In a new article on compulsive shopping, there is discussion about including this behavior as a "mental disorder" in the new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).

Considered the diagnostic bible of mental health professionals, the new edition is due out in 2010, and there is discussion about including the so-called "behaviorial disorders." This group of disorders includes internet addiction, compulsive gambling, hypersexuality and compulsive shopping.

As a psychotherapist, I have treated compulsive shoppers for many years. All describe the cycle of exitement (buying), remorse (second thoughts), and guilt (low self-esteem) that is common with compulsions. Like a dopamine squirt to the brain, the shopper seeks out the next high with purchases that they don't need, purchased with money they don't have.

The garage was stacked with thousands of dollars of merchandise still in original packaging. There were 100% cotton t-shirts studded with rhinestones (2 per package - $5.00), stacks of heavy knit sweaters in pastel colors (8.00), boxes of shoes and boots still wrapped in tissue paper ($10.00/pair). It was a yard-sale shopper's feast, distinguished by the fact that everything was new. It was also - as the niece running the sale explained - a display of her aunt's full-blown QVC shopping addiction.

How many days or nights had a probably sad and lonely woman sat in front of the television set, ordering two of these and six of those? How many UPS deliveries had arrived? What percentage of the purchases had actually been worn?

Closets of clothes with price tags still attached are one of the signs of compulsive buying. This one was hard to miss.

Much more common in women than in men, compulsive shopping often appears in a cluster of other addictions - alcohol, drugs, eating disorders. It can show itself as a symptom of depression as well as of bipolar disorder. It may also be associated with a trauma history or emotional deprivation in childhood. Like other addictions, compulsive shopping and spending initially makes a person feel better then ultimately much worse. When it comes to online addiction, what is frequently found is women shopping, men viewing pornography, and teens playing games.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out that our country has a serious shopping problem: our national savings rate is below zero, most Americans carry balances on their credit cards, and we're running out of landfill space to dump the last generation of how video games.

If you often find yourself overspending, compulsive shopping therapist Dr. April Benson has a great list of 5 questions you should ask:

1. Why am I here?
2. How do I feel?
3. Do I need this?
4. What if I wait?
5. How will i pay for it?
6. Where will I put it?

Dr. Benson gives all of her clients a card with those questions to refer to whenever they're tempted to overspend. If you're looking to cut back on your shopping, write them on the back of card, stick it in your wallet, and see if it works for you!