🧠 No-Buy Challenges: Here’s What Happens In Your Brain When You Stop Buying
🟣 An addiction psychology perspective on no-buy challenges.
“Search interest in “no buy” us at all time high, and “no buy year rules” increased +120% in 2025 and is one of the top-trending searches relating to “underconsumption core.”
Here’s the message I got in my email a few weeks ago from Google Trends.
Not exactly shocking, tbh. If you’ve spent even five minutes on Instagram or TikTok, it looks like half the planet has been on a no-buy challenge since the start of 2025. (While the other half is splurging non-stop.)
If you’ve missed it entirely, the no-buy trend is all about taking a break from buying things. Some people go all in with a strict no-spend month(s), cutting out everything non-essential. Others choose the low-buy approach where they only make carefully considered purchases. And there are also those who target specific areas of spending, like banning takeout, clothes, or beauty products for a while.
But here’s the real question: do these challenges actually work? Or are they just another dopamine-fueled trend?
Do people end up binge-spending once it’s over, the way crash dieters do with food? Are no-buy challenges just the new financial crash diet culture?
I’ve read the research, devoured the books, and interviewed two of the world’s leading addiction specialists (one American, one French) on these challenges.
Here’s why I think they’re great, who they’re great for, and how to make them actually work for you.
Why the No-Buy Trend Exists
In the B Word, Brittany Brown writes: “The main reason people tend to enter a no-buy is to work towards a major financial goal, such as paying off a mountain of credit card debt, or working up towards a major savings goal, like buying a home.”
Financial goals are definitely a big motivator for no-buy challenges, and Brittany highlights important reasons why they might not be the best fit if that’s your main goal. But they’re not the only reason, and among my readers, they’re often not the primary one.
In the comments to her piece,
pointed out:“I think you might be missing other reasons people are doing a "no buy" year. One reason could be due to environmental concerns, the intense impacts of our spending habits. Another could be to withdraw support from corporations that are showing their lack of backbone and ethics in the current political administration. On the environmental side, the "buy nothing" movement encourages people to shift to a gift economy for their needs when possible. The founders of the movement actually don't consider restaurant spend off the table (but encourage supporting local businesses). Choosing "no buy" to act on your values is different than restriction for restriction's sake. Your reasoning to not do it might still make sense, but there's much more to this trend.”
So now we have 3 types of reasons why people engage in no-buy challenges:
Financial: Working toward major financial goals.
Environmental: Practicing eco-consciousness and minimalism.
Political: Withdrawing support from corporations and shifting to a more values-driven economy.
But there’s another layer I have to bring up here on Money Feelings: the psychological one.
The Psychological Struggles: We Crave Limits in a World of Endless Choices
The no-buy challenge isn’t just about financial strain, environmental responsibility, or political activism. It can also be an expression of psychological struggles that many of us face today:
Guilt around consumerism.
Increasing financial anxiety.
Dopamine overload and decision fatigue.
Shopping as a form of emotional regulation.
Craving limits in a world with endless choices.
Because online shopping is tanking our mental health. We’ve discussed this before but the sheer availability of things makes us want more. The internet doesn’t just make it easy to consume, it makes it inevitable. The more we consume, the more we crave, and the cycle just keeps spinning.
The act of consumption itself becomes the drug.
Studies show that shopping addiction, or compulsive buying is on the rise. Psychiatrists have recognized it as a prevalent mental health disorder, with similarities to eating disorders and other addictions. Many experts are pushing for it to be officially classified in the DSM-5 [the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which is the American Psychiatric Association’s professional guide to mental health], and the ICD [the International Classification of Diseases, maintained by the World Health Organization].
So no-buy challenges aren’t just another fleeting TikTok trend. They tap into something deeper. They exist because more and more people feel burned out by overconsumption, and are truly suffering because of it.
For those people, no-buy and low-buy challenges aren’t just budgeting tools. They’re a way to reclaim control.
