Old lady keeps approaching my toddler, making me feel uncomfortable

She shouldn't be 'tactile' around other people's kids.

Absolutely this. OP needs to get a grip.

" Lure him away". Fgs.

No wonder lonely old people phone 999 for an ambulance just so they can talk to somone or die and are found dead 6 months later.
Nobody cares. No community spirit.
I expect she is of the age where ‘assault’ means attacking somone, not an elderly lady holding the hand of a toddler.
It’s posts/comments like Ive read on this thread that make me realise mankind is fucked.

You do realise that being overprotective of your son isn’t a good thing for him, right?

It is not a kindness, it is a hinderence to their confidence and independence.

My father in law did this - he loved children but more recently he developed dementia and he lost his filters. We would try and gently divert him as we approached a child when out in public but we were not always quick enough. I’d apologise quietly to the parent and most were understanding. Mostly it was tenderly touching the child’s cheek, but it didn’t feel appropriate. I would not like a stranger reaching out to touch my child.

And people wondering why there isn't a 'village' any more.

Just another example of how society is crumbling.

The most level headed post on this thread !

Yes, she might not even be pension age yet!

This. As an 'old lady" myself I don't tend to approach babies I don't know but it was quite normal and unproblematic when I had a baby.

Be thankful you weren't a parent to a young child in the 70s. It was the norm for old ladies to comment on kids - usually very negatively. I still recall a few such incidents and I wasn't even being naughty. But back then children didn't have the rights they now have.

Possibly the most ridiculous reply yet.

I agree!

Are you an anxious person generally op, might be an idea to see your gp and ask if any talking therapies/cbt available? In the meantime cross the road and take a different route but do own the issue, this is you being overly anxious not a friendly lady talking to your dc that is the issue.

Especially MNers of the hygiene-freak variety.

Just because someone is elderly or female (if it was a male the response would be wholly different) means they can touch others or others children without consent.

I don’t care if it’s seen as nice by some, you ask first and if a Mother is uncomfortable then that Mother is well within her right to say no irrespective of if people think she’s over bearing. Not your kid.

I used to get really annoyed at elderly people sticking their head in my pram with my newborn or touching my bump without asking when I was pregnant. I found it intrusive and I don’t care if that’s ‘mean’. If that elderly person was a 20 year old stranger it’d be weird, just because you’ve aged doesn’t make it any less weird.

She sounds utterly harmless and just wants to interact with you and your child. If you can’t be arsed, that’s fair enough. Nobody can make you. But I do remember we had a few very friendly older ladies in our area who loved chatting to us kids (this was in the seventies.) I have never liked being touched or hugged, but I just stepped back a bit and they totally understood. And thankfully my mum was fully supportive of my bodily autonomy and didn’t force me to hug anyone. But I grew up into a teenager who still loved to chat to these women when I was out and about. I got along better with some of them than I did with my peers. My eldest son is similar to me. He is autistic and dislikes unsolicited touching and hugging, but he would have chatted all day to older people when he was small. God help them when he started on the Minecraft monologue🤣 Most were very indulgent though! But I don’t think that treating harmless women like some sort of social nuisance is a very healthy type of behaviour to display to your child. By all means you can deflect any touching, but there’s a lot to be gained by allowing your child to interact with other people, particularly when you’re there to supervise.

I agree. I don't doubt that she's quite harmless but children, just like adults, are entitled to have boundaries.

My autisic son couldn't tolerate this for a minute. He would possibly forcibly tell her to stop. And given I've always taught him he's entitled to bodily autonomy, telling him off for rudeness would be incongruous with that.

I'd probably kindly tell her DC doesn't like it but would happily engage her in a chat and treat her with politeness.

That’s the definition of a neighbour, someone who lives next or near to you 🙄

You know that ‘village’ it takes to raise a child…… this lady is part of that village as is everyone who interacts regularly with your child. For the pp who thinks this lady probably has dementia…. Get a fucking grip.

And your point is?.
Or are you just mocking for the sake of it?

I would find this really creepy too. You're not BU. You have to walk the gauntlet every time you go out. It would make me very on edge. She needs to back off.
Saying hello and chit chat, isn't he cute etc is fine. Touching is not ok at all. 60s is not really old either these days.
I would be worried she'll try and lure him away, even though that probably is very unreasonable. If she is unwell she could think he's her child or something? If you're on edge, trust yourself.

Yeah 60 isn’t usually old 😀 it depends on the person though ,some people are old at 30 😅

Dementia caused by social isolation????

Yes it is very much a thing.

Some years ago an in-law of a family member developed dementia. She lead an extremely isolated life. She started wandering the streets just to be amongst people. She was placed in a care home because the isolation was diagnosed as the root cause of her mental decline. In the home her mental decline was reversed to a small extent because of the socialisation she experienced there.