For some people, the problem when you get too depressed is not that you sleep all day, but that you go out and shop all the time. People find comfort in going to stores and spending money on themselves. Although this seems like a healthy way to comfort yourself, this can be very dangerous. Firstly, it can lead to over-cluttering your living space. That would create an unhealthy environment and that can prevent you from getting better. However, the more real threat is that you will find yourself over-extending yourself financially and throwing yourself into debt.

Retail therapy is very understandable. You go to a store, people are nice to you, and in the end you get things. If you use a credit card, you get things and it probably doesnt even seem like you are paying for it. At least, until the bill comes at the end of the month, at which point you will realize how much you spent. That could throw you deeper into depression.

The best thing to do is find ways to avoid retail therapy by learning to deal with disappointment (the single biggest immediate cause of retail therapy) differently. Disappointment can come from rejection, being turned down for a job, not getting an interview for a job, or many other reasons. The best way to deal with it is to just move on. However, thats not easy to do. So find other ways to make yourself happy. Watch a DVD, or go for a walk. Find ways to entertain yourself where you get the same pleasure as if you were buying things. You can get the same rush, and it wont cost you a dime.