Mom terrified of 'costumes and speaking to strangers' wants to hire someone to take children trick-or-treating for $65 an hour

A woman with extreme social anxiety hopes to find an experienced sitter to help take her children trick-or-treating. (Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images)
A woman with extreme social anxiety hopes to find an experienced sitter to help take her children trick-or-treating. (Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images)

Social anxiety presents itself in a variety of ways for those who suffer from the chronic mental health condition. For some, dating is impossible, while others have a fear of reading out loud, and some can’t even eat in front of people. For those who don’t have social anxiety disorder, these fears can seem a bit extreme and maybe even a little silly, but they’re legitimately debilitating for those with the disorder.

For one mother, Halloween is a frightful time, and it has nothing to do with the ghosts and ghouls roaming around that night. Halloween is a very social holiday. Whether you’re knocking on people’s doors and speaking to strangers while trick-or-treating or just attending a Halloween party, the festive evening can be a nightmare for the socially anxious. That’s the case for a single mother of three who is terrified of the holiday. Her severe social anxiety makes her nervous to be around costumes and to speak to strangers, which she would need to do while trick-or-treating with her kids.

The mother is so nervous that she is offering $65 per hour for a qualified babysitter to take her children trick-or-treating. She also hopes they’ll come around early to help with the kids’ costumes, which she hates, according to her ad that she placed on Childcare.co.uk, a website dedicated to connecting parents with nannies, tutors, and babysitters.

I’d hate for them to miss out on this because of me and having put it off for the last 3 years I feel I can’t anymore,” the mother of kids ages 9, 7, and 3 said.

Richard Conway, the founder of Childcare.co.uk, told the Sun, “She’s clearly trying to do the best for her children and is more than happy to pay someone to perform this service. I got in touch with her to ask how I could help, and promoting this advert seemed like the best way I could help her.”

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