It’s scream season — why some love it and others have nightmares
Do you love to scream at Halloween? Or are you a certified scaredy-cat who avoids haunted houses and scary movies because your sleep depends on it?
How you react to terror may lie in how you engage the world, according to Pamela Rutledge, director of the in Newport Beach, California, which conducts research to promote the use of media for positive social change.
"Sensation-seeking individuals often enjoy horror because it provides safe thrills and novelty," Rutledge said in an email. She is also a professor emerita of media psychology at Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, California, and authored ": The Science of Happiness and Well-Being."
"Empathetic people tend to absorb the feelings, so they are likely feeling emotional distress on the part of the characters," Rutledge added. "This is somewhat different from someone who is anxiety prone who will react to the stress more than the emotion of fear or angst. Both are unpleasant."
Such distress can affect your sleep — even to the point of nightmares, said sleep specialist Jennifer Mundt, a clinical associate professor of family and preventive medicine at the University of Utah's Sleep Wake Center.
"Our brains process emotions and memories when we're dreaming," Mundt said. "If you've had crazy, scary images in your brain that day, it's going to try to process those while you sleep. While that doesn't necessarily lead to a nightmare, it definitely can."
It's not just movies — listening to scary tales, reading disturbing books or visiting haunted houses at Halloween can impact sleep, experts say, especially in people who have been traumatized or who have vivid imaginations.
"When they're reading a story or hearing a story, they really vividly picture it in their mind," Mundt said. "Even if they know it was just a story or haunted house, it's still very intense."
Scary events can also exacerbate parasomnias — abnormal sleep behaviors such as sleepwalking, sleeptalking, night terrors, sleep paralysis or sleep-related hallucinations, she said.
"Parasomnias tend to be exacerbated by stress," Mundt said. "A good scare is probably not going to cause a parasomnia in those who've never experienced one. If you have experienced one and went to a haunted house or watched a scary movie, it might trigger an episode."
What makes a movie too scary for sleep?
Michael Grabowski is a professor in the department of communication, sound, and media arts at Manhattan University in Riverdale, New York, who studies neurocinematics — the study of how watching movie scenes affects the brain.
"Horror movies function as much on surprise as they do on fear," he said. "'' is a great example of a movie that sneaks up on you — you go in expecting a sci-fi movie, and then you're hit with the alien ripping the stomach open and the creature's drool falling down like rain."
When you're surprised with a jump scare, Grabowski added, you tend to stay on guard looking for danger — and the ability to be vigilant, of course, requires you to be awake.
"In order to fall asleep, you want to feel like you're in a safe spot so that you can put your defenses down and go to sleep," he said. "Yet you might have some parts of your brain reminding you that this was great fun and a piece of entertainment, but other parts of your brain are still excited from the perceptions of fear."
Empathic personalities get more scared
Those who get intensely immersed in the characters in dramatic plots may have more fear during scary scenes, Grabowski said.
It's based on an ancient survival instinct psychologists call "embodied simulation" — while watching another person your brain instinctively simulates their behavior to predict what will happen next.
"Is this person approaching me going to attack me? Are they going to help me? Scary movies really tap into our evolved ability to understand and predict the actions of other people," Grabowski said.
"I would argue that it's always good to embrace your inner scaredy-cat. The ability to recognize threatening situations and avoid them is a good thing."
Millions of people, of course, have no issue with sleeping after a good scare — in fact, they embrace it. There are scientific reasons why.
"Scary movies trigger adrenaline and cortisol which keeps your body on high alert. The resolution can feel satisfying when your parasympathetic nervous system kicks in, heart rate slows, and releasing dopamine and endorphins, creating the classic post-horror 'rush,'" Rutledge said.
"Experiencing and recovering from fear may alleviate stress and strengthen coping mechanisms," she added. "A scary movie can boost confidence and feelings of control because we have survived an existential threat — watching horror in groups fosters bonding and collective excitement."
Getting back to sleep after a scare
It's unlikely that horror movie fans experience sleep issues after watching the genre, but for anyone who does, experts have some tips.
Try to schedule your scare: If you feel like seeing a frightening movie, try to go to a matinee earlier in the day so you'll have time for more pleasant experiences before bed.
"Or let's say you go to a haunted house and you're feeling really wound up — do something to shift your mood and feel lighter, happier and relaxed, such as watching a funny movie or exercising to get rid of that anxious energy," Mundt said. "Our daytime mood can really color our dreams."
Put your thinking cap on. Use the executive decision-making parts of your brain to remind yourself you were watching a fun bit of entertainment or how much you enjoyed hanging out with friends, Grabowski said. "That can lessen the impact of the scary movie."
Create good dreams: Not only can you schedule pleasant experiences after a scare — you can also create bedtime routines that will encourage a more positive dream state.
"If you're feeling anxious, frustrated or fearful when you go to sleep, your brain is going to try to make a story around that emotion and you'll have a dream where the theme is frustration and anxiety," Mundt said.
"Wind down doing guided relaxation, yoga, calming music, a pleasant book to get yourself into a calm, relaxed state — that's the mood which will carry into your dreams."
You come first: Finally, if you know you don't react well to horror flicks and Halloween haunts, don't let group dynamics override your sense of self, Rutledge said. "The important thing is to recognize what makes you feel good and do more of that, and less of what doesn't."
