Halloween is always tricky (see what I did there?) for autism families, but this year has turned it up a notch. The holiday brings a unique set of challenges – uncomfortable costumes, unknown situations, explaining why your child may not be able to say “trick or treat” or “thank you”, receiving treats that your child may not be able to or even want to eat. All of that said, there is still a certain magic of getting out into your neighborhood, and being silly and spooky. For tips on handling a more traditional Halloween, check out our blog post from last year.

But it’s 2020, and that means, nothing is “normal”. This year, we’re faced with questions like “is it even safe to trick or treat?” and “should we have/go to a party?”. Thinking out of the box is nothing new for us autism families, so figuring out COVID Halloween, is just another thing we have to roll with.

According to the CDC, the activities that present the least amount of risk, and seem tailor made for our kids are things like staying home and carving your pumpkins, decorating the house, and having virtual costume “parties”. As far as getting out and trick or treating, a mid-level risk way to do that is to stick to homes that have placed individually wrapped bags of treats at the end of their driveways, a children’s version of the curbside pickup we’ve all become accustomed to. High-risk activities include traditional trick or treating, parties, and trunk or treat events.

While we certainly can’t tell you what to do, and only you know what you and your family are comfortable doing, we do wish everyone a safe Halloween. As always, wash your hands, keep hand sanitizer close, and wear a mask while you’re out and about!

Please feel free to share our Halloween Kindness & Acceptance sheet too!