However, willpower depends on the conscious mind, while compulsive spending is reactive behaviour outside of conscious awareness. If people are programmed from childhood to believe that they cannot deal with stress or emotional upsets, except through shopping, and if they believe that compulsive spending is okay, then willpower, discipline and hard work are not going to help the situation at all. Gaining initial control of your spending will enable you to move on to take further steps in the process. To gain this control you first need to identify and understand what triggers it. Then you need to find out how to react to those triggers.
Uncontrolled spending is really a lust.
Lust is defined as wanting something now, immediately, rather than waiting for it. Lust does not necessarily mean sex because, if you want a TV and you must have it now, rather than wait until you have saved up for it - that is a lust. Compulsive spending is really a feeling that you must have something immediately. Something physical and psychological takes over in your body and you must be satisfied as soon as possible with that desire to spend or to buy something. They say that one way to reduce this physical tension is through deep breathing, visualisation and positive verbal affirmations.