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Honestly not to be traumatized on main but like. Using horror to heal is such a wonderful thing and I wanna talk abt it.
I can really only speak for myself so I'm gonna talk abt my experiences with it.
One of my most helpful coping mechanisms is playing Amnesia: The Dark Descent. Amnesia is known to be one of the scariest and fucked up games of its time, and still renowned as one of the best horror games. It dives into things like torture, manipulation, unrelenting nightmares, and reality itself falling apart due to a simple action. Yet playing this game and indulging in its story and its lore helps both distract and sort of heal from life when particular memories get bad.
I use weirdcore/liminal spaces/The Backrooms to cope with my derealization issues.
I use analog horror and the Trollge to help cope with my paranoia and fear of the unknown.
I use SCP to help with fear of institutions and anamolies otherwise unable to be explained.
I use FNaF to help with terrible memories. In fact, something my brain has taken to doing is defaulting into believing I'm Michael Afton to escape from flashbacks, phantom sensations, and other things that constantly remind me of my past ab//use.
I use slashers like Michael Myers and Mr. Voorhees for fear of people larger than me (which is a lot of people, Im a very small guy) and honestly they help me accept parts of me that I hate.
It sounds terrible on paper but a lot of people can actually relate to a lot of topics in horror. Its sort of a roundabout way to get that trauma and those memories out in the open and get them resolved, even if its temporarily. Because progress is still progress, no matter how miniscule.
Strangely enough, indulging in horror reminds me that I didn't deserve it, its not my fault, and I. Will. Get. Better. I will recover. And I think thats why a lot of people with trauma turn to horror. Because when everything was shitty and when they were scared the most, horror was a proper escape. It helped, and it continues to help.
I think a lot of people use horror as a coping mechanism and I think its something that people who aren't going through the trauma recovery process should be more open-minded about. I always get odd comments about using horror as coping mechanisms and I think people should be more widely accepting of seemingly unorthodox, but healthy, ways to cope. We all cope differently.
So... are we healing our trauma through ARG Horror and Analog Horror nowadays? Take The Walten Files, Local 58, and The Mandela Catalogue, for example.
I think horror has become one of the only safe and consumable space for catharsis: to expose, explore and heal our trauma.