# Input from other grandparents?



## Hope1964 (Sep 26, 2011)

Our grandson will be 2 years old in December, we have only the one grandkid so far. I am wondering if anyone can relate to what I am experiencing.

I seem to be totally obsessed with him being SAFE. Way more than is necessary. And I can't seem to help myself. I have to stop myself from putting a helmet on his head before I let him loose in the house. We have slate tile in one room and I cannot relax if he's in there - I have to HOVER so he doesn't fall off the couch and whack his head. I prefer he not even be IN that room. His bedroom at our house is upstairs and he has a handle lock so he can't open the door but I have to also put up a gate and another lock in order to even sleep when he's there. If he's running around outside and goes near our deck steps I freak - all I can see is him falling and cracking his head on the stones. I wake up at night convinced he is out of his bed finding something in his room (which is THOROUGHLY babyproofed) to stick into the electrical outlet and electrocute himself or something. Or about to fall out the window because he pushed something over to it and climbed up and managed to open it and push the screen out.

It doesn't help that he DID fall down the stairway once (I wasn't there and I wish my daughter hadn't even told me) and was perfectly fine, and DID escape from his room once when my daughter was asleep and she found him in the kitchen IN THE KNIFE DRAWER. And DID fall off the couch once onto the slate floor. And he ALWAYS has a bruise on his head. I KNOW my own kids (my daughter is the youngest, she has two older brothers) didn't freak me out this way and they had accidents just as much but I do NOT remember CARING so much. It's freaking exhausting.

Is this just part of being a grandparent?? Or do I need a psychiatric intervention?


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## karole (Jun 30, 2010)

Sounds like you need a drink Hope.


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## GTdad (Aug 15, 2011)

I guess I'm kind of the opposite. We have 8 kids, and I was far more protective and safety-obsessed with the first than the last (both girls). Our grandson (only grand child) is 4. We live out in the country, and he's always finding new and interesting ways to injure himself, and I'll give him a hug and tell him to shake it off. 

I wonder whether it's a factor that we're still raising some of his aunts and uncles. Our youngest is just 6 years older than him.


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## meson (May 19, 2011)

Sounds to me like you're just out of practice with kid watching. You will get the hang of it again. I've seen several new grandparents act like that with the first. Then once they figure out how to kid proof their house again they are much more relaxed.


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## Hope1964 (Sep 26, 2011)

Ya, a drink or three would probably help 

I haven't had a baby around for about 20 years, maybe that has something to do with it.

Maybe I have anxiety issues - I also can't help myself from standing on the brakes when my husband drives. And snow and ice on the road freak me TOTALLY out, beyond reason. This started when we had a rollover on an icy road in 2008. And yes I am on blood pressure meds.


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## meson (May 19, 2011)

You sound like my MIL with the snow and driving. There was exactly one correct route to go to any place and there had to be no left turns. If there were flakes on the road she would cancel events because of the danger. But even though she had that phobia she got used to what the grand kids did and I'm sure you will as well.


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## Openminded (Feb 21, 2013)

My grandchildren are teenagers now but when the first one was born I was a total freak about safety and worried constantly about absolutely everything. I was less so with the second one and too worn out to be that way with the third. I wasn't anywhere close to being that way when my son was a toddler but it kicked in with my first grandchild. And it was exhausting because I was on red alert all the time.

So I get it.


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## Hope1964 (Sep 26, 2011)

Thanks for the replies, guys. I feel a bit better about it now that I know I am not a total freak. Even though my daughter sometimes thinks so!!!!


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