There are two very distinct camps when it comes to Christmas; those who insist on blasting Mariah’s ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ as soon as October rolls around and those who look a little like this:
But it turns out getting into the holly jolly spirit early can actually do wonders for your health.
Yup, if you’re already itching to hang up the stockings and dust off the fairy lights consider yourself lucky; a new study has found that those who put up their seasonal decorations ahead of time are way happier than those who wait.
Researchers put this down to the fact that it makes us nostalgic for when we were kids –before we had to pay bills, show up for work and generally do all the (crappy) stuff that goes hand-in-hand with adulting.
“In a world full of stress and anxiety, people like to associate to things that make them happy and Christmas decorations evoke those strong feelings of the childhood,” MindFixers psychoanalyst Steve McKeown told UNILAD.
“Decorations are simply an anchor or pathway to those old childhood magical emotions of excitement. So, putting up those Christmas decorations early extends the excitement!”
Plus, all that festive joy can bring you closer to your neighbours. Evidence in the Journal of Environmental Psychology found that houses covered in decorations were deemed more “friendly and cohesive.”
As if you needed another excuse to break out the baubles!
This article originally appeared on Women’s Health Australia.
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