It’s Halloween this week and although it is fun for you and your children to get dressed up in a Halloween costume and go trick or treating door to door, this can be distressing for the frail and elderly. Remember that an unexpected knock on the door, especially now the clocks have now gone back, and it is likely to be dark can be very distressing and cause great anxiety for the frail and elderly, as it can be hard for them to see who is at the door, especially if you are in costume.
However, elderly relatives and neighbours do take great joy in seeing young children out and about having fun and do like to take part in activities, so the best thing to do is to speak with them in advance and let them know that you will be bringing the children around to trick or treat at a particular time of day, so they can be prepared and ready.
If you do this, please remember that it may take them a little while to get to the door, so make sure your children are patient. Once they get to the door it is quite likely that they will be well rewarded with treats, so let the children know that it is well worth the wait
Have fun this Halloween, but take the time to think about your elderly relatives and neighbours.