No Buy Challenges Are An Effective Self-Binding Strategy
When I interviewed Dr. Anna Lembke, American psychiatrist, Stanford professor, and author of the New York Times bestseller Dopamine Nation, I asked her:
“What are typical missteps people make when trying to break free from compulsive shopping, and how can I avoid them?”
Her answer was crystal clear:
They rely on willpower alone.
Willpower is not an infinite resource. We have less willpower at the end of the day than we do at the beginning. We have less willpower when we’re ‘hungry, angry, lonely, or tired (HALT)’.
Therefore, create self-binding strategies in advance of desire to help assist your willpower.
That’s why we need these preemptive tools that support our willpower before temptation strikes.
These strategies are widely used in psychology to curb compulsive behaviors, whether it’s social media, food, alcohol, or in our case, shopping.
Some examples?
No-buy challenges
Freezing your credit card
Deleting shopping apps
Unsubscribing from brand emails
Removing stored payment details from your browser
Using cash instead of cards
It’s not about harsh discipline or unrealistic restrictions. It's about setting limits that work in your favor. It’s about creating space between impulse and action, giving yourself the chance to pause, reflect, and regain control.
The Science Behind a Shopping Fast
In Dopamine Nation (p. 77), Lembke outlines three key benefits of abstaining from a dopamine trigger (like shopping) for at least four weeks:
It restores homeostasis → Your brain recalibrates, reducing the constant craving for dopamine hits.
It restores our ability to enjoy smaller rewards → You start to find pleasure in things beyond spending (like reading, nature, creativity, or [include whatever your thing is])
It restores the true cause-and-effect between shopping and emotions → You become more aware of what’s really driving your spending!! What is it for you? Is it stress, boredom, comparison?
I have seen again and again in clinical care, and in my own life, how the simple exercise of abstaining from our drug of choice for at least four weeks gives clarifying insight into our behaviors. Insight that simply is not possible while we continue to use.
Dr. Anna Lembke, Dopamine Nation (p. 85)
The Science of Embracing Pain and Discomfort
Sure. Giving up something that feels good, that soothes you, is hard. When you quit compulsive shopping, you don’t just lose the thrill of buying, you lose the emotional buffer it provided.
Some people even experience withdrawal from their usual dopamine highs.
But this discomfort is necessary.
Dr. Lembke puts it bluntly:
“I want you to be prepared for feeling worse before you feel better.”
Why? Because pain and discomfort reset your brain’s balance. They break the dopamine loop and give you the clarity to see what’s really driving your spending.
Facing the Feelings You’ve Been Numbing
Quitting compulsive shopping isn’t just about stopping purchases. It’s about facing what comes up when you do.
Without the dopamine hit of buying, emotions you’ve been numbing start rising to the surface. This is where mindfulness comes in. Instead of judging yourself for struggling, you simply observe what’s happening in your brain.
No shame, no self-criticism, just awareness.
Because when you stop reacting to every urge, you start understanding it. And that’s when real change happens.
They’re a Good Start Because They Work as a Reset
We all agree: A TikTok trend won’t solve our overconsumption crisis. Even Dr. Lembke notes that not everyone feels better after a dopamine fast (about 20 percent of her patients say they don’t feel better after one). We’re clear that managing an addiction without addressing its deeper root causes won’t lead to lasting change. Also, no-buy challenges aren’t for everyone. Believe it or not, some people struggle more with allowing themselves to spend than with overconsumption.
That said, a no-buy challenge can be a powerful reset. It’s a chance to step back, disrupt a habit that no longer serves you, and create space to examine its deeper roots.
The key is not just stopping but using that pause to understand what’s driving your behavior, so you can build lasting, intentional change.
🟣 The Money Feelings 4-Week No-Buy Challenge
When I asked Dr. Lembke, “In your practice, what factors have you seen contribute the most to a successful recovery from shopping addiction?” She said:
Taking a break from unnecessary spending for four weeks to reset reward pathways;
Implementing self-binding strategies and
Getting support from other humans, either mental health professionals or those struggling with similar problems.
