I am horrified at the idea of Halloween

Hi. It’s Jenny at AnxietyBoss.com. Our question today is from Harry in Winchester, Kentucky. I am horrified at the idea of Halloween. It’s creepy, weird, eerie and makes me very uncomfortable overall.

The fear of Halloween is called samhainophobia. Normally, the fear of this holiday is due to its dark roots and many Christians dislike it due to religious principles.

A bit of the history on the origin of Halloween. A ceremony called Samhain which honored the end of the harvest cycle would be held each October 31. At this ceremony, the Irish were dressed in masks and disguises to mimic and please the spirits of the dead; gathered to kill livestock and would often dispose of these animals bones into a bonfire. Those who attended Samhain held the belief that the dead would recognize their presence at the festival and as a result would not bother the citizens of their town.

Throughout the years, this ceremony has obviously turned into something far more harmless and actually playful; however, to those who know the past, this may seem terrifying and serve as some sort of evil. Also our popular culture hasn’t helped to make Halloween any less scary.

Because Halloween only comes once a year and doesn’t affect you year round, you may not feel that you need to seek out treatment. You may prefer to stay indoors without outdoor lights on so that you don’t attract trick-or-treaters on the 31st of October.

But outside of that night and even at your local grocery store, you’ll see that the holiday is portrayed mostly everywhere. Conducting research on the background of Halloween may help you to better understand where it originated from so that you may feel more at ease with your anxiety.