Will anyone else out there admit that they are a compulsive shopper? It’s a shameful thing. Gary and I are both compulsive shoppers. This is something I’m extremely concerned about as I worry we are compromising our retirements (although someone pointed out that we will have a lot of great CDs to listen to), not to mention crowding ourselves out of our perfectly sufficient 850 square ft. apt.

I’m interested in the relationship of shopping to neurotransmitters. I couldn’t find much online about it, but here’s an interesting paragraph that confirms my suspicions:

Recent research also indicates that there is a link between the release of endogenous neurotransmitters in the brain and other obsessive behaviours such as compulsive gambling and compulsive shopping. This could explain why shopaholics are often compelled to buy things they neither need nor want — their behaviour may be based less on the desire to acquire more possessions and more on a strong physical craving for the surge of chemicals that their bodies produce as a result of environmental cues (in this case, the complete shopping process).

And indeed, who has not felt the frisson of acquisition? I suppose that’s what the world runs on now. Shameful. Shameful.