disorders
• Impulse control disorders
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• Avoidant personality disorder
• Borderline personality disorder

Is Compulsive Buying Disorder Hereditary?

Some evidence suggests that CBD can run in families, but no study has found a link between CBD and a specific inherited genetic trigger. Studies have found that people who suffer from CBD are significantly more likely than the general population to have a first-degree relative (a parent or sibling) who suffers from CBD, depression, anxiety, alcoholism, substance use disorders, or other mental health disorder. However, studies that have attempted to find a genetic connection between these disorders and CBD have been inconclusive.

How Is Compulsive Buying Disorder Detected?

People suffering from CBD may be willing to admit that their shopping behavior is a problem. However, they often experience guilt or shame associated with shopping, leading them to attempt to hide their behavior. Deceptive shopping behavior can make it hard for loved ones to identify CBD in its early stages. Some warning signs to watch for include:

• Impulse buying of items that the sufferer doesn’t need
• Leaving items unopened or unused
• Accumulating large quantities of unnecessary items
• Shopping by themselves
• Using shopping as a way to cope with negative emotions

CBD can first appear at any time of life, but it most often occurs in the late teenage years or early adulthood. The onset of the disorder often happens when the sufferer becomes financially independent and can obtain credit on their own.

How Is Compulsive Buying Disorder Diagnosed?

CBD is not recognized by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) as a diagnosable disorder, so there are no official diagnostic criteria for the disorder. However, to determine whether CBD is present, a mental health practitioner will likely interview the patient about their shopping behaviors and feelings before and after shopping. The process will also usually include assessments to look for other mental health disorders.

The goal of the CBD diagnostic process is to determine whether the patient’s shopping behavior fits the pattern of the disorder or is in line with normal buying behavior. The practitioner will look for a distinctive pattern of CBD behavior that includes:

• A preoccupation with thoughts about shopping and a tendency to anticipate the shopping experience
• Negative emotions such as anxiety, boredom, self-criticism, or anger that precede shopping or buying
• A sense of euphoria or relief from the negative emotions at the time of the purchase
• A feeling of disappointment, shame, or guilt after the purchase

PLEASE CONSULT A PHYSICIAN FOR MORE INFORMATION.

How Is Compulsive Buying Disorder Treated?

Treatment for CBD usually involves a type of psychotherapy called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This type of therapy focuses on helping the patient to recognize the thought patterns and emotional triggers that precede the problematic buying behavior. When the triggers are identified, CBT helps the patient develop strategies for coping with the triggers without resorting to the problematic behavior.

Medications

No reliable research has shown that any medications are consistently effective at reducing the symptoms of CBD. Multiple studies have examined the effectiveness of antidepressants in treating CBD, but the results have been mixed. One study presented limited evidence that the drug naltrexone, which is used to treat opioid addiction, may help CBD sufferers, but research into this and other potential drug-based treatments is still ongoing.

How Does Compulsive Buying Disorder Progress?

Untreated CBD is likely to continue throughout the sufferer’s lifetime, and in many cases, the problematic buying behavior becomes more severe over time. Left unchecked, the behavior can result in complications that have a significant impact on the sufferer’s life, including:

• Relationship problems, including divorce
• Social isolation
• Financial problems, including excessive debt and bankruptcy
• Depression and/or anxiety
• Worsening of co-incident disorders such as substance use disorders

How Is Compulsive Buying Disorder Prevented?

There is no known way to prevent the initial development of CBD, but there may be ways to help prevent problematic buying behavior.

Preventive steps include:

• Logging or journaling to track the emotional triggers that lead to problematic buying
• Finding other activities to help you relieve the negative feelings associated with the triggers
• Shopping with others instead of shopping alone
• Getting rid of credit cards. Shoppers who are forced to use cash are less likely to engage in problematic impulsive buying.
• Get someone else (such as a spouse or partner) to manage your personal finances
• Get financial counseling from a finance professional

Compulsive Buying Disorder Caregiver Tips

Compulsive buying disorder is invariably hard on relationships, especially when the problematic buying behavior directly impacts the financial situation of the sufferer’s loved ones. So keep these tips in mind to help prevent CBD from having a significant negative impact on you and your loved one’s lives:

• Be a supportive shopping partner. Compulsive shoppers are most vulnerable when they’re shopping on their own. Find time to go with your loved one on shopping trips, and be a gentle voice of reason against impulse buys and unnecessary purchases.
• Learn how to support your loved one’s coping skills. For example, compulsive shopping helps your loved one soothe negative feelings. Help them find other ways to make themselves feel better and support their efforts to redirect their behavior.
• Call in the professionals. It’s important to know when you need help. Seek the advice of a mental health professional or support group before the disorder has significant negative consequences.

Many people with compulsive buying disorder also suffer from other brain and mental health-related issues, a condition called co-morbidity. Here are a few of the disorders commonly associated with CBD:

• About one in five people with CBD also struggle with alcoholism or a substance use disorder.
• About 61% of people with CBD also suffer from depression.
• Nearly half of people with CBD have some type of anxiety disorder, with specific phobias being the most common.
• Approximately 15% of people with CBD have an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia.

Compulsive Buying Disorder Brain Science

Compulsive buying behavior has been a controversial topic in the fields of psychiatry and neuroscience. One point of controversy is disagreement over whether CBD should be considered an addiction like the addiction to drugs and other substances. In general, the field of psychiatry has been reluctant to classify behavior-related disorders like CBD as addictions. In the current version of the DSM, the only behavioral addiction officially considered a diagnosable disorder is gambling disorder.

CBD does have some similarities with substance and behavioral addictions, like gambling disorder, in terms of behavior patterns and patterns of brain activity in sufferers. But there are significant differences, too. For example, substance addictions tend to initially occur at a young age, while CBD usually first appears in early adulthood. CBD also tends to occur only in developed, affluent societies, unlike other addictions, which occur more universally.

More research is needed to determine whether the same brain chemical processes that produce substance addictions are also present in CBD. A better understanding of the disorder’s cause and the underlying neurological mechanism is the key to developing more effective treatments.

Compulsive Buying Disorder Research

Title: A Prospective Clinical Study of a Cohort of Patients Seeking Treatment for a Behavioral Addiction (EVALADD)

Stage: Recruiting

Principal Investigator: Marie Grall-Bronnec, MD

Nantes University Hospital

Nantes, France 

This research aims to understand better the factors associated with the evolution of behavioral addictions and compliance with care. The investigators thus aim to follow patients with several types of behavioral addictions based on addictive, sociodemographic, clinical, and endophenotypical characteristics and their care adhesion.

Title: Memantine Treatment of Compulsive Buying

Stage: Completed

Principal Investigator: Jon Grant, MD

University of Minnesota

Minneapolis, MN 

The goal of the proposed study is to evaluate the efficacy of memantine in the treatment of compulsive buying. Sixteen subjects meeting the criteria for compulsive buying will receive eight weeks of open-label memantine. The hypothesis to be tested is that memantine will be effective and well-tolerated in patients with compulsive buying. The proposed study will provide needed data on treating a disabling disorder that currently lacks a clearly effective treatment.