Clingy 3 year old driving me mad ..

[emmielou]

DD will be 3 in June and her clingy behaviour is driving me mad !! She has always been a clingy child, but recently it has got worse..

At a tots group she has been going to since she was 6mo she starting crying saying she wanted to go home ... no apparent reason.. Everyone was looking at me like I was the worse mother in the world, cause I just told her we were staying ...

Whenever we are at a group, or someones house, she is either on my lap, or attached to my leg.. This really frustrates me ..perhaps I rise to it more than I should ...aargh ..

I also have 17mo twins who are just starting to walk, so am wondering whether she is put out that they are getting a lot of attention at the moment.. Am trying to include her in their walking stage, by getting her to "help" ..

[mummylonglegs]

My dd, 2 1/2, is quite clingy too. She doesn't have any siblings to compete with, and she's not quite as clingy as yours from your description, i.e. she's ok generally at someone else's house. But at playgroups she spends the whole time trying to climb onto my knee (even when I'm standing up! ) and saying 'I want to go home now please.'

I don't have any decent suggestions but I wonder if your dd has any time apart from you on a regular basis and if she does how she behaves then. My dd has just 2 short morning sessions with a childminder. The second one I pick her up from a playgroup they go to (childminder has 2 other small kids with her) and I'm amazed how un-clingy she is when I walk in.

My non-conclusion is then that her behaviour seems to be something to do with me in particular. What that means or what one can do is anyone's guess!

[fairyfeet]

I totally sympathise with your situation. My wee girl has just recently turned three and seems to be getting more clingy with age. Nothing makes you feel more guilty than leaving your child at nursery who is screaming for you not to go.

I have just recently had a second baby who is five months old and I definately think my daughters clingyness has gotten worse since number two came along. I am sure it must feel a little threatning to them that mummy does not have the same time to give them lots of attention.

I am just putting my daughters clingyness down to a stage she is going through in reaction to having a new sibling.

Your daughter who sounds like quite a sensitive child is perhaps feeling a bit insecure with the time you must need to devote to you younger twins. Perhaps trying to spend some quality time with her on her own and trying to get her involved in something that she is interested in would give her a bit more reassurance and confidence. Although I am sure this is not as easy as it sounds with twins to content with as well!

Good luck and I am sure it will eventually pass. :