Whether you’re watching a scary movie or tiptoeing through a haunted house, Halloween can stir up spooky feelings. A gory scene may force you to cover your eyes or jump out of your seat. What drives these reactions is fear, a powerful core emotion.
Being afraid can feel like getting stuck in your own horror show—your heart pounds, your pupils dilate, and you may gasp or scream. These reactions are not under conscious control; they’re rooted in biology. Like all emotions, fear plays an important role.
It helps you survive and bolt for safety. Halloween gives you a chance to experiment with fear. It’s a time when the fright is real, but the threat is not.
As psychotherapists who specialize in Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP), we know that being able to name and work with fear is good for health. Acknowledging your emotions makes you less likely to suppress or avoid them, drink too much, or become numb to what you’re feeling. While these behaviors take the edge off temporarily, research shows that stuffing down your emotions can lead to mental-health concerns, such as depression and anxiety, which have become more common among U.S. children and adults in recent years.
If you’d like to safely explore your relationship with fear this Halloween season, here are five exercises we recommend. Have you ever tried to outsmart fear? Perhaps you scolded yourself for being a scaredy-cat or tried to stop the feeling with logic.
Messages from society and our families often promote a mind-over-matter approach, reinforcing the belief that we can think our way out of an emotion. A healthier approach is to get out of your head and tune into your body. During a frightening moment, notice the telltale signs of alarm, like trembling hands, a racing heart, or feeling cold.
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