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Fact: There are two types of people in this world. You either a) break out the holiday wrapping paper on November 1 or b) you “bah humbug” your way through the red and green aisles at every big box store from Halloween to New Year’s.
But science actually has a definitive answer for who’s happier. Turns out, it’s the people who are already untangling the lights and getting in the Christmas spirit way before December.
Psychoanalyst Steve McKeown previously told Unilad that “There could be a number of symptomatic reasons why someone would want to obsessively put up decorations early, most commonly for nostalgic reasons either to relive the magic or to compensate for past neglect.”
He added: “In a world full of stress and anxiety, people like to associate things that make them happy, and Christmas decorations evoke those strong feelings of the childhood. Decorations are simply an anchor or pathway to those old childhood magical emotions of excitement. So putting up those Christmas decorations early [can] extend the excitement!”
And in the Journal of Environmental Psychology, one study by the University of Utah and Temple University found that people associate homes decorated for the holidays as a way to “communicate friendliness and cohesiveness with neighbors.”
Basically, just as we love remembering the happy times when we’re sad, Christmas decorations can evoke the same feelings of nostalgia, warmth and friendliness.
So, what are you waiting for? Deck the halls! Trim the trees! Hang the stockings! Order the Advent calendars! (OK, that last one is a bonus...) Or, just shop seven of our favorite decor items below to give your holiday serotonin levels a boost.
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