To Buy or Not to Buy: Why We Overshop and How to Stop

Stop the urge to Splurge!

As an over shopper myself I can honestly say this book is amazing. I already know that I overshop but I never thought of why and she does an amazing job of telling you why you over shop. what triggers the urge and how you feel when you get the urge, when you shop, and when you get home. when reading this I found my self thinking yep, thats exactly what I feel. Then she walks you through how to combat the urge to splurge and how to controll yourself when you do go out shopping. I think the best part is she understands that shopping makes me feel GREAT and I need a pick me up of somekind, so I find a new way to make my self happy! I havent finished the book and I dont think i will ever be done rereading it and using all the great steps!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

If you are a compulsive shopper this is a must read for you!

This book doesn't only point out the problems of overshopping but it fixes the problem from the root. And the techniques provided are applicable to different kinds of addictions from compulsive eating to compulsive shopping. This book is more of an interactive book. It contains different exercises that allow you to think through and it also had audio files online that you can use to help you. Dr. Benson also included charts that'll help you organize your spending and that allows you to evaluate your purchases. If you follow through with the practical strategies and easy techniques throughout yourself you can not only control your shopping but you can also create a more meaningful life. With alternative ways of dealing with negative feelings you gain so much more. i would recommend this book to anyone who has issues with overshopping.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Shopping a problem for you? If yes, this book is a must

For someone who is absolutely an "over-shopper," I would say this book is priceless. Ironically, someone seeking help for compulsive spending may find it contradictory to go out and spend $16.95 on a book helping you to stop spending; however, it's worth it. If there was a "guru" of compulsive shopping it would be Dr. Benson. Knowledge, experience, and personal insight give her the reliability and proper knowledge base to guide others and help those of us out there who know credit cards are our version of crack or heroin how to cut the addiction and helps find the root problem behind impulsive and compulsive buying. This book also includes various journal and data log templates which are very helpful. Absolutely the best book on the topic; finally made me feel like I'm not the only one dealing with this.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Uncover Your hidden motivations to Shop and Over-shop

Take one (former) shopaholic. Give her a Ph.D. in psychology and ten years experience treating over-shopping. Publish her book about how to get free of the vast consumer conspiracy surrounding us, and you have Dr. April Lane Benson and her vital new book: To Buy or Not to Buy.
This is not a comfortable book for me to read. I find my behavior unmasked and as undeniable as my shoulder-length gray hair. Have I used shopping to feel better about myself? Yes. Have I used shopping to avoid confronting a situation I want to avoid? Yes. Have I used shopping as a weapon to express anger? Yes.

Sometimes yes to all of the above, and other questions in chapter one. Like a trip to the dentist, confronting my negative behavior and the psychology behind it can be painful, but also healing. I love this book, because there is healing in getting the rot out. Dr. Benson offers a way to find authentic happiness to replace the false esteem of keeping up with (or exceeding) the 'Joneses'. She points out the relentless consumerism driving our economy, with tentacles invading our conciousness through stores, malls, television, catalogs, Internet and even cell phone shopping. She uncovers the true cost of credit card purchases, and documents the ways invisible forces demand that we buy "more more more and now now now".

Knowledge is power. Self-knowledge is the power to change. To Buy or Not to Buy is a tool that can enable us to get free of our compulsive shopping. If you are confident that you don't have any shopping addictions, I challenge you to go to a bookstore and browse her book - consider the many ways we can fool ourselves into buying things to fill an emotional hole rather than a material need.

I recognized some of my buying patterns in her analysis, and also patterns of friends and relatives. Our materialistic society is even more insidious than I suspected. There is compassion and not condemnation in Dr. Benson's words. I recommend her book and I will be spending the next three months working through all the exercises. I have two pages of notes this morning, a start to the journal she recommends keeping.

There is no such thing as an insignificant cavity - as we all know, sooner or later it will destroy the tooth. I am going to be working on the occasional - but not insignificant - ways that I over-shop, and expect that the result will be good, even if the process is sometimes painful.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

My review

I think this was a really good book. I love how she shows you step by step what you doing wrong and what you have to do to fix it. I do not have copulsive buying disorder but I had to read this book for a class and im glad I read it now I know fersure I won't even have this disorder. This book reminds me of the movie "Shopoholic", which is also a very good movie.

If you want to stop shopping so much...

This was an overall good book, very interesting at times. I liked how the author, Benson, dove into the psychology aspect of why we may shop so much since I am currently taking AP psychology at my school. I also liked how she appealed to those of a more spiritual nature in an attempt to heal oneself when discussing solutions. She definitely organizes the book well and even gives the reader a series of checklists to fill out so that they can identify the things that cause them the most trouble in regards to compulsive shopping. It also helps the reader identify whether or not they are a compulsive shopper and the reasons why they may be. The only thing that I may not have liked so much is that at times it gets a bit repetitive, but like I mentioned earlier, it is an overall very good book. I had to read a book for an econ class and I chose this one because I hoped it would help me since I buy things I do not need a lot of times and it has. However, I didn't know that it was for hard-core compulsive shoppers, the kind that are in financial debt and have their relationships ruined over this kind of stuff, and would recommend the book either for them (it'll definitely help you) or for people who are just interested in the psychology behind buying or interested in people who have serious shopping problems. Enjoy!

Reality Check

I love books a lot, but I'm very picky sometimes. I had to read this book for economics and i fell in love with it because i feel like it really relates to me and this book teaches you how to shop wisely and when you need to stop shopping, and now when i go shopping i think about these guidelines. This book really teaches you about compulsive shopping and how to stop.

To Buy Or Not To Buy

This book was easily read. I read it in 4 days and I hate reading. I had to read this book for a class and ended up recommending it to everyone. Whether you have an addiction or not, this book is worth reading. It helps with saving your money, knowing your own body, living for yourself, and so much more life changing advise. I give this book an A+. You may not think you are an over shopper untill you read this book.