The Importance of Measuring Your Level of Death Anxiety

Everyone’s a little bit wary of the Grim Reaper, and it’s quite natural to have some level of concern about dying. But the moment such thoughts start to take over normal daily functioning, it becomes a sign of a serious problem, like death anxiety.

It is not normal to be thinking about dying all the time to the extent that it disrupts your daily activities like working or hanging out with others; this only reduces your quality of life. Death anxiety is also known as death phobia or the more technical term, thanatophobia; a strong and excessive fear or irrational awareness regarding one’s death, the dying process, the afterlife, and even events that surround the death of loved ones.

Do you know that methods are now available where you can measure how unhealthy your fears of death are?

Knowing your level of death anxiety, or that of a loved one, is an important preparatory stage for addressing and managing such crippling fears, and whether you need any help. One widely used method is called the Death Anxiety Scale, or DAS.

How the Death Anxiety Scale works

This approach was originally developed in the 1970s by American psychologist Donald Templer, and it has since proved to be a valuable tool in clinical and research applications. DAS, in brief, is a collection of 15 statements measuring different facets of anxiety related to dying, such as anxiety about the unknown, anxiety about the dying process, and anxiety about separation from those you love.

The statements below are some examples:

• I am terrified to die
• The thought of death frequently enters my mind
• It makes me nervous when I hear people talking about death
• I am afraid to be operated on
• I am terrified of getting cancer
• The thought of death frequently worries me
• I’m often disturbed by just how fast time is slipping away
• I am afraid of dying a painful death
• The concept of life after death bothers me
• I have a deep fear of having a heart attack
• I often face the reality of the shortness of life
• I shudder every time people talk about war
• A dead body is terrifying to me
• I am afraid of the future because it holds so much terror
• I am disturbed by the fact that I will die someday

Understanding the results of the Death Anxiety Scale isn’t hard and each item on the DAS is rated on a scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

Low Scores (15-30)

Indicate low levels of death anxiety. This means you have only slight fear or concern about death and dying.

Moderate Scores (31-45)

Indicate moderate levels of death anxiety. This suggests that you have some concerns about death, but overwhelming feelings are absent.

High Scores (46-75)

Indicate high levels of death anxiety. This means you have deep-seated fears and worries about death which could affect your daily life and well-being.

This rating scale can be useful for anybody, particularly those who are constantly troubled by intense anxiety or fear related to death and dying.

The Most Common Groups of People Who Could Benefit from DAS Evaluation

• A person experiencing bereavement or who has encountered a loss and is finding their thoughts of mortality troublesome.
• A person who has a chronic or terminal disease might develop heightened death anxiety.
• An older adult, whose thoughts about mortality may become more frequent and anxiety-provoking.
• A person with specific phobias, especially the fear of death, called thanatophobia, or other related phobias.
• A patient who’s receiving mental health treatment for depression, PTSD, or other conditions in which death anxiety could be considered part of the diagnosis.
• A person working in professions where death is common (e.g. hospice care, oncology) should be informed of their death anxiety.

It is well worth noting here, however, that the context of a person’s life and experience when one administers this test might be colored by grief, illness, or any existential issues that lower or raise the level of death anxiety.

Still, professionals also use supplementary assessment tools and techniques in a general assessment of death anxiety along with the DAS, including:

Other Scales of Psychological functioning

• Clinical Interviews
• Behavioral Observations
• Physiological Measures
• Qualitative Methods

Understanding the origins of death anxiety is a realistic step toward coping with and living with it. If you attempt to use a scale such as the DAS, reflect on your score and what exactly about death and dying appears to disturb you more.

If you think that you or a loved one may have death anxiety, make time to talk about this with a mental health professional. They will be able to offer specific support and methods to cope with such anxieties.

The counselors at our locations have experience in helping people with death anxiety. Call the numbers on this site and start your journey to living life fully today.