My 20 month old dd has changed quite dramatically over the last 7-10 days. Her Day Nursery (she attends 3 days per week)has noticed it too and have mentioned it without prompting from me.
Basically dd has had the odd tantrum (some of them quite impressive) since the age of 17/18 months...but they numbered no more than a couple per day at most, were shortlived and were almost 'reasonable' (i.e. I understood why she was tantrumming).
However in the last 7-10 days she has been truly horrible and reduced her 35 year old mum to tears (who is the adult here!!).
Everything...absolutely EVERYTHING is a battle of wills, she won't get dressed in the morning, she refuses a nappy (she isn't potty trained - so this is a problem), she deliberately takes 15 minutes to descend the stairs (loiters on each step and pretends to be really, really interested in the wood grain or something), she won't eat her breakfast or wear a bib, she'll go into my study and throw the books off the shelf, last night she asked to get out of the bath so I helped her out, then immediately asked to go back in again - so I helped her back in, and she repeated this cycle about 4 times until I refused to help anymore.
I had to see my midwife this afternoon (am 38 weeks pregnant) and dd started a big trantrum because I wouldn't let her play with the cool water dispenser in the doctors surgery (she was flooding the carpet). Midwife was quite shocked and taken aback by the intensity of dd's tantrum (i.e. full blown hysteria). She was still going at the end of the consultation and I had to bundle her into the car seat with her resisting and fighting all the way. She is extremely strong and I had to apply considerable force to get her in the seat (it took me at least 5 - 10 minutes). I was feeling so desperate I even considered the unthinkable of driving home with her unsecured and sitting in the rear passenger footwell, but instead I persevered and swore and shouted at her (which I am not proud of). This whole tantrum continued after we got home and lasted 50 minutes in total.
At Day Nursery they have reported that she has bitten another child 2 days running. They also mentioned her obduracy (e.g. she point blank refused to leave the toilet after her nappy change this morning).
I am beginning to actively dislike her (I know that's wrong but I'm only human)...and I am certainly finding it very difficult to cope.
What's the matter with her - is it because I am having a baby in two weeks and things are changing around her (she moved into a new room a fortnight ago - but she seems to like it, however she has probably noticed all the baby stuff going into her old room)...or is there something wrong with her? I doubt its just her age because my friends who have toddlers do not report the same intensity of difficulty...All kids can be awkward, but her behaviour seems to be at an extreme end of the spectrum