What Is Fear of Halloween?
Medically reviewed by Steven Gans, MD
Halloween can be a spooky, even scary, holiday. For some people, it can feel especially frightening and overwhelming. A fear of Halloween, or samhainophobia, is a real phobia. It’s an intense and persistent fear of the holiday that can cause significant distress and lead someone to try to avoid triggers at all costs.
While this fear is not specifically listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), which mental health professionals use to diagnose disorders, it may meet the criteria for specific phobia in some people. Specific phobia is a common anxiety disorder outlined in the DSM-5.
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Specific phobia is an intense and irrational fear of something that presents little to no danger. The fear is often so strong that a person will go to significant lengths and make marked efforts to avoid the trigger of the fear, even if they realize the fear is disproportionate to the event.
This article will discuss the fear of Halloween, its symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and suggestions on how to cope.
Symptoms
With specific phobia, the person is extremely afraid of an object or situation that is generally not dangerous or harmful. They are aware that their fear has no factual or logical basis, but they cannot ignore or overcome it.
Other symptoms can include:
An intense and immediate fear and anxiety around the object or event
Purposely and actively avoiding the object or event
A disruption of daily life due to the fear
For fear of Halloween, a person may avoid or minimize going into stores once Halloween decorations are put up, they may decline invitations to Halloween parties, and avoid trick-or-treaters.
Being at work or school may be challenging, since Halloween is a pretty big holiday in the United States, and festivities can be several weeks long. The constant presence of the holiday may cause marked distress, depending on how severe the phobia is and what your specific triggers are.
Takeaway
Approximately 12.5% of U.S. adults experience specific phobia at some point in their lives. Depending on the phobia, you may feel embarrassed or isolated, But approximately 19 million Americans have one or more phobias, ranging anywhere from mild to severe.
Diagnosis
In order to diagnose specific phobia, a trained clinician must evaluate you. You might speak to your healthcare provider for a referral to the appropriate mental health professional.
Clinical diagnostic criteria for specific phobia are:
The person has persistent unreasonable or excessive fear that even occurs in anticipation of an event.
Exposure to the feared situation causes an immediate anxiety response like a panic attack.
These situations are avoided or handled with significant distress or anxiety.
Avoiding the situations significantly interferes with the person's routine, work, social situations, or life.
The persistent fear has lasted at least six months.
The symptoms cannot be explained by another mental disorder.
Even if your fear of Halloween doesn’t meet the full diagnostic criteria for specific phobia, a mental health professional can identify aspects of your fear that can be worked on and work with you on a treatment and/or coping plan.
Getting Help
If you or a loved one is struggling with a phobia, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 800-662-4357 for information on support and treatment facilities in your area.
For more mental health resources, see our National Helpline Database.
Causes
What causes phobias is not known. It is thought that personality traits, genetics, a history of trauma, and past experiences can all contribute to the development of specific phobia.
For some people, the phobia may result from a past learning experience where they learned that something was to be feared and avoided at all costs, or watched someone else avoid and fear an object.
With fear of Halloween, a person may have experienced a trauma or fearful event and associated the holiday with it, resulting in specific phobia. They may have grown up in a family in which the holiday was feared in some way. Each person is different and the origin of their fear also is unique.
Treatment
Specific phobia may be treated by a variety of types of therapy, the most effective being cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and exposure therapy. Exposure techniques are often part of a CBT approach.
In CBT, psychological problems are seen to be partly caused by faulty ways of thinking, as well as learned and unhelpful behavior. By working to change distorted and unhelpful thought patterns, these cognitions can be reevaluated, and the behaviors used in conjunction with them can be changed. Additional coping skills can also be developed and practiced for use in various situations.
Exposure therapy involves gradually exposing someone to their feared object or stimulus until the fear begins to lessen. Relaxation techniques and breathing exercises may also be tried.
Other approaches that have been used include eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR, using repetitive eye movements to process traumatic thoughts, memories, or feelings), psychoeducation (learning about and getting support for the condition to better cope with it), and relaxation techniques.
Coping
Trying to avoid a phobia trigger can be hard, especially if your trigger or event is a holiday that is widely celebrated. If you have a fear of Halloween, the weeks and even months leading up to the holiday can be anxiety-provoking or stressful.
Working with a mental health professional can help you not only reframe and change thoughts and behaviors, but they can also help you develop coping skills to deal with the anticipation of the event and any stress or anxiety associated with the fear.
Actively managing your stress can help promote relaxation and reduce anxiety. Things you can do can include:
Eat a healthy diet and get enough sleep to stay as healthy as possible.
Practice deep breathing and relaxation techniques, which can help you manage anxiety when triggered.
Minimize or avoid the use of caffeine and alcohol to help reduce anxiety.
Stay connected to others for social support.
See a counselor for talking through anxieties or concerns and to learn coping techniques.
You can make alternative plans for Halloween with a trusted family member or friend—for instance, staying in and watching a favorite movie. If there is a religious aspect to your phobia, perhaps talking with a trusted leader in your faith community, in addition to seeking professional counseling, might help.
Summary
Fear of Halloween can cause anxiety and distress and significantly impact your life. If it is severe enough, it might be diagnosed as a specific phobia. A fear of Halloween, which is a a big part of American culture, can be especially distressing. There are treatments available for phobias, and getting professional help can assist you in effectively managing your fear.
A Word From Verywell
If you’re embarrassed or self-conscious about your fear of Halloween, please don’t be, and seek help if necessary. Specific phobias are clinical diagnoses. Mental health professionals do not judge you or your fears.
Your fears and feelings are valid and mental health professionals are there to help you work through them so that they do not cause you distress or negatively impact your life. You can do this, and they’re there to help.
Read the original article on Verywell Health.
