People Can Tell You're Unhappy In Life If These 11 Things Are In Your Home
It's easy to fall into the trap of unhealthy coping mechanisms when you're sad.
Lopolo | Shutterstock A great deal of research suggests that your living environment and home can play a huge role in affecting your mood, happiness, stress levels, and well-being, but our living spaces can also be a reflection of what's going on in our minds. From evidence of misguided coping mechanisms like binge-watching mindless entertainment or only eating comfort foods, people can tell you're unhappy in life if these things are in your home.
By leaning into the discomfort of change, adopting new habits, and altering your living space to be conducive to general health and well-being, you not only boost your personal happiness levels, you also set yourself up for success in other areas of your life — whether that's productivity at work, better relationships and social connections, or even physical health.
People can tell you're unhappy in life if these 11 things are in your home
1. Too many screens
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Having a cell phone or too many screens around constantly isn't just detrimental to mental health and physical well-being, it can negatively affect relationships and mood at home. Whether it's indulging doomscrolling habits, watching mindless entertainment, or distracting yourself from emotional acknowledgement and healthy coping with technology devices, people with higher rates of screen time are more unhappy.
Specifically for people who regularly use mindless entertainment as a distraction from chronic stress, anxiety, or sadness, they're not only further exacerbating their internal struggles, they're also throwing themselves into a cycle of poor coping and isolation
Truly happy people lean into the introspection, self-awareness, and discomfort of acknowledging their emotions — no matter how much work or effort it takes.
2. 'Goal clothes'
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"Goal clothes" — clothes that no longer fit, intended to serve as misguided "motivation" for changing your body or appearance — are generally one of the things in your home that immediately tell other people that you're unhappy. If your clothes don't fit and don't bring value, excitement, and expression to your life, they're not worth keeping.
Unhappy people who hold themselves to unrealistic standards and unhelpful body image expectations generally punish themselves in more ways than simply keeping goal clothes, but it's a signal that they're living sad lives.
Like therapist Rachel Goldberg argues, goal clothing may actually also sabotage true motivation and progress in people trying to live healthier lives, ensuring that people remain stuck in cycles of insecurity, comparison, and unhappiness.
3. Excessive clutter
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While it's true that intentional clutter and a bit of messiness can be productive for creative people, too much clutter can be a sign of neglect, unhappiness, and dysregulation in people's homes.
Like psychology professor Joseph Ferrari argues, clutter overloads our brains and stresses us out, even when we don't make the connection, in ways that can strain our relationships, urge us into unhealthy habits, and sabotage our mood.
People can tell you're unhappy in life if these things are in your home — whether it's an overflowing sink of dirty dishes, clutter all over your shared spaces, or clearly neglected chores.
4. Dead plants
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According to feng shui experts, dead plants can cultivate negative energy in a person's living space or home, serving as a manifestation of their neglect and lack of care. Houseplants and flowers have the potential to bring a sense of peacefulness and calmness to a home, but when they're not taken care of properly, they do the opposite.
People can tell you're unhappy in life if these things are in your home — not just because it's clear you're overlooking basic chores and responsibilities, but because they're powerful symbols of bad vibes and energy that can negatively affect the people living around them.
5. Fast food
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People can tell you're unhappy if your home is filled with evidence of fast food and all the pantries are riddled with only processed options. Regularly consuming this kind of food — from processed meals to artificial sugars — can heighten a person's risk for unhappiness and depression.
These foods not only put your physical health at risk, considering they lack nutrition that supports brain and mental health, they often lead to worsened energy, constant fatigue, disconnection, and poor mood.
6. Trendy decor
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Many people feed into consumerist cultures and trend cycles to seek belonging — struggling with their own sense of personal identity, community, connection, and expression. Instead of filling their homes with decor that resonates with them and uplifts their mood, they're surrounded by other people's preferences, leaving them feeling more disconnected and insecure than before.
That's why people can immediately tell you're unhappy in life when these things are in your home. Whether it's trending artwork, uncomfortable furniture, or a color scheme that speaks to their Instagram feed and not their self-expression, filling your home with trendy things, rather than personal and sentimental ones, is detrimental to well-being.
7. Sentimental items with poor memories
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While intentional family photos, sentimental items, and memorabilia can be productive for building self-esteem and promoting a happier attitude, like mental health counselor Jaclyn Gulotta suggests, having things in your home that constantly spark negative emotions or memories does the opposite.
Whether it's a photo with an estranged family member or a gift from a toxic ex partner, these sentimental items can urge people toward "nostalgic depression" and sabotage their daily mood. People can tell you're unhappy in life when they enter your home and see all of these items — whether you're hoarding them intentionally or subconsciously keeping yourself dwelling in a harmful past.
8. Dirty dishes
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According to psychologist Rachel Goldman, having a messy or dirty home can contribute to chronic stress in a person's life, sabotaging their brains from focusing, staying productive, regulating emotions, or feeding a happier mood.
Even if it's something as simple as dirty dishes in the sink or an overflowing laundry hamper — that can be solved with 10 minutes of intentional cleaning — they are profound indicators of a person's health and well-being. So, if a person walks into your home and the first thing they see is evidence of neglect or avoidance, it's not surprising that they can tell you're unhappy.
9. Unused workout equipment
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A study from Translational Psychiatry found that people who regularly move their bodies and exercise are more productive at combating depression and alleviating their stress on a daily basis. Even if it's stretching before bed or going for a walk outside, these kinds of people are generally happier.
However, it's all about intentionality — people who pressure themselves into movement, create rigid and unfulfilling routines, and even overspend on workout equipment that goes unused and only ever brings them guilt and shame are less happy. Of course, people can tell you're unhappy in life when you're actively holding onto things that not only don't bring you value or joy, but actively spark negative emotions in you.
10. Blackout curtains
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People can tell you're unhappy in life if they walk into your home and it's overly dark, you have blackout curtains, or all the shades are consistently drawn. Like Johns Hopkins Medicine experts argue, sleep and depression are interconnected — when you use curtains during the day or invest in blackout curtains to escape daily life, you're only disrupting your circadian rhythm and sabotaging your sleep.
While there are certainly productive reasons why people might use blackout curtains — like in a city with light pollution or for someone's working overnight shifts — overusing them to block out pressures to get outside or be productive is the kind of escapism that only amplifies unhappiness and isolation.
11. Piles of unopened mail
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Many people who let their mail pile up in their homes or their chores go unmanaged for days at a time struggle with their mental health or stress. Their brains are so preoccupied with compensating for anxiety, a bad mood, or other mental health concerns that they don't have the energy, attention, or focus for anything else — even the smallest everyday tasks.
Being sad doesn't make someone inherently "lazy"; in fact, their brains are working overtime trying to regulate emotions, cope, and handle internal chaos, like experts from Harvard Health suggest, which is why clutter, messiness, and chores go unacknowledged for much longer than the average person.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a staff writer with a bachelor's degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.
