A woman has revealed how day-to-day thrifting turned her into a bankrupt hoarder – now sharing her recovery process.

Lana St Clair, 24, from San Antonio, Texas, USA, a TikToker with over 161,000 followers, first got into the habit of finding savvy clothing deals back in March 2020.

While in her last year of university, she was looking for new ways to make money and decided to sell pre-loved clothes, after seeing others having success with it on Instagram.

But Lana needed stock to offer and so scoured charity shops and outlets, as well as landfill sites for items she thought would bring in big money from buyers.

Unfortunately, this became the start of a nightmare that would soon see her "bankrupt" and "addicted" to shopping.

"I watched people from all over comment with bids on social media, like eBay without the fees," she told NeedToKnow.Online.

"It looked like easy money, so after spending an evening brainstorming a name for my shop, I started posting my own finds."

Lana spent hours washing, dry steaming, measuring and photographing the clothes, before popping them up online, sharing them in posts and on her Instagram Stories.

But within a year, she became obsessed with finding deals – spending far too much on her stock than she was selling, and eventually dropped out of university.

The shopper, who named her shop @st.clairvintage, said: "I was in denial for a long time.

"My set-up, paired with my free schedule, due to the pandemic, fuelled a shopping addiction that had me spending at a faster rate than I could sell.

"Before I knew it, I was a college dropout turned hoarder.

"When it hit me, I felt myself sinking into a pit.

"At this point, I still had not made the executive decision to niche my shop down into a specific category and I felt as though the wheels were spinning but I wasn’t getting anywhere."

Lana also recognised the signs of her addiction after finding herself rushing to outlets at the end of every day, hoping to find something cool or unique that she hadn't found the day before.

She said: "As a protective mechanism, I tried to do my shopping within the last 30 minutes of the store’s hours to limit myself, but that didn’t stop me from bringing home at least one bag of stuff a day.

"It was after a few months of this, when I stopped being able to see the floor of my bedroom, that I really realised how big of an issue it was."

Lana would deny the issue to herself by making jokes about being a hoarder or playing it down to her friends and family, and her therapist.

And the worse she felt, the more she'd spend.

Lana found herself spending anywhere from $300-$1,000 a month on her shopping addiction, filling up her flat from floor to ceiling.

The situation got so extreme, she was forced to get a storage unit for the 'stock'.

She added: "I'd spend more depending on how bad I was doing.

"The compulsion to buy the clothing had gotten so out of control that it was beginning to affect my flatmates, and this further fuelled my feelings of guilt and shame.

"Eventually, I got a storage unit but having the extra space enabled me to shop even more."

By 2022, Lana's business was virtually nonexistent and had three sales in one month.

It was the wake-up call she needed.

She said: "I definitely still feel shame because of how society has dirtied the word [hoarder].

"And who can blame them, hoarders are known for their squalor.

"But it’s more than just a mess, I want to be strong and say I feel liberated now that I’ve embraced the label, but I don’t.

"Holding myself accountable certainly helps with recovery."

Her family also soon found out because her dad came across her card statements and noticed her hoarding was becoming an issue.

She added: "My mom has a shopping problem too, so he put it together fairly quickly.

"They kind of let it die out, as I was living in a different city for college and we didn’t have to interact very much."

However, Lana did end up asking one of her sisters for help, who in turn decided to come and live with her for a few months to help get her out of the mess she felt she was in.

Lana said: "I don’t think I would have done it without her."

"Another time, my flat mate at the time gifted me a bunch of clothing racks so I could organise my clothing, but that was before it spiralled out of control.

"Though sometimes I wouldn’t even have the energy to wash or hang the clothing I just bought.

"I’d just leave it in the bag, evidence of a purchase that I’d made in a haze.

Lana has implemented a rule where she can only shop once a month, which has done wonders for her personal space – and wallet.

She said: "I can now see the floor most of the time!

"However I am still a bit of a mess, recovery is something I'm taking day by day.

"The urge to shop is still very strong, most days.

"I frequently take preventative measures such as bringing my dog with me everywhere I go, so that I can’t step foot inside a store."

Lana has also taken to TikTok (@lanasaintclair) to share her story as a warning to others, as well as build a community for help and support.

The former hoarder already has 161,000 followers.

She added: "I aim to create as much recovery-based content as I can, because when I see that I’m helping others, I take my commitment even more seriously.

"After I posted my first few videos about my shopping addiction and hoarding, I found a community in my own comment section.

"It was bizarre, as I felt my page had more or less become the forum for the hoarders of TikTok.

"No material item, despite its value or beauty, is worth your peace of mind.

"Think of that every time you feel compelled to bring more items home.

"Remember what you already have, and find new ways to use it."

ENDS

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