From Maintenance to Relapse: No Spend Year Round 2
After a successful year of No-Spend, I thought I was cured. Advertisements and flashy “Sale” signs weren’t going to sucker me in anymore. I was wiser and more disciplined…until I wasn’t. That’s the thing about behavior change: it works, until we stop working at it. In fact, relapse is considered the unofficial sixth stage of the Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Chang- a framework that describes the process for making lasting change.
The stages are used to assess if someone is ready to make a change. Interventions are tailored to the individual's stage of change to guide them through the process of change. The Transtheoretical Model, or more commonly known as The Stages of Change, was developed in the 1970s by James Prochaska and Carla DiClemente when working with individuals who were trying to quit smoking.
The original model consists of five stages:
Precontemplation- Not thinking about change, not recognizing the behavior is a problem
Contemplation- Beginning to recognize the behavior is a problem, thinking about the pros and cons of changing vs staying the same
Preparation- Deciding to change and preparing for it
Action- Actively making change within the last 6 months
Maintenance - Sustained behavior change (more than 6 months) and working towards preventing relapse
And the unofficial sixth stage Relapse- Returning to old behavior or an earlier stage
I was in the Maintenance Stage from my No-Spend Year. Everything was great, until I stopped being vigilant, I lost my purpose, and no longer was working toward avoiding relapse. It was my birthday weekend, so I decided to treat myself to some new clothes, because “Why not? It’s my birthday, I’ve worked hard to lose the baby weight. I deserve this.” That gateway shopping trip brought forth old habits. Before I knew it, I was back in the Precontemplation Stage, going to thrift stores almost weekly. Wasting time and money and convincing myself it was fine.
Six months later, I realized everything I had purchased on my birthday shopping spree had been donated back to the thrift store. I was back in the cycle of consumerism I spent a year working to get out of. My energy drained from constantly shopping, organizing, and discarding on repeat.
To get my peace back I knew I had to stop. So, here I am again planning for my second No-Spend year. I’ve learned behavior change isn’t permanent without planning (preparation stage) and constant attention. Benjamin Franklin’s advice rings true: “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail”.
So I am starting back at square one:
Making my list of what I can and can not buy
Developing a monthly tracker for accountability
Sharing my journey with others to stay on track
Whatever your goal is for the New Year, don’t wait until January 1st to make a plan, start now! Whether your goal is to save more, declutter, or build healthier habits, start preparing today so you can end next year in the Maintenance Stage with your new habits.
What are your goals for 2025? And what’s your plan to achieve them?
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