Affluenza Affluenza: An unhappy condition of overload, debt, anxiety and waste, resulting from the dogged pursuit of more. Symptoms: Swollen Expectations, Shopping Fever, Chronic Stress, Hyper Commercialism, Material Girls (and Boys), Rash of Bankruptcies, Fractured Families, Social Scars, Global Infection. Prevention & Cure: Spend less, use less credit, simplify.