My friend Amanda has always loved to shop. Finding good deals is a sport to her. But for a while, her shopping habit made things stressful in her marriage. No matter how much money she and her husband made, Amanda almost always spent more than they had. Her husband tried to be understanding, but he was deeply frustrated. Knowing her marriage was on rocky ground, Amanda went to counseling to figure out the root of her problem.
What she discovered was eye-opening! Her shopping habit was actually a reaction to growing up with excessively frugal parents. They were humble people who had learned to survive with very little, but they’d do things like save the bags out of cereal boxes “just in case.” After 18 years of living like this, then being on her own, Amanda started shopping just because she could.
