【英语生活】富人难戒花钱瘾

The recent tabloid sting involving the Duchess of York has elicited plenty of schadenfreude in the British press.

The Duchess, it appears, is by her own admission virtually penniless after her divorce from the Duke of York left her with only 15,000 pounds a year. That's a modest income for anyone, but especially so for someone who confesses to an 'overspending disease' and penchant for private jets and luxury goods.

In an article on the BBC News Magazine, U.K. psychotherapist Benjamin Fry, who co-presents BBC Three's Spendaholics program, says giving up the bling can be traumatic.

'It's the change in circumstances that's difficult… She could have accepted she was poor but wouldn't know who she was. The alternative was to do something I'm sure she didn't really want to do.'

He says wealth can become an addictive drug, needed most by the insecure.

'People do overspend because they've got a low sense of self worth. If you feel very small on the inside and present yourself as very big on the outside, it's compensation.'

'The way to cope is to try really hard to invest in non-material sources of wealth - family, relationships, community or self care.'

Easier said perhaps than done. After all, spending habits die hard - especially among the wealthy.

Do you think there are rich (or formerly rich) people in the U.S. being forced to cut back dramatically on spending?

最近有关约克公爵夫人的八卦消息让英国媒体感到很是幸灾乐祸。

Associated Press约克公爵夫人萨拉•弗格森(Sarah Ferguson)据这位公爵夫人自己承认，她在与丈夫离婚后，每年只有1.5万英镑的赡养费，这看来可以说是身无分文了。每年1.5万英镑对任何人来说都只是微薄的收入而已，更何况是对一个承认自己患有“超支病”、嗜好私人飞机和奢侈品的人而言呢。

在BBC新闻杂志(BBC News Magazine)上的一篇文章中，英国精神治疗师弗莱(Benjamin Fry)写道，放弃奢侈的生活可能会造成创伤性后果。他是BBC三台“花钱狂”节目的主持人之一。

他说，环境的改变让人难以接受，约克公爵夫人或许可以接受自己穷困的事实，却无法再找准自己的位置。她的变通之道就是做了一些我肯定她并非真想做的事。

他说，财富可以成为一种成瘾性毒品，是缺乏安全感的人最需要的。

他说，人们大手大脚地花钱，因为他们的自我评价很低。如果你内心感觉很渺小，表面上就会装得很强大，这是一种补偿。

他说，应对之道就是切实努力投资于非物质的财富来源，比如家庭、人际关系、社区或是自我关爱。

说起来容易做起来难。毕竟，大手大脚花钱的习惯已经根深蒂固，特别是在富人之中。

你认为美国有富人（或以前曾经富有的人）被迫大幅削减支出的事吗？