Who Gives A Crap helps Australia’s heartbreak hoarders with ‘Flush Your Ex’ initiative via Eleven

The majority of Aussies (72%) agree that removing reminders of an ex helps in getting over heartbreak, yet more than one in four Australians have held on to items for over two years. Who Gives A Crap has brought back its Flush Your Ex initiative via Eleven, enabling lovers to move on and put their ex to good use, by donating love letters to be recycled into toilet paper.

This Valentine’s Day, Who Gives A Crap uncovered the heartbreak habits of Australians, discovering more than 70% of Aussies refuse to throw out their ex’s things post-breakup.

While three-quarters of Aussies think it’s important to physically dump any reminders of their ex, more than 20% have kept items from their exes for more than two years.

In a move to help these heartbroken hoarders, Who Gives A Crap is inviting people to ‘flush’ their ex – literally.

The Flush Your Ex initiative gives the brokenhearted permission to get petty and cleanse their space, by transforming their old love letters into toilet paper. Promising that someone, somewhere will be wiping their butt with an ex.

Each lovebomb letter, from a cursed ex-flame, will be broken down and transformed into 100% recycled toilet paper – finally making use of all that heartbreak! The initiative hopes to use the pain for good, both helping the planet and Australians find the perfect closure.

Susie Kim, relationship and intimacy coach, notes that removing items from past relationships is essential to moving on romantically: “Holding on to things from your ex can often be a sign that you’re not fully ready to move on and heal.

“Taking time to appreciate the memories before flushing them out of your system is a cathartic healing process that enables you to grieve and grow. Australians agree, with the majority (66%) acknowledging that holding on to an ex’s things can impact future relationships.”

Giving the flick to an ex-sweetheart’s belongings was considered among the top five ways to get through a breakup. However, out of sight, out of mind, proved to be the best technique, with 41% of Australians stating no contact is their top way to heal. Followed by exercise and hobbies (40%), seeking support from family and friends (40%) and self-care (25%). Surprisingly, however, only 15% go to the extent of blocking their ex on social media.

This initiative has never been so important, with Australians nationwide now more than ever needing a way to get over an ex.  Particularly in Hobart, which was crowned Heartbreak Island, with 29% of locals experiencing a breakup, followed by ACT (27%), Sydney (26%), Melbourne (25%), Brisbane (25%) and Perth (24%). When looking at generations, Gen Z is the generation that has been affected the most, with over 1 in 4 experiencing heartbreak in the last 12 months.

Who Gives A Crap head of brand management, Maria Chilewicz is hopeful the Flush Your Ex initiative will help heal broken hearts around the world by giving them the closure they need to move on: “Let’s be honest, breakups are crap, which is why we are excited to bring back our successful and hugely popular Flush Your Ex initiative. We hope we can help the heartbroken turn over a new sheet ahead of Valentine’s Day – all while doing something good for the planet with our 100% recycled toilet paper.”

Who Gives A Crap is calling on people who still have “that box” stashed under their bed. Aussies with a love letter to flush can send them to Who Gives A Crap at: Good Goods Pty Ltd, Attn: Flush Your Ex, Level 4/54 Wellington St, Collingwood VIC 3066.