Experts Warn $20-a-Day Doom Spending Can Top $100 a Week
Updated
Updated · ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix · May 20
Experts Warn $20-a-Day Doom Spending Can Top $100 a Week
2 articles · Updated · ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix · May 20
$20 impulse buys each day can quietly exceed $100 a week, Kimberly Palmer said, describing “doom spending” as anxiety-driven online purchases of non-essentials.
Stressful news and social-media scrolling can trigger the habit, she said, with targeted ads and the brief dopamine lift from buying making late-night overspending easy to miss.
Surprise at the monthly credit-card bill is a key warning sign, Palmer said, especially when shoppers barely noticed how much they spent.
Palmer recommended deleting shopping apps, avoiding social media at night and setting purchase cutoffs such as 8 p.m., while replacing scrolling with lower-cost stress relief like walks or calling a friend.
She also urged flexible budgeting—such as splitting an extra $200 between spending and savings—arguing the guardrails can free up a few hundred dollars a month as high prices persist.
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