Many advertisements feed on feelings of inadequacy, and for one crucial reason: Those campaigns work. Women have not been referring to cathartic shopping frenzies as ‘Retail Therapy’ without cause. The high is real.

Don’t think retailers are so cunning in their aim to prey on frazzled women and lure them into unloading their cash after a difficult day? Check out this research article from Cotton Incorporated’s website, with the headline ‘When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping’

“If you’re having a really bad day, going out and treating yourself makes you feel like you’re righting a wrong in some way,” says [36-year-old-Meryl] the pharmaceutical executive who lives in Tarrytown, N.Y. . .

That perspective doesn’t surprise Carrie Richardson, owner of Celeste Turner, an upscale boutique on Chicago’s Armitage Avenue. “It’s part of our nature that, as women, we feel good when we buy something,” affirms Richardson.

“Men like bigger toys,” she adds. “For women, it doesn’t take a car—it can be a sexy shirt, a necklace, or a great handbag. If you’re not feeling your best, or having an ‘ugly’ day, a new pair of pants can be a great lift." . . .

The bottom line? Shopping, for women, is ultimately a feel-good thing. “On the floor above us in our building is a group of women therapists, and they come down and shop here,” says Gradman of [the store] The Studio. “We always joke with them about which form of ‘therapy’ is more effective, theirs or ours. It might be more expensive here, you might walk out spending a few hundred dollars, but you’ll probably feel much better.”

It’s refreshing to read such honesty from inside the fashion industry, even when their message is more unnerving than a single ‘ugly day.’

The corporate strategy to reach damsels in their distress is not limited to adult women, nor the fashion industry. From Thursday’s New York Times, we learn that a girl is “Never too young for that first pedicure:”

“…Today, cosmetic companies and retailers increasingly aim their sophisticated products and service packages squarely at 6- to 9-year-olds, who are being transformed into savvy beauty consumers before they’re out of elementary school.”

So while these children can barely multiply, at least they will understand the increased value of a well-polished woman.

Our culture trains us to be good little consumers, fueled by the belief that we are not enough just as we are. The fashion world is constantly transforming what is considers “in” to ensure that women will always feel behind the curve, thus perpetuating the need for them to buy. more. stuff.

A recognition of our inconsolable insufficiency is at the heart of Lent. We are asked to dwell in the emptiness within that not even the gorgeous Alberto Makali Geo Print Trench Coat could fill. We are called to remain in the depths of unanswered desire that not even a luxurious cup of Hazelnut coffee could warm.

But with Easter Sunday on its way, and the promise of Spring’s new life somewhere on the horizon, sometimes it feels therapeutic to slog through this spiritual desert. Sometimes, without warning, there is joy in Lent.

So in the middle Lent’s dog days, may we reflect on my adaptation of the famous spiritual encouragement:

When you’re stuck wearing boot cut pants in a skinny jean world, remember, “This too shall pass…”