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22 month old scared of tile floor

biokitty42biokitty42 member
in Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months
DD is intermittently terrified of slipping and falling on our tile floor, and I feel like I'm not handling things the right way.  90% of the time, she will walk and run on the floor with no problems, but a couple times a day she freezes up and gets too scared to take another step.  She will legitimately be trembling and screaming as she tries to walk, and will hold onto anything near her and refuse to let go.

I know that what started this is that she has slipped and fallen on the floor in the past.  We have a large area (kitchen, dining room, hall) that is continuous tile, and especially in the kitchen, the floor will occasionally get some water on it, either from cleaning up from meals or from her sippy cup, etc.  So her fear is based in reality and is backed up by an occasional slip.

What should I do when she freezes up like that?  I haven't come up with a consistent response.  Sometimes she will get over it with strong encouragement from me, but sometimes not.  Should I hold her hand and walk her around the house when this happens?  I don't want to reinforce the fear, but I also don't want her to feel abandoned.  I try to keep the tile free of wet spots, but it's a large area and things happen sometimes.
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Re: 22 month old scared of tile floor

  • shipsshoessealingwaxshipsshoessealingwax member
    Sudden fears of injuries like this are perfectly developmentally appropriate for this age - they are learning that they are not so invincible! Talk through her fears w/ her, let her know that she might fall if she runs (so she should walk) but even if she does it will only hurt a little bit & she will be okay. If she is really upset, lend a hand but also reinforce that she can do it herself. Over time she will become comfortable w/ it again.
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  • =Lee=B=Lee=B member
    Give words to the fear/emotion she is feeling, stay calm and give her strategies to deal with it (help her off, tell her to crawl explaining she can't fall that way etc).  If it is daily and is really causing her anxiety then it might be worthwhile just throwing down some strips of carpet (the hallway runners) so she can run through without getting worked up.  She will outgrow the anxiety soon enough.

     

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