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Attachment Parenting
Tell me about your LO's clingy phases....(long)
DS is going through a major clingy stage right now. He used to like being worn, but also really liked playing by himself or sitting on the floor playing with me. The last couple of days he is totally fussy unless I get out the Mei Tai. When he sees it he starts smiling and cooing...when he's in it he's completely happy. He has no interest in playing with his toys, he just wants to be on me. Even if I'm sitting down playing with him, he is reaching his arms out to be picked up.
Also, he used to be very comfortable being put down awake (for nap or bed) and then having us leave the room. Not anymore...the other day he cried for an hour (not alone, but while we were rocking him to almost-sleep, putting him down, picking him back up again when he fussed). I finally figured out that if I laid down next to him he would fall asleep immediately. It just didn't occur to me for the first 2 times this happened, since he's been going to sleep on his own (after BF, rocking, singing) for awhile now.
Even though he used to go to bed a couple of hours before me, when I went to bed, we would co-sleep and he would roll away from me and want his own space for most of the night. Now he grabs my face and presses it against his cheek and holds it there...he wants to sleep cheek-to-cheek!!
I'm pretty sure this is either a teething thing or a hitting-a-dev-milestone thing (he's nearly crawling).
All of this is totally tweaking my heartstrings...I love being there for him when he wants me / needs me and that is all the time at the moment. I'm kind of eating it up b/c I know that soon enough he will be too busy with his toys and friends etc. to snuggle with me. But I'm just curious: when has your LO gone through clingy phases and how long did they last?
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Re: Tell me about your LO's clingy phases....(long)
DS is doing the same thing right now. Exactly. I'm 90% sure that he's teething and he also just started walking about a week ago. It was slightly annoying while we were visiting family...since we were surrounded by people who wanted to hold him and play with him and give me a break, but all he wanted was mommy. Flattering but exhausting.
He's going to bed okay, but waking up 3 hours later wanting me and only me. To the point where after I nursed him for 20 minutes the other night and tried to get up briefly he cried (loudly) in DH's arms the entire time I was out of bed. I hate feeling like I can't get up to pee or even change position in bed. I really hope this little "blip" passes soon!
I've never kept track of how long these phases last, so I'm guessing that it is less than 2 weeks. :-)
Avery is quite clingy right now and has been for the last few months. My DH has just changed jobs, so he is now home earlier (woo-hoo!) and after a month of this she has been much happier with daddy, which is great for all of us, though sometimes nothing but mommy will do. I agree, it can be exhausting, though it doesn't bother me too much. I figure that soon enough she will be a teenager and telling me to drop her around the corner from school, so I'm trying to enjoy the cling while I can. ;-)
FWIW, understanding the reasoning behind separation anxiety has helped me to deal with it. In plenty of other species, once LOs are able to get around on their own, they will just leave. Separation anxiety develops for babies' safety, right around the same time that babies become mobile, so that they will stay near their parents, not just wander off. Realizing that this behavior "makes sense" somehow makes me handle it so much better; otherwise, you're wondering why you were allowed to walk into the other room yesterday but you're not anymore.
I find this infinitely interesting....Every time DS does some typical baby thing, I think: how is this behavior evolutionarily advantageous? I'm such a dork.