America's Most Unusual Addictions

"I was addicted to nasal drops for about seven years," says 33-year-old   Katarina Madej, senior director of communications and marketing at the American Cancer Society in Hackensack, New Jersey. "The doctor was right—stopping cold turkey was the only way out."

She started using nasal drops to relieve congestion due to a cold. The initial relief was so dramatic, she found herself unable to stop using the drops even after her cold was gone.

Though it worked for Katarina to quit cold turkey, not all doctors agree with this treatment. "Weaning yourself off a short-term relief nasal spray involves a more comprehensive approach," says Dr. Clifford Bassett, M.D., of Long Island College Hospital of Brooklyn. He recommends getting tested for allergies—which may require a completely different treatment—and seeing an ENT (ear, nose and throat) specialist to rule out structural problems of the nose and sinuses.

To overcome this addiction, Dr. Bassett suggests a prescription nasal corticosteroid spray, which reduces nasal congestion and helps ease the symptoms of quitting.
 

"Anthony listens to his iPod at work and while watching TV at home," says Alpert. "So far, his job is secure and his colleagues and boss accept his behavior. But it's different at home because his girlfriend wonders what's more important: their relationship or his music."

Anthony's behavior served a function at first: he was very shy and the iPod protected him from interacting with people. But, it started to cause problems in his relationship.

"Treatment for this and other addictions consists of identifying the gain or the purpose they serve," says Alpert. "Then, you integrate alternate behaviors. For Anthony, that involves learning appropriate times to listen to music, and really appreciating those times."
 

"I have an addiction to sugar-free popsicles," says 51-year-old Susan, a lawyer from New York who eats 12 popsicles a day. "After four years, I found out that it's a symptom of anemia!"

Dr. Eric Rosenbaum, M.D., says that pagophagia is an obsessive need to chew on ice and can be a sign of low iron in the blood. "If it is anemia, treatment with iron supplements should correct the problem," says Dr. Rosenbaum, who practices in Larchmont, N.Y.

"Further, the addition of B vitamins can help increase red blood cell production, and vitamin C can aid in the absorption of iron." He advises people who struggle with pagophagia to have their thyroid gland checked, as a desire for cold can be a sign of an overactive thyroid.
 

More than 20 million Americans are affected by an uncontrollable urge to purchase items they don't use or even take out of the shopping bag. "This chronic impulse disorder is often brought on or associated with feelings of tension, anxiety, boredom or depression," says Dr. Lorrin Koran, M.D., director of Stanford University's Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders Clinic. "Purchases are followed by regret, guilt and the resolve not to do it again."

"Shopaholism" can lead to debt, bankruptcy and family conflict. Since this disorder is often associated with clinical depression, researchers are studying antidepressant medications such as Lexapro as a possible treatment for shopaholism.
 

"Patients who do not have an addiction to plastic surgery are satisfied when they leave [the office]," says New York–based cosmetic surgeon Dr. Robert Guida, M.D. "Addicts think just one more procedure—and then another, and another, and another—will make them look perfect." This addiction can be the result of Body Dysmorphic Disorder, which is an unhealthy preoccupation with physical appearance or a specific body part.

Addicts have countless surgeries, often on the same body part. "One female I saw had 9 or 10 nose jobs. She was seeing doctors all over the country," says Dr. Guida. "Another patient—a male—kept getting nose jobs to make his nose smaller and smaller." These patients also have extremely unrealistic expectations, and are difficult to please.

"Cognitive-behavioral therapy helps," says Dr. Guida. "Another possible treatment is selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (antidepressants) to increase the level of serotonin in the brain.