Redefining retail therapy
We can’t lie that retail therapy feels good. When you’re feeling down, buying yourself a little treat does often help boost the mood. There’s no denying it.
But what if we redefine retail therapy to mean something else? Instead of buying clothes, what if we satiated that dopamine hit with something that didn’t have a negative impact on the planet, but still a positive impact on our lives?
Allow us to explain a little more…
Redefining retail therapy, our theory
Retail therapy as we understand it is to treat yourself to a material thing. Whether it’s clothes, makeup or tech, retail therapy is something exciting that we want to buy, not just a menial thing that we need in our lives.
We’re now starting to realise the negative impact of messaging such as ‘treat yourself’ and ‘you deserve it’ on our planet and our consumption habits. It’s clear that impulse purchases don’t have long standing benefits in our lives. They fill a void for a moment and make us feel like we’re on to something, but they don’t bring us real joy.
What actually brings us joy in life is experiences. Whether that’s alone or with people we love. It’s not the same for everyone, but we’ve found that doing something productive or enjoyable with our time has a more positive impact on our mental health than buying another top.
So, if you’ve had a hard day and retail therapy feels like a quick fix that you need to pick you up, why not stop spending money on material things, but start investing in experiences?
Save your pennies for meals with friends, concerts you want to go to, bakeries you’ve been meaning to try, spontaneous day trips, or even just buying the fancy pesto. It’s as simple as that.
You still get the rush from an impulse buy, but the damage is usually less negative on the planet (within reason).
It’s not the case for everyone, but having exciting plans in the future makes us feel better on days when we’re feeling down, bored, confused or lost, as we have something to look forward to.
If you’re more introverted why not invest into something to better yourself in a way that actually feels exciting. We don’t always need to better ourselves, sometimes we can just exist, but spending money on books we’re excited to read or supporting artists/media we care about is a good way to go.
How will this change retail therapy for you? Join in the conversation on our socials, @whering__ on Instagram and Twitter.
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