Top Consultancies Report Rising Holiday Shopping Fatigue; Clinicians Explain How to Maintain Wellbeing
Illustration of a girl stressed due to holiday shopping
As Deloitte, PwC, and Accenture holiday shopping reports warn of record cognitive stress and rising indecision this holiday season, clinicians explain why constant decision-making drains the brain, and what can be done to support it.
November 17, 2025. Three of the world’s leading consultancies, Deloitte, PwC, and Accenture, have recently released reports on holiday shopping. They highlight record levels of cognitive stress and rising indecision as key features of the coming season. Clinicians warn that, beyond budget tightening and economic instability, this is leading us to a global cognitive burnout.
All three reports represent different sides of holiday shopping struggles. Deloitte’s Holiday Retail Survey 2025 finds that 58% of consumers describe holiday shopping as stressful, while Accenture reports that 85% of online shoppers abandon their carts due to frustration or indecision. PwC’s Holiday Outlook 2025 shows that 84% expect to cut back spending.
“People aren’t just overwhelmed by buying. They are mentally strained by constant decision-making,” said Dr. Hannah Nearney, clinical psychiatrist and UK Medical Director at Flow Neuroscience, a company that develops brain stimulation solutions for mental wellbeing. “When the brain gets overloaded like that, we quickly see stress “mode” kicking in which can worsen other problems like anxiety and depression.”
Dr. Nearney adds that difficulties can include low mood, poor concentration, and overwhelm as a result of decision fatigue overloading the prefrontal cortex, the brain’s region responsible for planning and emotional regulation.
What amplifies the decision fatigue during this holiday shopping season is financial pressure, consultancies’ data shows.
For example, Deloitte reports that 57% of consumers expect the economy to weaken in the next six months. The firm says this is its most negative sentiment in nearly 30 years.
“Economic uncertainty keeps the brain and nervous system in a constant state of anxiety and alertness,” said Dr. Nearney. “This makes it harder for people to manage holiday shopping and planning. Thus, we can’t simply enjoy the season.”
While cognitive burnout is on the rise, one demographic of consumers seems to be resisting it more than others.
According to PwC’s report, Gen Z plans to reduce holiday spending by 23%, more than any other age group, while showing a growing interest in purchases related to wellness and mental health.
“Younger people are realising that mental energy is finite,” she said. “And this is great, to be honest. They’re beginning to view focus and calm as resources worth protecting.”
This shift in priorities appears visible in practice, too, Dr. Nearney adds. A growing number of younger adults are beginning to use mental health devices to manage stress before it escalates into burnout. One of such tools are brain stimulation headsets that are gaining popularity.
“While it’s important to choose the right method that works for you, at-home solutions where you target the brain regions responsible for stress and anxiety are becoming more popular with increasing clinical research to support that,” Dr. Nearney said. “People who incorporate this into their routines often report an improvement in their wellbeing within a matter of weeks, so this may be a suitable practice for some to implement ahead of the predictable “holiday stressor” season.”
Clinical research shows that brain stimulation therapy can improve emotional regulation, mood, sleep, and focus. It can also ease anxiety: based on over 18,800 samples of real-world data, 66% of people using a Flow brain stimulation device reported improvement after three weeks of regular use.
“The answer to cognitive burnout this holiday season is not avoiding decisions, but practicing self-care,” concludes Dr. Nearney. “And this can manifest in different forms, be it meditation, physical activity, “batch” decision-making ahead of hitting the online deals, pacing your shopping to include breaks, taking screen breaks or considering incorporating brain stimulation into your routine.”
About Flow Neuroscience
Flow Neuroscience is a healthcare company that focuses on tDCS therapies and devices. In 2016, it was co-founded in Sweden by Daniel Mansson, a clinical psychologist, and Erik Rehn, an engineer. Erin Lee joined as CEO in 2022, having previously worked at Google, Uber and Babylon, and the company is now based in the UK. Flow is the only at-home medical tDCS device with clinically proven effectiveness in treating depression. It is not only used by the National Health Service (NHS), but also available and has passed regulations in Europe, Norway, Switzerland, and Hong Kong.