These three insights became the foundation of the Money Feelings No-Buy Challenge.
But let’s be clear: this is not another “just don’t spend” challenge.
It’s a 4-week program packed with tools from financial psychology and coaching practices to help you reset your spending habits and your dopamine.
What you’ll walk away with:
✅ A brain that’s no longer on a shopping dopamine rollercoaster.
✅ A deeper understanding of your personal spending triggers.
✅ Less instant gratification, more lasting joy.
✅ A fuller bank account for things that actually matter to you more!
The program
What’s included:
A printable guide: for you to work away from screens, because handwriting helps you process more deeply, supports emotional health, boosts brain function, and protects against cognitive decline.
OR a Notion dashboard that you can just copy-paste into your personal Notion space. It's easy to use, flexible, designed to keep you on track, and so satisfying (if you're a Notion or digital template lover).
A motivation anchor: an exercise to define and visualize your motivation (your “why” for this challenge).
Your no-buy rules: an exercise to help you set up clear, personalized rules for the challenge.
A guided reflection on your shopping impulses: to explore what they mean and where they come from.
A daily journal template: a simple space to track temptations and feelings each day.
A self-binding strategy bingo sheet: to help you choose from proven techniques that keep you accountable.
A dopamine menu template: to retrain your brain to seek joy in sustainable, fulfilling ways.
Affirmation cards: cut them out or create your own to ground yourself when the urge to spend or scroll hits.
A weekly check-in with yourself: to reflect and gather important data from your emotions, triggers, and patterns.
A buying manifesto: an exercise to craft your own compass for future purchases after the challenge ends.
A curated reading list: my favorite reads on shopping psychology, dopamine, and digital minimalism.
Exclusive perks: discounts on brilliant tools and services to support your financial well-being long after the challenge ends.
💡 You don’t need to use everything, but it’s all here for you to pick from, mix, and make your own. If you’re on a free subscription and would like to do the Challenge, here’s the basis with the first two exercises:
Clarify your motivation for taking on this challenge
Define your no-buy rules
If you want access to the full program, you can upgrade your subscription here.
Paid subscribers, you’ll find the downloadable PDF, or the link to the Notion dashboard, as usual, in The Paid Corner, right next to your other tools and perks.
🎁 Bonus: you also get $10 to kickstart your wardrobe reset with Indyx, the app that helps you catalog, style your clothes, and reduce clothing purchases.
It’s all here:
Enjoy!! 💜
And if you have any thoughts or feedback about the Challenge, I’d love to hear from you: moneyfeelings@substack.com or message me directly via Substack.
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See you in two weeks!
Take care,
Pauline 💜
I’ve been doing a clothing no-buy for a month now, and it’s changed the way I look at personal style. I love fashion and creativity, but I’ve realized that no matter how much I intellectualized my favorite pastime, I was still driven by this need to be “the perfect version of me,” someone who would be satisfied when I finally had xyz. I knew in my brain that was bullshit, but the no-buy is helping my heart finally catch up.
Now I just need to address my eating out habits 💀🙃
This is such an interesting perspective. I’m writing about something similar at the moment and haven’t quite been able to put it together but this could be the missing link! I’ve been thinking a lot about how eco-trends that start with genuine intention to change behaviour to reduce our impact on the environment often get hijacked by brands with a product that’s a “solution” and then those items are over-consumed. I’m thinking a lot about the psychology of this; how it’s possible that a person is sitting with the discomfort of some new knowledge like microplastics are harming baby seabirds, then the first action taken is buying something like a reusable water bottle. And then the discomfort is relieved by the dopamine hit and they lose the motivation to actually change behaviour or do something more impactful. I think this links a few of your themes around environment, finance and psychology but I’m still trying to work out how to write it. This piece is really inspiring and the interview and book are great resources. Lots to think about here. Thanks for sharing!