With stress and burnout continuing to affect many Australians, creating a calm and relaxing home environment has become more important than ever. In fact, interior design experts say that making a few small tweaks around your home can help reduce anxiety, improve sleep and create a greater sense of wellbeing.

Retrieve your sanity and bring tranquillity back into your home with these five de-stressing tips!

Open up a small room

Lack of space in a small room could be adding to your anxiety.  Interior decorating 101:  How to create an illusion of space and light in a small room.  Paint the walls white and invest in some slimline Scandinavian furniture.  If replacing furniture is out of the question, go minimalistic – less furniture is better. This will have an immediate effect of opening the room up and elevating your mood.

Remove the daily debris and clutter

Try spending five minutes a day removing the daily debris (daily newspapers, shoes, school bags) from all the communal areas. Clutter, who needs it?! All those ornaments and picture frames just collect dust. Remove what you can, this simple act certainly helps to clear a confused mind.

Aromatherapy and lighting

Nothing soothes the nerves more than a sweet-smelling candle or a diffuser with essential oils burning. Lavender creates an instant calm and as well as promoting wellbeing. Zesty lemon is another favourite to lift your mood. If your lights are too bright, consider adding some soft LED lighting for that total wind down.

Simplify your colour  scheme

It might be time to adjust your colour scheme in your home – overly bright colours and mixed patterns tend to arouse rather than calm us.  Your bedroom especially needs to radiate a gentle and restful feel. Experts consider light blue, green or neutral tones to be the best colours for easing you peacefully into some steady z’s.

Switch off electronics

Try not to have any computers/phones and TVs in your bedroom – electronic devices stimulate activity in our brains. If removing the TV from the bedroom is not possible, encase it in a cabinet with doors. If you do have a few problems getting a good night’s sleep, be mindful of the content you are watching late at night.  Crime shows are notorious for getting your heart racing!