Secrets can literally `weigh you down`

According to the research conducted at Tufts University, the emotional burden of a secret actually takes a physical toll on its carrier and those who harbour such undisclosed truths perceive everyday tasks as far more strenuous.

Tests were carried out, according to the report, to see if there existed a relationship between metaphor and reality, the Daily Mail reported.

"Language used to describe secrets, such as 'being weighed down' or 'being burdened', suggests that carrying a secret is conceptualised metaphorically as a physical burden," the report read.

"If so, sensorimotor states associated with physical burdens could be activated or simulated when carrying a secret.

"We examined whether secrets would thus be experienced as physical burdens, influencing how people perceive and act in the world," it added.

Everyday Health broke down the study, explaining that some participants were asked to remember a life-altering secret and others a small, slightly less significant, personal secret.