Worried about COVID-19? Here’s a Simple Solution

happiness, health related issues, humor, lessons learned, Teaching and Education 1 Minute

Start watching horror films.

Researchers say fans of horror films and other post-apocalyptic movies are handling the real-life fear brought by the coronavirus pandemic better than others.

A team in the United States and Denmark finds horror flick enthusiasts are experiencing less psychological distress due to COVID-19. In addition to horror films, movies that fall into the “prepper genres” are also helping people mentally prepare for the disruptions they’re encountering every day. These genres include alien invasions, apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic scenarios, and zombie films.

“One reason that horror use may correlate with less psychological distress is that horror fiction allows its audience to practice grappling with negative emotions in a safe setting,” researchers suggest. “Experiencing negative emotions in a safe setting, such as during a horror film, might help individuals hone strategies for dealing with fear and more calmly deal with fear-eliciting situations in real life.”

Reading this makes me feel better about my life choices.

For years, I have always video-recorded to my web site. my classes, and then posted the recordings on the Internet for them to watch whenever they wanted to.

I used to tell the students the videos were a great cure for insomnia, but now it looks like there is a new use.

Watching me teach accounting might be lumped into the horror genre, and as such, could be the perfect film to watch if you are feeling stressed out about COVID-19.

Who knew that my relentless droning on and on in a monotone voice about debits and credits could assist people with their mental health.

I’m hoping Dr. Fauci will give me a shout-out…

*image from StudioBinder

Published by Jim Borden

A 60-something guy trying to figure out the world, and his place in it. Happily married for 40-plus years, three wonderful sons. Accounting teacher, fitness enthusiast, blogger, reader.

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45 thoughts on “Worried about COVID-19? Here’s a Simple Solution”

  3. Oh gosh! Not exactly a solution for me!! One genre that I will not watch! For they would make me afraid of my own shadow!
    I will take you droning on about accounting over that but then again I am not that desperate! 😂

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  4. Sounds interesting. I haven’t watched a horror flick in years. Usually they’re so corny I laugh and groan through them, so I stopped watching them a long time ago.

    I think the best horror shows are the true-life crime shows on TV. What human beings are capable of doing in those programs may not parallel the horror of a scary movie in terms of special effects, but it far exceeds in terms of realism.

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  8. horror films are a nightmare to me! (no pun intended) i have startle response and jump up or scream or apparently hit people with my flailing hands when surprised. i used to love watching scary movies with my sisters when we were young and we loved terrifying ourselves, but i really go in another direction for stress relief these days. if your lectures are as you described, they sound very relaxing as an alternative.

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  9. I would tend to agree that the more often we are placed in fearful situations, the better we become at dealing with that fear and the stress it causes. But seeing your lectures as something scary may be a stretch. Riveting? Maybe not, but not really scary. Turn those discussions about debits and credits into a full-blown tax audit and you may have something. Great post, my friend!

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  10. “Watching me teach accounting might be lumped into the horror genre …”. Right there! Quips like this beauty … why I love Borden’s Blather. Also, I think you may have inadvertently drafted an outline for a wicked low-budget horror-comedy film in this post. Great stuff, Jim.

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  11. I’m sure you’re doing yourself a disservice! Your sessions can’t really be horrifically dull or frightening, can they? As for horror movies, nothing would ever encourage me to watch one!

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    1. some days might be better than others; but many students do get quite nervous at test time… 🙂
      I’m ambivalent about horror movies; I won’t go out of my way to watch one, but I don’t mind one occasionally…

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  12. I’m sure your accounting lectures are a blast. As to horror films, really? I don’t feel like I need to add any fiction to this nightmare. Latest I heard was about a fungus that killed a guy who was gardening by turning parts of his brain into liquid. Who needs horror films, just go and and harvest your garden!

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  16. I can’t stomach the horror flicks even though I love Halloween. My stress level goes down watching Hallmark movies. Sign of getting older, I suppose. There is that fine line of liking some scary movies like Poltergeist, but I’ve never sat through one of your lectures. 😂

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  17. Not technically a “horror film” but After Apocalypse by the History Channel is a docu-drama that is really great to prep your brain, and surprisingly relevant even though it was made about 10 years ago.

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