10 Tricks for Scaring off Halloween Stress

​|H​alloween can be a night filled with delight as ghosts and ghouls take to the street knocking on doors and shouting for their trick-or-treats. This holiday can be a lot of fun and, like most other holidays, it can also create a lot of stress from the amount of work that goes into catering for a party, decorating your house to be the spookiest on the street, or finding the perfect Halloween costume for you or your family.

​Here are 10 simple tricks for keeping those Halloween stress levels to a minimum so that you can enjoy your evening of frights:

1. Plan your night ahead of time.

​Whether it's taking the kids out trick-or-treating, dressing up for a party, or visiting a haunted house, it can help to plan your evening ahead of time so that you can feel more prepared and less stressed in order to enjoy the haunts. Make sure to have costumes bought (or dusted off from the basement), pumpkins carved, and candy at the ready before the 31st to prevent feeling stressed from last-minute preparations.

2. Search Pinterest for ideas.

Pinterest is a search engine and a great resource for budget friendly do-it-yourself craft ideas for treats, costumes, or decorations. When searching, try combining keywords such as Halloween, decorations, or DIY to find tons of creative things to make or purchase.

​Check out my own Halloween Pinterest boards for inspiration:

• ​Halloween Inspiration & Pins
• Holiday Recipes Made with Essential Oils

3. Take time to relax

Prepping for Halloween can be exhausting and stressful. Make sure to take time for yourself in between the tasks on your to-do list. One idea to help you unwind but stay in the spirit of the spookiest holiday of the year is to try out these Halloween-inspired essential oil diffuser blends.

4. Help others get ready.

See your neighbour struggling to put all those fake spider webs up? Why not give them a hand setting up. Altruistic behaviour has been shown to be associated with greater overall well-being and studies have shown that behaving compassionately towards others can even increase your lifespan.

5. Unwind on YouTube

Need another break from baking all those Halloween treats or putting the finishing touches on your DIY centerpiece? YouTube is a great way to spend a bit of time unwinding and having a laugh so that you can be reminded that Halloween is about fun and laughter. Check out these adorable pets in costumes to get started!

​Tip: If you need some scary sounds to scare the trick-or-treaters, check out this soundtrack.

6. Learn about being frightened.

Let's face it.. Halloween can be really scary! Learning more about what happens inside our bodies when the fight-or-flight response is activated can help you better handle these situations. Consider taking some time to read about how our survival instincts trigger physical and mental health related problems so that you can learn practical strategies to adapt those innate survival skills to present day stress. 

​Check your local library for resources or take a look at Marc Schoen's book: Your Survival Instinct is Killing you: Retrain your Brain to Conquer Fear and Build Resilience.

7. Plan a Halloween Trivia night.

​Have fun while learning something you didn't already know about this holiday (and maybe even win a prize) by creating your own trivia night with friends & family. Wikipedia or Google can help with the details!

Q. Why don't mummies take vacations?
​
​A. They're afraid they'll relax and unwind.

8. Get a good night sleep.

​You may have heard this before, but sleep is very good for you. It can help prevent or reduce stress, recharge your energy so you can complete your list of tasks for the festivities ahead, and also help you stay awake to enjoy the evening of frights you have planned. Just make sure not to stay up too late watching those scary movies or it might be hard to get to sleep!

Tip: Explore how essential oils can help you get a good night sleep in this post.

9. Plan ahead for leftover candy.

​Not as many ghosts and ghouls on your doorstep as expected this year? Having a plan for all that leftover candy can help. Check out this wellness blog post on what to do with all that sugary temptation (including eating it) by clicking here.

10. Treat yourself to a night off.

After such an eventful night, give yourself permission to take the night off the following evening, so that you can recharge for the week ahead.

Related posts:

• ​Self-Care Blog Posts​  /  Holiday Blog Posts

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Happy Halloween!

​Share your tips for a safe and stress-free Halloween in the comments section below!

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