October welcomes the onset of treasured fall activities: taking day trips to enjoy the fall foliage, wrapping up in blankets before a bonfire, watching football games, picking apples and…reveling in blood and gore.

Yes, we’re talking about Halloween, which for some people is the second biggest holiday of the year. From frightening costumes and unnerving decorations to haunted houses and eerie parties, some people delight in celebrating all things scary this time of year – horror movies included.

If you’re considering watching a spine-chilling horror film or a nail-biting psychological drama, you may want to consider watching it during the daytime at a matinee instead of in the “dead” of night because those adrenaline-pumping, big-screen flicks can actually interfere with your sleep.

Horror Movies to Avoid at Night

While some people can watch the goriest slasher flicks and go to bed with no problem, many find that watching scary thrillers ignites their fight-or-flight response. You may find yourself checking and re-checking locks, looking under beds, and sleeping with the lights on after watching some of the scariest films ever, which. according to the Hollywood Reporter, include:

• • Ringu
  • Paranormal Activity
  • Psycho
  • Don’t Look Now
  • The Shining
  • The Exorcist
  • Halloween
  • The Blair Witch Project
  • The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
  • Funny Games

Psychological Dramas Can Freak You Out

While they might not leave you quaking in fear or checking the closet for monsters, mind-bending psychological dramas can make for some sleepless nights, too. These movies get inside your head and leave you pondering twists, turns, and riddles long after the credits have rolled. Movies like Inception,Donnie Darko, and The Matrix wrap an enigma in confusing layers of reality, not-quite-reality, and definitely-not-reality. Other mind-warping films include those that deal with memory, like Memento, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Vanilla Sky. Directors like David Lynch (Mulholland Drive), Christopher Nolan (The Prestige) and Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan) are masters of the mind-bender genre.

TV Shows Are Freaky Too

The same rules apply for TV shows as for movies: if it creeps you out or causes your mind to race, it’s probably not a good idea to watch it right before bed. Best saved for daylight: creepfests like American Horror Story and The Walking Dead, genre-bending crime dramas like Fortitude and The X-Files, and series that cleave terrifyingly close to reality, like Black Mirror and The Wire. Heavy dramas, like The Handmaid’s Tale and Game of Thrones, are not exactly sleep-inducing, either.

Instead of disturbing your sleep with a scary movie and feeling like a zombie the next day, take advantage of the good sleeping weather and snuggle in with a good book before bedtime.

Hopefully, not a horror story.