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September 2015 Moms
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Holy Stranger Anxiety Batman!

Plumeria1214Plumeria1214 member
edited May 2016 in September 2015 Moms
My LO started having stranger anxiety this month (8 mos). Any new or unfamiliar person causes her to cry, almost hysterically, and she cries if they go anywhere near her the rest of the time. I know it's normal but I feel so bad! Today she saw my aunt who she last saw in March, and whose held her before, and she cried anytime she was near. She did the same with our friends and at doctors office. Any tips to help? I try holding her and letting her see I'm smiling and they're ok but it's not making too much of a difference! We have a Memorial Day party with lots of adults and babies coming up and I'm worried she'll just cry the whole time! She's a very calm, happy baby otherwise. 

Edited to change to adults abs babies. 
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Re: Holy Stranger Anxiety Batman!

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    mwertalikmwertalik member
    No advise but I'm in the same boat. She wants absolutely nothing to do with anyone other than mama. Her little face is so sad, she is DEVASTATED by people talking and smiling at her
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    missliz53missliz53 member
    I use a binkie to soothe her and just kind of ignore the crying when I'm holding her. I rub her back and cuddle her, but I keep talking to whoever it is and she does settle down and start watching them very warily. What I have found though is that she does really well with people who engage and distract her after she's had a look at them vs people who just try to hold her and talk softly. Does she have a favorite book or toy they could use to engage her? I can hand her off to my family pretty quickly if they start reading The Very Hungry Catapillar to her. 
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    vibarra27vibarra27 member
    Ive noticed one of my sons get scared/anxiety if someone is wearing sunglasses...maybe its because he cant see their whole face? My grandma cant be outside without her sunglasses (sensitive eyes) & on Saturday he would cry every time she would turn to look @ him, but was fine with everyone else. All that would settle him down is her not looking @ him with the glasses or distracting him with food or toys.

    Thats my advice just distract her, & walk away when shes upset. Other than that, nothing else i can think of lol.
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    cait040415cait040415 member
    Ditto!!! She has even been getting upset in new places, according to my mom, who took her to run errands with her the other day. So yea, I'm a little worried about our road trip tomorrow to a totally new place with all new family (my extended family and sisters). Joy. This should be fun!!

     @mwertalik the face!!! Oh the face!!! It'd be funny if it wasn't so sad! Lol my LO starts with this slow, huge frown, then these giant crocodile tears! People feel so bad lol. I just try to ignore them, too, and let her know it's ok!!! So tough!
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    lmbrandtlmbrandt member
    We have stranger danger too!  He will NOT smile, he freezes up and just stares, and we call it the "bulldog" face. He gets this HUGE frowny mouth, then starts gasping, and then the tears!  

    He's been weird with riding in a shopping cart too!  Don't know if it has to do with the stranger anxiety and he can see everyone, but he won't sit up properly!  He has NO trouble sitting on his own, does it all day at home.  Put him in the cart and he leans all to the side, tries to lay down, and within minutes is crying.  He's also been crying after about 15 min in his outward facing jogging stroller...don't know if it's because he can't see me or what!
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    BrittnieMarieeBrittnieMariee member
    We actually went through this stage a little early and it was really tough. The only thing that made him stop crying was me holding him. And it had to be me. It couldn't even be DH! It lasted maybe two months, and was actually mostly when we were around the ILs. Honestly, we just had to wait for it to pass. They tried to force him to "get over it" and I ended up pretty angry a few times because they thought holding him longer would help?? It was pretty rough for a while but now he's totally okay with them! He still does it occasionally if they try to immediately take him from me when we visit. So we've learned to wait a few minutes and let him decide when he's ready to be held by someone else. 
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    LoveLee85LoveLee85 member
    My LO at almost 9 months old is dipping his toe into the stranger anxiety pool. Yikes! He doesn't like when people he doesn't know wear dark sunglasses. And if someone holds him, he's glaring at me to make sure I don't walk away. No real tears yet but I can tell he's thinking about it. Funny enough he loves hats! If a woman or man is wearing a hat, he will be their best friend. 
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