A woman ended up with £12k of debt after getting addicted to the "dopamine hit" of buying new clothes, phones and fancy meals out.<br /><br />Sarah Bartlett, 37, always loved online shopping and would regularly splash the cash on trips to the theatre and the "finer things in life".<br /><br />She managed to live within her means until buying a new car left her tight for cash and she took out a 0% interest credit card.<br /><br />The people development partner soon grew accustomed to buying nice clothes, the latest tech and home decor<br /><br />She regularly bought expensive candles, designer handbags, clothes and new iPhones without thinking about it - and was soon spending way more each month than her £28k salary.<br /><br />Over lockdown she said she used buy handbags and clothes to feel connected to the outside world.<br /><br />After six years of overspending she had £12k of debt spread across eight credit cards, and the £180 minimum monthly payments were crippling.<br /><br />But she got a wake up call in 2021 when her mortgage doubled and she was still spending £500 more per month than she could afford <br /><br />She began budgeting to the penny, got counselling to curb her need to buy to feel included.<br /><br />Strong-willed Sarah, from Bristol, has just £500 left of debt to pay back after repaying more than £11,000 in just 22 months.<br /><br />Now she wants to help others, and erase the stigma around talking about money troubles.<br /><br />Sarah said: "I definitely felt addicted.<br /><br />"I put it to back of mind because I enjoyed the dopamine hit of the purchases and I was ignoring it until the wake-up call. <br /><br />"I was quite ashamed of it so I didn't open up to my family about it until January 2023.<br /><br />"I feel really proud of myself of how much I've cleared and I wasn't sure whether I could sustain it.<br /><br />"I'm still slightly worried I could slip back into but I'm really proud of being able to do it and being more open about it and breaking the stigma people have about hiding it. <br /><br />"Mental health wasn't spoken about it a lot and then it became more open so if my journey can support someone else on the same journey than that would be great." <br /><br />Following a promotion in 2015, Sarah treated herself to a new £11,000 car which she paid for with a 0% interest card.<br /><br />While paying back the £11,000, Sarah became enticed by transfer fees and would move money from card to card.<br /><br />And while she was 'paying off' huge amounts for the car she kept spending so the total debt never got smaller - and in fact it got bigger.<br /><br />She said: "I took the credit card out with a money transfer and 11k went into my bank account which then paid for the car.<br /><br />"I'd pay off that credit card with another and just kept following the 0% deals that I could find.<br /><br />"It felt like I was paying off the car but I managed to pay stuff off but then I'd buy more stuff so it turned into a cycle and the balance just hovered around £12k.<br /><br />"I've always been a person who loves to spend money. I like shiny things - the newest things.
