Month: October 2021

Trick or Treat

Source: American Academy of Pediatrics

With many adults and older children vaccinated against COVID-19, this Halloween is back to being scary in all the right ways. Still, as COVID-19 continues to spread, celebrating safely remains a priority. There are many households with young children that are not yet eligible for the vaccine, or friends and family that are immunocompromised, and for them it’s important to keep Halloween traditions safe. We pulled together recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics to ensure this year’s celebration is all treats, no tricks.

Giving Out Candy

  • Avoid direct contact with trick-or-treaters and give treats outdoors, if possible.
  • Set up a table with individually bagged treats for kids to take.
  • Wash hands or use hand sanitizer before handling treats, and in between trick-or-treaters.
  • Non-food items can be a nice change from the usual candy, too. Especially for kids that suffer from food allergies.

Trick-or-Treating

  • Stick with outdoor trick-or-treating when possible and stay in small groups.
  • Avoid large groups of kids huddled around a doorstep. Stand back and wait for your turn.
  • Wear a mask
    • Make the mask as part of the costume (think nurse or surgeon, superhero, ninja)
    • A costume mask is not a substitute for a mask with several layers of breathable fabric or a disposable surgical mask that fits over the mouth and nose snuggly.  
    • Do NOT wear a costume mask over a cloth mask. It can make breathing more difficult
    • Masks should NOT be worn by children under the age of 2 or anyone who has trouble breathing
  • Wash your hands
    • Bring hand sanitizer with you and use it after touching objects or other people
    • Use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol
      • Parents: supervise young children using hand sanitizer
    • Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds when you get home and before you eat any treats

Indoor Activities

  • If you or your children do attend an indoor activity, be sure to mask up and keep a social distance. There will be a mix of vaccinated adults and teens as well as unvaccinated attendees and wearing a mask will reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19 or other seasonal viruses.

If you decide not to take your kids trick or treating this year, here are some ideas how you can enjoy Halloween safely.

  • Decorate and carve pumpkins
    • Decorate your home for Halloween.
    • Carve pumpkins with members of your household or outside with neighbors or friends.
    • Walk from house to house, admiring Halloween decorations at a distance.
  • Visit an orchard, forest, or corn maze. Attend a scavenger hunt.
    • Go on an outdoor Halloween-themed scavenger hunt.
    • Visit a pumpkin patch or orchard. Remember to wash your hands or use hand sanitizer frequently, especially after touching frequently touched surfaces, pumpkins, or apples.
    • Go to a one-way, walk-through haunted forest or corn maze.
  • Other Ideas
    • Hide Halloween treats in and around your house. Hold a Halloween treat hunt (think like an Easter Egg hunt) in the house and yard. Try turning off the lights and hunting with flashlights!
    • Hold an outdoor costume parade or contest so everyone can show off their costumes.
    • Host an outdoor Halloween movie night with friends or neighbors or an indoor movie night with your household members.

If you have any concerns around upcoming holiday gatherings or general questions about your child’s health, contact your pediatric provider. They can help.

IHA Pediatrics

For more helpful information about kids and Halloween, check out these articles from the American Academy of Pediatrics:

Be Kind

Tips and reminders to help make this world a kinder place

With what seems like the whole world being understaffed, people are working harder than ever to get your coffee order right, deliver your lunch on time, keep the checkout line moving and get you in and out of your appointment without delay.

People are enduring stressful jobs, worry about finances, illness, difficult relationships, overwhelming responsibilities, and the unknowns of the future. You never know when you may encounter someone that is carrying a heavy emotional load. Simple acts of kindness can make a big difference in someone’s life. It’s not always easy to be kind. It takes effort sometimes, especially when faced with a frustrating situation. Here are a few tips and tricks for when you feel your patience wearing thin.

Practice patience.

Waiting is never easy. Not in a line, not for a phone call, not in a waiting room. It’s common to feel frustrated when an appointment isn’t moving as quickly as you would like. The ability to remain calm when feeling frustrated (aka: patience), doesn’t always come easy. It takes practice and reminders. Sometimes you may have to remind yourself to exercise patience. Here are a couple things you can do when you feel your patience fading.  

  • Identify your triggers. Next time you lose your patience, or feel like you are going to lose your patience, stop and think about what was happening just before you lost your patience?
  • Practice mindful breathing. Watch Dr. Alberto Nacif describe square breathing and how it can help calm you in times of anxiety or frustration.
  • Get your sleep. When a child skips their nap, they are more likely to act out and have a harder time managing their feelings. Adults are similar. When sleepy, feelings of anger and frustration can feel more intense and rise much more quickly.

Make eye contact.

We spend so much time communicating over a screen or a phone that when we are standing in front of another person it can be difficult or awkward remembering how to behave. Make eye contact with the person in front of you. This let them know they have your attention. Even behind a mask, your smile can be felt by the person across from you.

Practice empathy.

Empathy really starts with curiosity. When you seek to understand another person’s feelings, situation and perspective, you’re view of that person that was so frustrating to you may shift. When you master empathy, getting along with others – from your most loved one to a complete stranger – happens much more naturally. So, when you feel like you are losing your cool with the person in front of you, try asking yourself questions like “how would I feel if I were them right now?”

Live a compassionate life.

When we set out to live with compassion the hope is that others will be inspired to do the same, so when you are the one carrying that heavy load, may you also be met with the same compassion you have given.

There really isn’t a bad time to be kind. Kindness is a gift that you can give to others, but also to yourself. When you are treated with kindness you will feel good both physically and mentally. But, you will also feel good when you treat others with kindness.