In the wake of Halloween, excitement for the holidays is becoming increasingly palpable. Is it time, then, to put up your Christmas tree in November and start brightening up your home in the holiday spirit? After all the cold has set in, Instagram posts are multiplying, and holiday TV movies have invaded screens and the Netflix catalog.
Some say you should wait until December 24, or Christmas Eve, to put up your tree. Others say you should wait until after Thanksgiving in the US or after St. Nicholas Day, December 6, in the Nordic countries. Many people, however, switch their minds to the holidays as soon as Halloween is over.
And it turns out, experts agree that putting up your Christmas tree in November is good, and one study states that putting up your holiday decorations early immediately increases your happiness.
In 2023, more than ever, the prevailing chaos invites us to take hasty refuge in the holiday spirit and all that it evokes for us.
“In a world filled with stress and anxiety, people like to get closer to the things that make them happy. And Christmas decorations bring back those intense childhood memories,” psychoanalyst Steve McKeown, creator of the MindFixers program and owner of The McKeown Clinic, says. “More often than not, this action reflects nostalgic reasons, to relive the magic, or to make up for past neglect. Christmas decorations are simply an anchor or a pathway to those old childhood memories filled with magic and excitement. So it would be mostly about maintaining and prolonging that excitement.”
The idea of nostalgia leading to happiness is confirmed by Amy Morin, psychotherapist and author of the best-selling book 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do.
“Nostalgia connects people to their past and helps them understand who they are,” she says. “For many, putting up Christmas decorations early is a way of reconnecting with their childhood…and gazing at a Christmas tree can bring back memories of the time when we still believed in Santa Claus.”
The act of putting up Christmas decorations, as well as admiring them afterward, immediately boosts the happiness hormone dopamine. This can literally change the body’s hormones, as psychologist Deborah Serani explains.
“It creates a neurological change that can produce happiness,” she says. “Putting up the Christmas decorations will cause a spike in dopamine, a feel-good hormone.”
Finally, the Journal of Environmental Psychology points out that holiday decorations are “cues to communicate one’s accessibility to neighbors.”
And afterward, when should you take down your decorations? When it comes to removing Christmas decorations, traditionally people wait until Epiphany, on January 6, 12 days after Christmas. But in reality, there are no established rules or studies on the subject.
So all that’s left to do now is get out the tree, the lights, and the candles, and soak up the precious and comforting spirit of the festive season.
This story was originally published in Vogue France.
