sudden clingyness

[cjb/jbvd]

help!!

a couple of weeks ago i wasn't home much for a fortnight due to work committments. now my ds has turned into a limpet..................

normally he is happy to share space with me and amuse himself. like when i do the dishes, he'll normally quite happily play with his toys on the kitchen floor.
now, whenever i get home from work, all he wants is my full on attention. i can't even leave the room without him crying and following me. not even to go to the toilet. not only that but he constantly wants to be picked up, cuddled, and in physical contact with me in general. he pulls himself up my leg, climbs all over me when i sit on the floor with him, and has taken to waking up a few times a night just for a cuddle. he won't let his dad feed him, and isn't very happy about going to daycare in the mornings (although that settles down about ten minutes after i leave orso i've been told). he won't be left alone for even a minute without getting upset about it. this isn't normal for him, and i'm worried that he might be like this permanently from now on.

is there anything i can do to get back my confidant, self assured, independant little boy????

[bellagirl]

hi:wave:

my little cousin did this when she was about two. she wouldnt even let her mum go to the toilet, when her mum got back from the toilet, she would be hyperventilating and practically not breathing.
:eek:
I dont really think theres much you can do, just explain, your not going anywhere, he probably thinks your going of to work again and he obviously doesnt want you to go, but i think it will pass
sorry, not much help am i?:fingerscrossed:

[cjb/jbvd]

thanks brooke

nice to know at least thre's someone else out there like mine..... :eek:

i've tried telling him where i'm going (eg "mum is going to the toilet, i won't be gone long") and that i'm not leaving him. but i just don't think he gets it. but i will keep trying. :thumbsup:

thankyou :hugs:

[Funkychicken]

Oohhhh.. I tried to reply to this earlier but my computer got a poltergeist!
Anyway, what I tried to post was this. Don't panic! it is ver, very normal for babies to go through a major seperation anxiety at about 8-9 months. Nearly all babies do this. They are awakening to the world yet again and this time it can be a bit scary. Your confident little man is still there-he won't stay this way. If you can, give him those extra holds and cuddles-he really does need to be acknowledged. Some parents feel they should push them away a bit 'in case' they become too clingy and stay that way. They just need extra reassurance now and in a month or so it will pass. if you can give him the reassurance he needs now, he will know he can always trust you to be there when he needs you.:) All the best.

[cjb/jbvd]

thanks sal

phew it's normall!! woohoo, thought i had broken his poor little heart!!

i love giving the extra cuddles........being used as a jungle gym can be a great opportunity for extra raspberries on the tummy. it just makes life very hard when i have to do housework. i tried putting him in his baby carrier, but that didn't work too well cos he was all fidgety.

and do i ignore the night crying for cuddles (he falls instantly asleep again as soon as i pick him up and cuddle him, it's really weird)?? i'm not getting much sleep at the moment, and my work is starting to suffer. the boss is very understanding, but i hate using DS's problems as a reason for sloppy work.
i really can't afford to stuff up in my job, especially not at the moment....