Fear of Halloween – Samhainophobia is the fear of Halloween or the fear of the festival of the dead. Samhainophobia originates from “Samhain,” which means the end of summer. The Celts celebrated the Samhain festival to mark the transition between summer and winter. The word Samhain has Irish-Scottish-Gaelic roots, which generally mean ‘All-Holy Vespers.’
Many people, especially children, are known to be terrified of Halloween. While Western countries have made Halloween a fun booming business spelling festival for candy makers and Halloween merchandise vendors, for anxious-minded individuals, it can be a difficult time. In October, people and shops start decorating their yards with skeletons, evil zombies, and other gory stuff.
Naturally, for children who have samhainophobia, it is not a happy time. Many refuse to sleep alone or may be unable to express themselves only by reacting in the form of tantrums, crying, or yelling.
You can also read: Fear Of Intimacy: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, Self-help.
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Causes of Samhainophobia
- Different factors can trigger Samhainophobia. However, the most crucial reason is Halloween’s negative or traumatic episode.
- As soon as people and stores start displaying Halloween items, anxious minds create an escape or fight response – it is the brain’s way of protecting the individual from further negative news or trauma.
- This sense of anxiety is heightened whenever the individual sees a house or store decorated with displays of ghosts, witches, and scary masks.
- Halloween fear is often related to fear of spiders or arachnophobia, as spiders or cobwebs are often used for Halloween decorations.
- Banging on strangers’ doors to trick or treating could also cause anxiety for some children.
- Some of them may have been “tricked rather than treated” – the trauma caused by that episode could have instilled lifelong fear about Halloween.
- Parents often spend a lot of time teaching their children never to go to strange homes or talk to strangers. On Halloween night, they encourage the child to do just that. This can confuse the child and increase his anxiety about strangers.
- Halloween is also generally celebrated at night or when it is dark outside. A child fearful of the dark may be highly reluctant to go out but may be coerced into going by parents or siblings.
- Halloween is also believed to be when “spirits roam the earth freely.” A person who has a terrible fear of ghost phobia could also develop Samhainophobia at this time of year.
- People with social anxiety or fear of performing before groups could often develop a fear of Halloween as they are forced to participate in social activities against their wishes.
- Halloween is also a time to carve gooey, gooey pumpkins into scary faces.
- While some children might be excited to do so, lighting it with a candle could create a spooky effect that would lead to the opposite reaction in the child.
Symptoms of fear of Halloween phobia
Some children may not be able to express their Halloween fears clearly, and parents often dismiss them as irrational or foolish. However, the fear of Halloween is a genuine phobia that parents should take seriously. There are many physical and emotional symptoms of this phobia. These are typically seen closer to the festival and include:
- Panic attacks: nausea, dizziness, racing heart rate, rapid breathing, etc.
- The mere reference to Halloween could make the child feel terrified.
- They may have a complete anxiety attack: screaming, trying to run or hide, refusing to sleep alone, avoiding shops/houses displaying Halloween things, refusing to go to school, avoiding trick or treating, fear of darkness, etc.
Overcoming the fear of Halloween
- Parents need to understand and acknowledge their child’s anxiety about Halloween rather than ignore it.
- They should treat the child with great patience. They should try to find out what is causing the child’s fear and avoid those triggers.
- Parents should not force the child to trick or treat but should try to make things easier for the child by choosing to go out during the day or preventing stores and malls from having scary displays.
- If children have nightmares about Halloween, parents should try to comfort them and assure them that it is only a dream.
- If necessary, professional help from a psychiatrist should be sought.
- In the case of adults with Samhainophobia, it is essential to desensitize to triggers gradually.
- This can be done by thinking about the object of fear, by viewing images of demons, witches/ghosts, or trying to visit the aisle of Halloween merchandise until one can do so without having a panic attack.
- Talking to friends, family, and trained therapists can also help you overcome your fear of Halloween phobia.
Hello, how are you? My name is Georgia Tarrant, and I am a clinical psychologist. In everyday life, professional obligations seem to predominate over our personal life. It's as if work takes up more and more of the time we'd love to devote to our love life, our family, or even a moment of leisure.