Must Haves

Must Haves

Must Haves

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Are you ready to host this holiday season? Don’t stress. We are going to help. 

I was definitely one of those people during the pandemic that put my Christmas decorations up entirely too early. My family needed it. Studies show that holiday decorations improve your mood, and it definitely did the trick those years.  

Psychologist Deborah Serani told TODAY that holiday decorating creates a neurological shift that can produce happiness. 

“I think anything that takes us out of our normal habituation, the normal day in, day out … signals our senses, and then our senses measure if it’s pleasing or not.” 

Scientifically speaking, decorating for Christmas will make you feel good because it gives you a spike in dopamine. That’s the chemical that tells your brain, “Yeah. This is good.”  

Why do Christmas decorations trigger happy feelings?

There are several different reasons:

  • The bright lights
  • The colors
  • The excitement that comes when you light the tree for the first time.

We all remember this scene from Christmas Vacation. When those lights came on, it was magical! Until it wasn’t. But let’s not focus on that …

Family

You know what else releases dopamine? Spending time with people you love. It’s one of the benefits of the holidays! Your loved ones get together to eat and drink, catch up, and laugh.

Here we are now, a couple years out of the COVID “shut down” and life seems to be more hectic than ever. Having those couple of quiet years has made me more and more frustrated with the hustle and bustle of life at full speed. And what better way to improve your mood and to do a little decorating and spend time with those you love. Hosting for the holidays always seems like a good idea until it stresses you out. Let this list help you to enjoy the holiday season with less stress.