Keeping Your Love for Clothes in Check

There is nothing wrong with enjoying clothes shopping as long as it is a habit that you keep under control. There is a large difference between a person who looks forward to the times when their budget will allow them some clothes shopping and a person who cannot function without regular clothes shopping, in spite of their budget restraints. Money aside, it is also unhealthy for a person to be dependent on something like clothes shopping. Being dependent on clothes shopping is a form of addiction, which is universally unhealthy to everyone. The best thing you can do for yourself in order to practice healthy clothes shopping habits is to use restraint over your time, money and energy.

Your time is valuable. Spending time wisely means dividing it up evenly between your spiritual, relational, purpose-driven and health conscious faculties. A person giving equal amounts of time to each of these four areas is a person living in balance. Someone who is giving excessive amounts of time to their shopping habit is throwing off the balance in their life. Some of that time should be reallocated to the things that matter more in that person\’s life.

Depleted finances are usually the most obvious indication that a shopping habit is out of control. Money is always hit hard when someone is compulsively shopping for clothes. When someone observes their finances heading toward crisis, they need to reevaluate their clothes spending immediately before irreparable damage is done. And lastly, compulsive clothes shopping is something that consumes your thoughts and energy, as well as your time and money. Who you are as a person can become wrapped up in excessive clothes shopping and can make your behavior neurotic, obsessive and inaccessible to the people in your life. It is very important that you keep clothes where they belong in the scope of your life. Mentally, you know that clothes do not mean as much to you as the people you love or your own physical health, but emotionally, you may have forgotten.

We all know someone who we tease for being fanatical about their love for clothes. Their day, from sunrise to sunset, revolves around choosing outfits, changing outfits, talking about clothes and thinking about clothes. If they felt the same way about drugs as they did about clothes, their life would be at risk. Fortunately, an addiction to clothes poses no immediate danger (other than to your savings account), however, any addiction is considered mentally unhealthy and should be eliminated. It is a question of optimal mental health; if you have begun to value clothes at a level higher than your relationships and your responsibilities, you are not achieving optimal mental health.\r\n\r\nClothing is frequently thought of as a harmless thing to be addicted to, but friends and family of a true clothing addict would tend to say otherwise. The obsessive, neurotic behavior over clothing becomes more than they can handle. Clothing addicts spend a great deal of time inside their closets and in front of mirrors, trying to match every small occasion to the perfect outfit. Their hobbies, interests and conversations always revolve around clothes, and the time, money and energy they put into maintaining them does not allow them enough resources to focus on the other areas of their lives. This can lead to failed relationships, poor work or school performances and even a decline in health if the problem is severe enough.\r\n\r\nThose who have recognized a clothing addiction with themselves, or have been confronted about it by someone else, are advised by mental health professionals to seek mental health guidance in order to bring their lives back into balance. Inpatient rehabilitation is extreme for such a mild addiction, but support forums and self-help literature come highly recommended. An obsession with clothes can be a reflection of deeper mental issues that can become legitimately harmful if left unattended to. Severe clothing addictions can warrant counseling or support groups, so if you are clothing addicted, do not hesitate to reach out for help.\r\n\r\n

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