There's a reason it's called retail therapy - but does it really make us happy?

購物療法這一稱呼是有原因的--但購物真的能讓我們快樂嗎？

Cait Flanders, the author of "The Year of Less: How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store," decided to implement a year-long shopping ban and give away her belongings after she realized buying new things wasn't actually making her feel better.

The Year of Less: How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store一書的作者凱特·法蘭德斯（Cait Flanders）決定實施長達一年不購物的計劃，放棄她的物品，這一切發生在她意識到買東西實際上并沒有讓她感覺更好之后。

Flanders told The Independent she decided to make the change in her life when she noticed she had 54 books in her home that she hadn't yet read.

法蘭德斯對《獨立報》說道，當她注意到她家里有54本還未讀過的書時，她決定改變自己的生活。

The books, as with most of the belongings she gave away, were impulse purchases - or aspirational purchases. "I would immediately go on a website and buy a book and I wouldn't ask myself when I would actually read it," Flanders told us.

她把這些書和大多數其它沖動消費或希望購買的物品都送人了。"我會立馬上網買一本書，根本不問自己是否真的會讀，"法蘭德斯對我們說道。

But once she started to go through what she had, she realized many of the purchases didn't reflect who she actually was. "A little more than halfway through I realized I held on to stuff that I had bought for an aspirational self."

一旦她開始檢查自己擁有的物品時，她發現很多物品都不能反應她的真實面貌。"清點剛超過一半的時候，我開始意識到：這些東西都是為了那個更有抱負心的自我而購買的。"

"Classical novels, like I would be an interesting person if I read those books. Or a camera thinking I would like to be the kind of person that takes better pictures," she said. After realising this, and sorting her belongings by what she had bought for "the person I am right now or the person I want to become," Flanders "got rid of the stuff the real me didn't actually want."

"經典小說，好像如果讀了這些書我就會變得更有趣。或者買了一個相機，覺得自己會是那種能拍出好看照片的人，"她說道。意識到這一點之后，她開始整理為了"現在的我和我希望成為的那種人"而購買的物品，法蘭德斯"扔掉了那些真實的我不想擁有的東西。"

This happened to be 70 percent of her belongings. Flanders also gave up frivolous shopping - banning purchases of everything except groceries, toiletries, gifts, and experiences. And while she was able to successfully endure a year without shopping, it wasn't easy to change her habits. Flanders said: "It was six months into it and I was still thinking about buying things.

正好占她所有物品的70%。法蘭德斯也放棄了無聊的購物--除了雜貨、洗漱用品、禮物和經驗以外，她不再購買其它物品。雖然她能夠成功忍住一年不購物的沖動，但改變習慣卻并非易事。法蘭德斯說道："6個月的時候，我還在想著買東西。"

"After six months it got easier. After six months I was like 'okay, I can actually do this for an entire year,'" she recalled, but said she realized: "You can't just break a habit in 21 days or 66 days."

"6個月之后，一切變得容易些了。那時候，我差不多是這種狀態'好吧，我真的能一整年不購物的，'"她回憶道。但她也意識到："你真的無法在21天或66天內戒掉某一習慣。"

There's a reason it's called retail therapy - but does it really make us happy?

購物療法這一稱呼是有原因的--但購物真的能讓我們快樂嗎？

Cait Flanders, the author of "The Year of Less: How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store," decided to implement a year-long shopping ban and give away her belongings after she realized buying new things wasn't actually making her feel better.

The Year of Less: How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store一書的作者凱特·法蘭德斯（Cait Flanders）決定實施長達一年不購物的計劃，放棄她的物品，這一切發生在她意識到買東西實際上并沒有讓她感覺更好之后。

Flanders told The Independent she decided to make the change in her life when she noticed she had 54 books in her home that she hadn't yet read.

法蘭德斯對《獨立報》說道，當她注意到她家里有54本還未讀過的書時，她決定改變自己的生活。

The books, as with most of the belongings she gave away, were impulse purchases - or aspirational purchases. "I would immediately go on a website and buy a book and I wouldn't ask myself when I would actually read it," Flanders told us.

她把這些書和大多數其它沖動消費或希望購買的物品都送人了。"我會立馬上網買一本書，根本不問自己是否真的會讀，"法蘭德斯對我們說道。

But once she started to go through what she had, she realized many of the purchases didn't reflect who she actually was. "A little more than halfway through I realized I held on to stuff that I had bought for an aspirational self."

一旦她開始檢查自己擁有的物品時，她發現很多物品都不能反應她的真實面貌。"清點剛超過一半的時候，我開始意識到：這些東西都是為了那個更有抱負心的自我而購買的。"

"Classical novels, like I would be an interesting person if I read those books. Or a camera thinking I would like to be the kind of person that takes better pictures," she said. After realising this, and sorting her belongings by what she had bought for "the person I am right now or the person I want to become," Flanders "got rid of the stuff the real me didn't actually want."

"經典小說，好像如果讀了這些書我就會變得更有趣。或者買了一個相機，覺得自己會是那種能拍出好看照片的人，"她說道。意識到這一點之后，她開始整理為了"現在的我和我希望成為的那種人"而購買的物品，法蘭德斯"扔掉了那些真實的我不想擁有的東西。"

This happened to be 70 percent of her belongings. Flanders also gave up frivolous shopping - banning purchases of everything except groceries, toiletries, gifts, and experiences. And while she was able to successfully endure a year without shopping, it wasn't easy to change her habits. Flanders said: "It was six months into it and I was still thinking about buying things.

正好占她所有物品的70%。法蘭德斯也放棄了無聊的購物--除了雜貨、洗漱用品、禮物和經驗以外，她不再購買其它物品。雖然她能夠成功忍住一年不購物的沖動，但改變習慣卻并非易事。法蘭德斯說道："6個月的時候，我還在想著買東西。"

"After six months it got easier. After six months I was like 'okay, I can actually do this for an entire year,'" she recalled, but said she realized: "You can't just break a habit in 21 days or 66 days."

"6個月之后，一切變得容易些了。那時候，我差不多是這種狀態'好吧，我真的能一整年不購物的，'"她回憶道。但她也意識到："你真的無法在21天或66天內戒掉某一習慣。"