Friday December 22, 2000

Anti-Shopping Pill

Now there is a cure for compulsive shoppers. Would you believe there's a pill designed to help you keep your cash in check? We're checking it out... in today's RXtra report.

Shopping, some people hate it, some people love it, and some of us just can't live without it.

Shelly exclaims, "I think I’ve always loved to shop. I love the stimulation of shopping"

She is a shopping addict, a compulsion that almost ruined her life. After the sudden loss of three loved ones, this mother of three started shopping to ease her grief.
Shelly Explains, "My nephew died in Alaska, 12 days later my mother died, 5 months later my father was diagnosed “terminally ill” and 3 months later he died. There was a hole inside me and that’s when it really started to get out of control."

She would spend at least a hundred dollars every trip, even if she just went to the market for eggs and milk. Her addiction knew no bounds: cleaning products, kitchen items, clothes. Shelley's purchases overtook every ounce of space in her house.

Researchers say, just like other compulsive disorders such as gambling, and alcoholism... shopping is an addiction. Dr. Norman Sussman is a professor of psychiatry. He says for patients like Shelley, if traditional therapy failed, there were few options. But now there's hope in an anti-depressant pill called Celexa.

Dr. Sussman explains, "Many people laugh at people with shopping addictions, figuring it's just a personality quirk, in fact it’s a disorder and these people need to be treated. I would recommend anybody with a compulsive shopping, or any other compulsive disorder be treated with Celexa"

Celexa raises the level of a chemical called Seratonin in your brain. More Seratonin means more impulse control. With her marriage in trouble and her finances in shambles, Shelley was desperate for help when she heard about a Celexa study near her northern California home.

Shelly exclaimed, "Oh lord, that’s for me.

The change was quick and dramatic. After just a few weeks, Shelley can now resist the siren song of her favorite stores.

Shelly says, "It’s really cool to drive by and not have the need to go in.”
It's a miraculous transformation. This once ashamed woman is now proud of her new found self-control.