Retail Therapy

When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping

When I have had a less than good day, I sometimes do what I consider to be the ultimate pick-me-up: I go shopping. It makes me feel like I'm righting a wrong in some way.

While some of my “therapeutic” apparel purchases are impulse buys, they’re usually items that I've had my eye on for a while. It’s not that I set out to buy a blouse, it’s more that I saw this great jacket, it’s a little more expensive, and now I’m buying it because I feel I deserve it. I feel it is part of our nature that, as women, we feel good when we buy something.

Men like bigger toys. For women, it doesn’t take a car—it can be a sexy shirt, a necklace, or a great handbag. If you’re not feeling your best, or having an ‘ugly’ day, a new pair of pants can be a great lift. Women are actually happier when they’re wearing something brand new.

On the opposite end of the social spectrum, of course, is online shopping, a purely solitary experience. But what Web shopping lacks in social bonding, it makes up for in its immediacy: the ability to provide true instant gratification, at any time of day or night.

When you physically go shopping in a store, it can almost be like a girls’ day out—it’s a social thing. But shopping online is down and dirty shopping— it’s pure. With online shopping, you’re able to get this ‘therapy’ at the click of a button, without even leaving your home. If it’s a rainy day and you don’t feel like going outside, you can just go online and satisfy those cravings. It’s an instant fix.

The bottom line? Shopping, for women, is ultimately a feel-good thing.

Wikipedia: Retail therapy is shopping with the primary purpose of improving the buyer's mood or disposition. Often seen in people during periods of depression or transition, it is normally a short-lived habit. Items purchased during periods of retail therapy are sometimes referred to as "comfort buys."