Intense baby & Nursery

[justanotheruser18]

Hi. Could anyone share their positive and negative experiences on this subject? Do babies who don't settle (ever) with anyone but Mum/other parent settle into nursery?

My baby is 8 months and will be starting nursery at 1, a few days a week. He is a typical high needs baby: cries a lot, non adaptive, intense, does not like to be held by anyone but his parents. He cries with strangers; he cries when held by close family members. He only stops crying when he falls asleep or I come back. He falls asleep at the breast. He sleeps in my bed. He is Gina Ford's nightmare.

Nursery is the only option. We want him in one centralised place & to know exactly where he is at all times. I know it may not be best for him but I have to go back to work.

Will he settle at nursery? Will he always cry? Do you have experience of a crying baby settling at nursery? He had a trial session and the staff were lovely but he wailed til I came back.

Good luck. Be confident in your nursery and your child will pick up on this. Quick drop off and pick up after settling in will help your little one with the transition.

I don't do school runs, but I do go out to parks etc a lot.

Bear2014................School runs and shopping trips can be fun and educational. Its not the same as doing it for yourself. We play hunt the number, find something coloured games and that extends to what's 2 and 2 and they stand on 4. The children adore being in the playground and love the older children running up to them to cuddle we have nothing but belly laughs all the way home even if we stop at the park, the woods or the shop where they find a new fruit or veg to try count the apples, find the blue milk, work out the cost give the money and check the change. We alos take a camera and what they are interested in - animals, leaves, trees, vehicles, street furniture etc. is photographed by them and used in puzzles, sticking, messy play last week it was a shape hunt and they sorted the shapes into type and matched them up.
If they were stuck in the same 4 walls and garden I would have to have posters and fake written things that may not interest them (how much do you look at that poster on the wall in the gp's / bus stop etc. if you see it every day).
Being out is natural its part of a normal life and amazingly children who do go out don't run riot at the first chance, they understand road safety they listen and stop (they learn it in parks and safe places first) so you never have to run after them.

Jannier - sorry, of course you are right. Our situation was a bit extreme as we lived in a very busy, polluted and frenetic part of inner London when we had our DD. We chose to put her in a big nursery with loads of self contained facilities and a big garden for this reason. I would always see childminders out and about on the main drag and it put me off. I wouldn't rule it out now we're in a quieter area but it's only part time anyway so they get to go to the shops with me!