General Fears
Vacuum cleaners, clowns, car horns, the hair dryer, Daddy's sneezes; these are just some of the sights and sounds babies can develop fears of. As newborns, babies fear loud noises and falling. They don't mind new faces, objects or situations. As they get older however, they develop 'object permanence', as they can remember familiar faces and recognise unfamiliar ones. This development means they start to fear unfamiliar objects, faces and situations. Your baby's sudden fearful nature is a sign of maturity and his increased awareness of his world and what's in it. Loud noises startle babies and toddlers because they don't yet know what these noises are, they think they might pose danger to them.
Babies can develop fears of anything, from creepy crawlies to the smoke alarm, balloons and people in masks. These fears are just phases that will pass as your baby gets more used to them, and realises that they don't pose a threat. But until then, help your baby deal with his fears by holding him close whenever he gets fearful of a person, animal, object or noise. Give him the comfort he needs and he'll gradually realise there's nothing to be scared of. If your baby gets scared by loud noises, take him out of the room where the loud noise is. When your baby is old enough to understand, tell him when the noise he doesn't like is going to happen; 'Mummy's turning the blender on now, it'll be loud but it's OK!'. Point to the source of the noise, and show your baby what it is that makes the noise, both when it is off and when it is on.
If your baby is scared of animals, or insects, or objects such as fancy dress or balloons, show them books with pictures if these objects in. They can then explore them at their own pace. Choose books where the objects or animals look friendly, and have happy stories about them.
As your baby gets older and continues into toddlerhood, he'll get new fears. Toddlers often get scared of drains, as they don't realise they're too big to fall down them when they see water go down, or dogs, as they are often bigger than the child themselves! By age 2, children's imaginations are developed enough that they start to fear monsters in the night. Developing fears is common and is a normal part of growing up. Be understanding to your child's fears, don't laugh at them, but ask them why they are scared and reassure them that it's OK to feel scared, that everyone does sometimes, but that they are safe and the spider/imaginary monster under the bed/kindly man in clown mask won't hurt them. Ask them what you can do to make them not scared, as this gives them some power over their fears.
