Shy 1 year old- do I need to worry?

[Smurfy23]

Dd is my first so I have nothing to compare her too but am panicking a bit here.

At home she is chatty, funny, confident and content to just play by herself. But when we go out to baby classes or with friends she more or less just ignores other babies (she will engage with their parents but not them) and will just play on or around me (today she spent the whole time using me as a guide to stand up and then sit down). If I moved away she would panic and cry til she found me again.

Childcare is with in laws, DM or me and she usually goes to 1 or 2 baby classes a week and has done for ages.

I know babies dont really play together as such at this age but its her shyness that worries me a bit tbh. Other babies at the same age just dont seem to care and are crawling off having a great time.

Should I be worried? Ive just been allowing her to do what she wants and continuing to give her hugs and kisses but am I stopping her from going off by doing that?!

I know theres a good chance im worrying over nothing here but what do you think....?!

My DS spends his time hitting other kids or ignoring them. I prefer the latter!

He prefers the company of adults.

He's fine with women but not so much men (doesn't have a father around).

He's getting a bit more clingy as time goes on.

@mrbean how old is your son?

I don't see what you can do about it Smurfy. It is what it is.Maybe your baby is shy...so what? It takes all sorts.

My DS used to be the same. He'll be 2 next month and loves other kids now. Whenever he sees another toddler he runs right up to them and tries to play. I didn't do anything differently or try to encourage this at all. He does go to nursery and has been since he was 10 months old, but it still took him until 18 months or so to really start engaging with other kids.

@singlenotsingle i didnt ask what i should do, I asked if it was something to worry about as I currently am worrying that there is something wrong her social/communication development. Thanks for your helpful post though.

@8days thats reassuring, thanks

normal. In fact it is a warning sign if children are NOT like this to some extent at this age

Perfectly normal. Whatever normal is!

Some kids are extroverts, some are introverts. And before you decide which your DC is, remember that extroverts can be shy and introverts can be confident.

Your DD is very, very young and her confidence will absolutely evolve and blossom.
She sounds like she’s a bit clingy. That’s totally normal and it’s very common for many toddlers to go through such a phase. Some kids just take a little longer to spread their wings and be more independent.
I find shyness to be a very special trait... lots of awareness of self and the environment around her is going on inside that very young mind. I’ve raised the total extroverted social butterfly and the introverted shy child. It all sort of evens out! My social butterfly, who played with every kid he could smell within a one mile radius at the age of 1, is now so very shy at 16!

Thank you all, youve made me feel a lot better about it

Sounds normal to me. She stays where she feels safe. She will get braver as she gets older.