Putting Christmas decorations up early can make you happier, psychologist says

The most Christmas obsessed people among us will already be counting down the days to mince pies, mulled wine and presents.

But, while the nights have started drawing in a bit, there’s still a long way to go until that magical month of December.

Nonetheless, if you’re looking for an excuse to get in the festive spirit as soon as possible, then science is your friend.

Getting the decorations up early might draw groans from your less festive friends, but it turns out there might be genuine psychological benefits to savouring a few extra weeks of Christmas fun.

And the impulse to get the tree out at the earliest opportunity has a rational logic.

Psychoanalyst Steve McKeown says: “Although 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.

Talking to Unilad , he added: “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.

“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!”

So there we have it. If having all your decorations up makes you happy, then there’s no reason you shouldn’t indulge your impulse and get that tinsel hanging up.

(Mirror UK)