dd is strange with everyone except me and dh

[amysma]

i'm at my wits end. i go back to work in a weeks time and my 5 1/2 month old dd has become strange with everyone. she will not go to anyone without breaking down in tears after a few seconds. until recently she was fine with my mum, who is going to mind her when i'm at work. in the past few days though she has become strange with her too. she refuses to take a bottle from anyone except me or dh and gets herself into such a state when anyone else tries to feed her that it is distressing. we left her last week to go to a wedding and apparently she cried all day long and refused toi eat anything. how can i go back to work and leave her like this? she stops crying instantly when i take her from whoever has got her. my mum is starting to panic now too - it's not fair on her to expect her to cope with a screaming baby all day every day whilst i'm at work. help!! has anyone else ever had similar experiences?

[ionesmum]

Sounds like separation anxiety to me.

[amysma]

how do you fix that then?

[ionesmum]

You don't - it just has to work its course. Perhaps your dd is also picking up on your anxiety about the situation, which is making things worse. You could try getting you rdd ready by leaving her for short periods with your mum, extending the time you are away by a little each time. FWIW I really believe that you are doing the best thing by leaving your dd with your mum, because she will be able to form a close bond with her too, which will help this to settle down. I was looked after myself by my nan when my mum worked and it was great - I was being looked after by someone who loved me as much as my mum did!

[saadia]

My ds1 was the same from about 5 months onwards. He would cry inconsolably when faced with new people and even with relatives that he saw fairly frequently. There was absolutely no chance of anyone other then myself feeding him. ds2, now a year old has been the same for the past few months. Whenever he sees new people he gets really distressed and clings tightly to me. They would never willingly go to anyone other then myself or dh, despite the fact that they saw both their grandmothers nearly every weekend. ds1, now 3, will stay with my mother and brother for a few hours but they do have to give him their full attention and keep him occuppied with games and books. ds2 will stay with my mother if she comes to our house to look after him. Good luck.