Why do we hold on to the messages, photos and gifts from our exes?

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Relationships are not just matters of the heart, but of the head too. And time and our experiences have thought us to think more rationally and practically as well. According to Sherene Aftab, founder of Serene Hour Counselling & Career Advice Consultancy, one keeps them because of their utility. “It’s practical to keep those things if they’re habituated to it—in this case, a gift.” Mehezabin Dordi, clinical psychologist, Sir H N Reliance Foundation Hospital, Mumbai, too, thinks the same. “People choose to keep things that their ex gave them if they have a utility value, even if there is no emotional attachment to it. You may have so many things from the past, but do you give a second thought—absolutely not. Keeping these things doesn’t mean that I am stuck or hung up on my partner.”