If watching horror seems unbearable to you, guess what. You are not alone. In fact, many people are not very fond of horror or even avoid it altogether. This may not be what you want to hear. After all, this just means that you’re not one of the brave few that can stomach it without trouble. That you’re just a coward like all the rest. Well, I wouldn’t put it so simply.
Turns out that people with a natural inclination to empathize with others - yes, including fictional others - have it harder. They don’t only watch what’s happening, they live it as if it were happening to them. And this is not a flaw or a shortcoming. At least not in all instances. This is a quality that allows a fully immersive experience, so it’s no wonder that the horror is therefore multiplied. Similarly, it may also be that they’re highly sensitive and vividly pick up on every nuance that comes through the senses and automatically react to them. All the gore or gross sights and all the chilling or startling sounds, twice or more impactful.
If you’re one of those people, you can decide to leave horror out of your life and roll your eyes at whoever tries to shame or guilt you over it. However, if you are like this and still wish to partake in horror, or even if you’re not but nonetheless have some trouble with it, there are a few measures that can help make watching horror easier for you. Plus, you might come to realize that the toughness of some of us was merely an illusion.
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| No Escape (2020) |
Measures to make watching horror easier.
• Anything that sets the mood for it, tone it down or remove it.
You can keep the lights on and the volume low, for example. Or even watch it during the day, while it’s sunny and bright outside, instead of at night, while it's dark and storming. With the noise of others around or nearby you, rather than all by yourself.
• Be next to someone you can trust.
If you’re with your significant other, a friend, or anyone that may offer or simply give off a vibe of comfort and security, it’s as though the load is split. Not necessarily 50/50, but you’re likely to feel relieved to some extent.
• Curse and yell at the screen because you know better.
Why is everyone being so stupid?! Oh, right - because otherwise, the spectacle would have ended within minutes. Right the moment someone said that that wasn’t a good idea and, instead of going along with it anyway, others nodded in unanimous agreement and turned back. But you don’t really want to miss out on all the ‘stupidity’, do you? You can be that omniscient being that, unlike the characters, knows that they’re stuck in a (possibly cliché) horror story and already heard a few spoilers. Take this opportunity to be frustrated by all the instances in which they could have done things differently to save resources and save lives.
• See things through the lens of the production.
What was the writer intending when they came up with this dialog? How many times did the director have to correct this scene before giving up and leaving it as it is? Were the actors thrilled to play their characters or just desperate for a job? How long did the makeup artists take to do that? Were the costumes expensive? And so on. This will keep you engaged with speculations on the behind-the-scenes mess and bring to your awareness that this is a collaborative creative effort that likely had its silly and absurd moments.
• Remind yourself that it is fiction and/or that it is separate from you.
Similarly, you can simply repeat to yourself, as often as you need to, that what you’re witnessing is merely fiction and/or cannot physically reach you. Remember that it has little to no power over you. Don't you give it that power.
• Counter lingering effects with something lighter.
Once you’re done watching, you can return to activities that ground you and restore your outlook. Let what you watched only be something that you watched and move on.
Surely more tricks exist. These are but a few of the most effective and generally applicable ones that I’ve found.
Do you have any more measures that work? What works best for you?