{"id":114409,"date":"2023-10-06T11:31:00","date_gmt":"2023-10-06T15:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=114409"},"modified":"2023-10-09T14:07:28","modified_gmt":"2023-10-09T18:07:28","slug":"consumerism-and-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/consumerism-and-mental-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Consumerism and Mental Health: How Are They Related?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Does consumerism negatively affect your mental health? Does shopping distract you from the difficulties of life?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It might be surprising to learn that consumerism has a negative effect on your mental health. While buying things can be satisfying, it also prevents you from solving real issues that need to be addressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s how consumerism and mental health go hand in hand, according to The Wisdom of Insecurity<\/em> by Alan Watts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

How You\u2019re Making Your Anxiety Worse<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Watts notes that despite the utility of pain and death, your anxiety about these experiences leads you to pursue an endless stream of pleasure. <\/strong>You know your time on earth is limited and that pleasures aren\u2019t promised, so you want to cram as much pleasure into your life as possible. You probably engage in consumerism\u2014the purchasing of goods and services beyond the bare necessities\u2014to make that happen. The connection between consumerism and mental health is a vicious cycle: Experiencing one pleasure makes you desire more and better pleasures (for example, you might always be chasing the high of obtaining the newest, fastest car). As a result, consumerism can never satisfy you. Watts says this means that the more you pursue pleasure, the more anxious you become.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: In A New Earth<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Eckhart Tolle argues similarly that consumerism is a response to fear<\/a>. While Watts says your thinking self drives you to consume because it fears pain and death, Tolle says that your ego<\/a> has an innate fear of being inferior <\/em>and proves its superiority by accumulating material, thought, and emotional elements<\/a>\u2014including possessions and improvements to your physical body. Tolle also explains that consumerism has a negative effect on society and the earth, for example by engendering greed and producing toxic waste. Scientists agree that consumerism harms society and the environment\u2014and while it\u2019s unclear whether consumerism amplifies anxiety <\/em>specifically, research suggests it makes you unhappy because it doesn\u2019t adequately address insecurity<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a consumer, you fixate on the future. When you\u2019re <\/em>experiencing pain, you try to make yourself happy by diverting your attention from your discomfort to ways you can maximize pleasure in the future. However, Watts says that you\u2019ll never <\/em>experience the future\u2014you can only ever experience what\u2019s happening in this present moment; in the next moment, you\u2019ll experience what\u2019s happening in that<\/em> present moment. This means that pursuing a future goal is futile. Also, distracting yourself from the present diminishes your ability to fully experience the present. You won\u2019t fully enjoy any pleasurable experience, so you\u2019ll keep seeking out future pleasures, and you won\u2019t be able to deal with and move on from pain. This extends your anxiety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Watts may have drawn his advice to live in the present<\/a> instead of focusing on the future<\/a> from the Buddhist practice known as mindfulness<\/em><\/a>\u2014a method of witnessing the present without judging or trying to influence it. Along with Buddhists, many psychologists believe mindfulness is good for achieving mental clarity and spiritual health<\/a>. However, studies suggest that planning for the future\u2014a process known as prospection<\/a>\u2014also has benefits, including better mental health, improved decision-making<\/a>, and increased motivation. It may be best<\/a> to find a balance between prospection and mindfulness<\/a> because when you plan for the future, you increase the likelihood that you\u2019ll enjoy living in the moment later on.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, Watts argues that contrary to popular belief, the inevitability of pain and death isn\u2019t what makes life difficult\u2014what makes life difficult is <\/strong>your insistence on pursuing future pleasures and sparing yourself from future pain and death. <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Psychologists agree that resisting life\u2019s hardships (like pain and death) only makes life more difficult<\/a>. They explain that many people believe that if they refuse to accept a hardship, they can make the experience less painful or avoid feeling pain at all. However, denying the reality of your hardship can actually increase <\/em>your suffering because it distances you from your emotions\u2014which, in turn, decreases your capacity for joy and <\/em>contributes to greater depression, anxiety, and poor decision-making.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Does consumerism negatively affect your mental health? Does shopping distract you from the difficulties of life? It might be surprising to learn that consumerism has a negative effect on your mental health. While buying things can be satisfying, it also prevents you from solving real issues that need to be addressed. Here’s how consumerism and mental health go hand in hand, according to The Wisdom of Insecurity by Alan Watts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":56772,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,9,24],"tags":[1280],"class_list":["post-114409","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","category-psychology","category-society","tag-the-wisdom-of-insecurity","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nConsumerism and Mental Health: How Are They Related? - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Do you buy things hoping they'll make you happy? Sadly, this isn't a permanent solution. 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