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The essential benefit of architecture is its ability to help us live as stress-free a life as possible. Alleviating stress is the guiding principle for our design practice.
This fundamental principle goes against everything we are taught during our architectural education and in all the other educational institutions that most of us have endured. To find real peace within ourselves and the world, we must forget about the most detrimental thing that has been ingrained into us since childhood. That thing is to be competitive. Being competitive is anathema to creativity and the number one reason why creativity has become rare. The power of creative design in bringing us into a world of minimal stress cannot be exaggerated. Architectural design and mental health are intertwined.
Researcher Kenneth Kendler and his team have found a strong link between major depression, generalized anxiety disorder, and traumatic life events experienced in the past month, such as loss, divorce, and societal issues like poverty and racism. Previous studies, including those by Browne and Finkelhor in 1986, establish that childhood trauma is a significant predictor of adult mental health challenges. In 2000, Christine Heim highlighted that childhood sexual abuse may increase stress sensitivity in women later in life.
While major life events are often the focus, our immediate environments also play a crucial role in our mental well-being.
Clutter in our homes or workspaces can heighten anxiety, reflecting our mental state. Factors like lighting, scents, sounds, colour schemes, and the presence of others greatly influence our anxiety levels. By improving our environment with better lighting, calming aromas, and soothing colours, we can significantly enhance our overall well-being.
These are simple things we can do that have a huge return on investment of our time and money.
Unfortunately, most homes in the UK are substandard and unfit for living a fulfilled life in the twenty-first century. Financial institutions and profiteers from previous generations, as well as our own, have a dominating interest in the financialization of our homes. This is the situation that we strive to unravel.
Contact us to improve your home, your environment and your life.