What to do? First is to realize that like any other addiction, genuine compulsive online shopping is a disease. ''It's similar to what happens when an alcoholic looks at a bottle of whiskey,'' says Hollander. ''For somebody who's doing Internet shopping, different parts of their brain are lighting up.''
Treatment focuses on management of the behavior — which can be difficult when so many people use computers and the Internet in their everyday work. It helps to identify what the triggers are — what makes a person want to spend online, whether it's boredom, nervousness, or habit. Setting time and spending limits can also be helpful, as can clearing your credit-card numbers and customer information from online shopping accounts so that spending isn't too easy. The more a person can delay or complicate the instant gratification, the better. In some cases, treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder is useful, including medications like Luvox, an inhibitor used to treat compulsive gamblers.
The important thing, say experts, is to remember that the condition can — and should — be treated. ''People have chopped up their modems, thrown them out the window,'' says Orzack. ''But most of the time you have to learn how to manage it.''
