I remember the first Halloween after Johanna's diagnosis of type 1 diabetes. It was a challenging day  for everyone. She wasn't herself all day; in her mind this holiday had changed forever. I wanted to help her understand that with some alteration she could still have loads of fun. JoJo was withdrawn all day.  I didn't understand how much it was a cry for help and I wasn't prepared. I kept being a cheerleader. Looking back on that first Halloween I should have just left her alone.  Here are a few other things I learned:

In regards to Halloween our children need to know we are there for them. They need to process these life changes to help them deal with everything that is coming their way. Looking back she just needed to feel sad and for me to accept that. It's hard when we can't fix diabetes, isn't it? The years since then have been much easier. She knows what to expect and has made peace with it.

Here's what has worked for us: Once we were finished for the night we all gathered together and talked about our loot of candy. We timed it around her p.m.snack and each child made a little pile regardless if you had diabetes or not. We talked and ate our snack and it was no big deal. Each child put their loot in a zip lock bag and wrote their name on it and enjoyed it at other times after that evening. We even wrote the carb count on various candies and stuck a few in their emergency kit to treat a low blood sugar (candy mostly with dextrose). It's great to have some variety.