Baby hates other people!

[Niknak1980]

My DD is 6 and 1/2 months old and we regularly go to baby groups and visit family and friends. Although she's fine if I'm holding her or she's playing, as soon as anyone apart from my partner holds her she cries as if it's the end of the world. It's starting to get really awkward as my MIL is really keen to help look after her and I worry that other people think she's always grumpy! Is it something all babies go through? Any tips for helping her relax more would be very much appreciated - especially as we'll be seeing lots of people over Christmas, thanks.

Snap. Mine is 6 months and we have the same thing! MIL and FIL are so sad, like you they want to have him and he cries so hard. They grow out of it, it's a survival instinct, Ma and pa are the safest people. I'm getting the inlaws to come over more so my DS see more of them and hopefully they'll become safer xxx

Thanks that's such a relief to hear, like you say it makes them so sad and they love babies so much that it's a shame they don't get to enjoy her like we do. I hope she chills out a bit soon - good idea about inviting them over ours more, she might relax more in her own environment xxx

Don't worry, it's a phase all babies go through at this age, DD2 is going through it now too, as did DD1. If I recall correctly, DD1 stopped it around 8 months ish but it came back with a vengeance at 11 months, separation anxiety that time! But again it didn't last long.

She'll soon love spending time with her grandparents without you there too

I hope my DS chills a bit to! He's been like it since birth, bless him. My inlaws are losing their confidence a bit as they can't calm him down. My plan is to have them over, and for them to just be there while I do what I usually do with him. I wonder if they get in his face too much, coo, try to make him laugh to much and he freaks....!! This too shall pass....... I hope as I want a tiny bit of me time (sounds very selfish!) xx

It is normal at that age. DC3 is just coming up to 6 months and he is happy to be held by strangers at the moment but will probably soon enter the hates others phase too - it passes at around 1 year old or maybe sooner. Both my DDs 1 and 2 did this as babies.

You'll probably find she's better if you aren't there. My DD is 10 months and still would rather be held by me or DH if we're there but when she's at nursery or with GPs when we're at work she's fine. If she knows you're there she'll automatically want to be with you.
Enjoy it! When they're teenagers they won't even want to be in the same room as us

Mine was like that. No-one could babysit. She wasn't even that keen on DH. If someone stuck their head in the pram to say hello when we were out we'd usually have to go home as she was screaming so much. I used to keep a rain cover on at all times to deter people! It all changes overnight when she was 2 and now at 8 she's incredibly sociable, independent, charming and confident so I wouldn't worry.

It was certainly really for my two. My older girl has been crazy about her grandparents since about age 14 months (now almost 4). My younger is only 13 months and just now starting to light up when she sees grandma. It's so lovely and definitely kind of a relief for me! (This was the child who screamed blue murder if anyone besides me or DP so much as looked at her from birth.) Your PIL sound lovely but do remind them if they have sad faces about it that it's really not going to last forever.

Lots of exposure to the GPs will help it along, as long as they're patient and don't try to hold her too much. She needs to get the measure of them first :)

Thanks for all the reassurance everyone, I'll relax about it and wait for it to pass. Lots of good tips too so we'll be trying those out xxxxxx