A new survey of 1,000 people has shown that a shocking 88 per cent of Aussies are stressed out by the amount of clutter and unused items in their home.
The survey was conducted by PureProfile on behalf of MobileMuster this year and found that 58 per cent felt frustrated or annoyed at themselves for holding onto things they no longer needed.
31 per cent actually felt stressed out or weighed down by these items as well.
“This research shows that keeping hold of things that we no longer need, or use can be stressful,” Flinders University Professor of Psychology Mike Kyrios told news.com.au.
“Not only does it clutter our homes, but our old things often weigh us down mentally as our things act as reminders of our former self, which can actually stop people from feeling free and living in the present.”
89 per cent of those surveyed said that they thought that getting rid of the things that cluttered up their home would make them feel happier, but 39 per cent struggled to let go of things as they thought they might be useful in the future.
“We know that many people struggle to part ways with their old things because of FOMO — or a Fear Of Missed Opportunities, which often leaves us holding on to things in case we need to use them again, but in reality, we never do, and they just clutter our space,” Prof Kyrios said.
Another 63 per cent said that they have held onto an item due to emotional or attachment reasons despite no longer using it.
“Psychology tells us that many of us have an inner conflict between feeling attached to our things because we have spent time using and enjoying them,” Prof Kyrios said. “We can struggle as we find it hard to detach ourselves from them.”