Impulse buying...

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Today I was extremely bored, and noticing that I had more money in my bank account than I thought, I kind of went out and made a bunch of impulse purchases, which I now regret. I moved to a new city recently, and there are so many cool stores and stuff here that it's hard for me NOT to spend my money. As well, I made some online purchases since I finally managed to straighten out the details for my ebay and paypal accounts.

Most of the stuff I bought is stuff I had been wanting for a while, and some of it was even stuff I needed, but for the most part, I shouldn't have spent nearly as much as I did. I think I'll still be able to cover rent and such, but I'm just kicking myself for my poor impulse control.

This doesn't seem like an autism thing to me, but it definitely seems like an ADHD trait, which makes sense since I was recently given a tentative diagnosis of it. Can anyone else relate?

I think my impulse buying is somewhat autism or OCD related as I hate to have a non-complete set of something. Thus, I need up buying thousands of dollars worth of japanese karate bugman and spandex super hero toys. Another problem is that they are all in yen so I can pretend that it is monopoly money.

In my case my anxiety makes me try to save money by buying many cheap things whenever I find them. Maybe not to the point of being a serious hoarder but my place is full of cheap things - far more than I need. For example, I probably have >100 pairs of cheap socks and underpants. And many other things.

Sometimes I buy expensive things impulsively. I had never even imagined that I would own an iPhone right until that afternoon when I suddenly ended up buying one for >$800. I did the same with my laptop. I don't do that too often though.

I know some people that are worse than I. So I think it's quite a common thing.

I want to buy stuff to upgrade my PC, but I keep putting it off because it just seems like too much to spend all at once. Yet, I'll often spend just as much on smaller things within the course of a few days.

I tend to be quite good with what little money I have. This is due to decision making issues that I struggle with. When buying something it can take me days even weeks to weigh up all possible pros and cons of the purchase, and by that time I don't always want the item anymore.

I have this issue with games. It's like my brain gets fixated on something and I want to buy it, or if there is a sale going on I have to get something.

I've gotten better this year so far, only three random purchases as opposed to like 10 by this time last year.

I'm absolutely terrible with this one. I'll buy things because I want them, I'll buy things simply because they are there, I'll buy things because I am bored.

My funds are not dented by any of this, which just makes it worse.

I try to control it, lest I buy something but then forget that I did so later when I buy something else; that happens easily.

Games are my main hobby, so that's usually what it is (bought 2 earlier today for that matter), but it can be all sorts of things. Usually these are online purchases, as I know that if I carry money with me while I'm out of the house, I might do something stupid with it. And then forget that I have done so.

This happens FREQUENTLY. Easy to do it a couple of times in a week.

Can you return the stuff? If you need it, however, you might as well keep it.

I think it's hard for anyone to keep a personal budget. I read that most accountants don't even follow their own advice in this area.

It's natural to worry about money after spending it. It's called buyer's remorse but you should realize that it's bithjng to worry over in the grand scheme of things.

As long as you still have enough for rent and food and gas, you'll be fine. If you don't think you'll have enough, well, then I guess it's time to return something or work some sort of gig from Craig's List or something. The first step is to run the numbers. If you're in the clear for now, great. Next, you should write down a list of all the things you need or have wanted for a while. Include the stuff you bought on the list, just cross them out or put an x next to them. Having the list will help prevent impulse buys. It may even help you prioritize your choices or form a budget.

Side question: Have you signed up for a library card with your new local library yet?

If not, you should definitely do so. Free books, cds, and dvds will help with boredom, as will the suspense of interlibrary loan. You might also find some other sources of amusement there, since most libraries have a catalog with classes and clubs and stuff that residents can do and join.

I tend to impulse spend on food.

In my mind I'll be like 'yo, it's only $25 for one night of delivered pizza and chicken'. Five days later I'll be down $100 due to ordering Chinese for lunch etc.

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Unapologetically, Norny.
-chronically drunk

I usually do not have a problem with impulse buying. Occasionally (like once or twice a year) I will do an impulse buy on something that I really want/need, within the $50 or less range. My aunt is quite the opposite, as she does this almost every time she shops. She is constantly trying to return things that she buys, saying "It was the wrong ______.", and then wanting something else (which she sometimes tries to return too). Because of this, she has been banned from returning times at certain retail stores within a 100 mile radius of their town. We constantly get the line "Will you please return this for me?" from her when she regrets buying something on one of her shopping trips. Man, that can get quite annoying! She is the only one in our family that seems to have this issue.