High-Needs Infants and Toddlers

Hi my name is Mel & I'm 23 years old. I have a wounderful 19 month old daughter Lilly Anne. I"m a stay at home mom. For the last six months or so I've always thought that my little one was just a bit more fussy, stubborn, needy, etc. then your average baby/toddler. When I brought this up to her doctor or any other mommies they all said "all kids are like that its not just yours." I started to think that maybe I was going crazy. Did I do something wrong with my parenting? Why am I having a hard time dealing with the every day of keeping up with my toddler? All these questions started to come about. Finally I asked a question in cafemom & another mommy there said she had a high needs child. I looked it up & found these characteristics to a high needs child. Its totally my little girl! Every thing on there matched.

I'm happy to find that I'm not crazy that she is slightly more intense then your average child & that others have kids like this. I'm hopeing to pick up helpful hints & tips from you other mommies out there & make some new friends. So nice to meet ya everyone :) cant wait to get to know you all better!

Hi, Mel!

Welcome to the board! Thank you for sharing about your daughter - what a beautiful name and I'm sure she is wonderful. Just knowing that you're not crazy and you're not alone helps a lot! I always remind parents to have their kids get a full medical evaluation to rule out any health issue that could be causing the high needs behavior (for instance, reflux). We want to be safe and thorough.

The best piece of advice I can give you is to be preventative. Try to know what sets your LO off on a tantrum and just avoid those things as much as possible (ie does she have a meltdown when she gets overtired, or too hungry, etc). Also, make sure you take time for yourself. You need to be well rested and happy, too!

GL with your little one! We're here for you to vent, ask questions, share ideas, whatever! It is a slower moving board (the mommies are soooo busy with their kiddos) so please be patient. Have a wonderful day!