Baby Screams When Alot of People Are Around

Completely normal. My son went through something similar around this age. It happened when he was overstimulated by being passed around a lot of people or in large crowds. He is 7 months old now & doesn't get that way anymore.

I was like this as a baby too. My mom said that at family events I was inconsolable, and as soon as we would leave, I would be fine. Even as a child, I remember feeling sick to my stomach when I was in large crowds (to the point that sometimes I would throw up). When I went away to high school and lived in a dorm, I had to learn to adjust to all the noise and drama, and it took me about 6 weeks before I didn't have constant headaches. Once I got through it, I have been fine in crowds. But now that I have kids, my younger daughter hates crowds. Some people are just natural introverts, and prefer to be alone/quiet rather than being in a big, noisy crowd. There is nothing wrong with your son - he just likes the quiet of your home! He is still very young, cut him some slack! ;)

Sounds perfectly normal for some four month olds. My daughter hated being around so many people- too loud, too many people in her face, very much overwhelmed. My son, eh, not so much. Sat and smiled the whole time. They are 11 and 13 now, and both are very social and friendly.

As his little body grows and matures, he will be able to handle being around crowds of people. Don't force it, introduce him gradually. He will be just fine!

Totally normal. Our youngest is 17 months and he STILL doesn't like large get togethers. It is just too much for him. Some kiddos are just like that.

It sounds to me as if your baby was just too overwhelmed with so many people around. It can be overstimulating and the only way a baby can let you know "get me out of here" is to cry or scream. You don't need to take your baby to the doctor over what happened. What happened is normal. Your son is probably just starting the stranger anxiety stage and let you know it, and it's perfectly normal. It eases up when it eases up. You can't rush it. Just go about life as normal. You don't have to stay home all the time, but just be sensitive to the fact that your son might have times where he feels some anxiety about busy houses with lots of people.

I'm sure your grandmother's feelings were hurt because she probably hoped to visit with her great-grandson and hold him and show him off, and she didn't get the chance. She probably felt rejected like something was "wrong" with her house even though that's not the case at all.

I agree with what everyone said. My 4th was like this. Every family gathering/party or anywhere there was lots of choas she just couldn't handle it. She expressed her discomfort with the situation by crying. Of course we couldn't stop going everywhere, so I made sure she had her comfort blanket and time away from the chaos. Most of the time she spent alone in our room watching a show while people were over.

While it was really bad as an infant, she is now 2.5 and it is a LOT easier. She still needs her breaks from it, but can handle more and does not cry all the time. It will get better. Just be prepared the next time you go.

It may be that when you are home he is not exposed to that amount of sensory input. That can be a bit daunting for little ones. Have you exposed him to groups of people in other environments? What is his reaction?
It is of concern that you were unable to soothe him without taking him away from the gathering. It cannot hurt to mention it to your son's MD - they have heard it all, and can perhaps offer suggestions.

I would guess he just had sensory overload with all the people and noise. I don't know that I would rush to the pediatrician right now...but just take note - maybe keep a journal - of when he reacts like he did on Easter. How does he react to bright and busy places like grocery stores, or malls? How does he react to the TV or radio being too loud at home? Is he sensitive to "normal" noises, like the vacuum or a kitchen mixer or things like that? If you notice a pattern, chat with your pediatrician the next time you are there. It could be that was a one time occurance, or it could be just very sensitive hearing. My mom had to stop sewing when I was a baby/toddler because the noise the sewing machine made caused me to scream in pain, same with vacuums and certain kitchen appliances. To this day, my hearing is extremely sensitive and noises that most people do not even hear cause actual pain to me - which can be quite challenging to a mom of three rowdy boys:) Good Luck!
T. Koyn

There is nothing wrong with him, he just doesn't do well in noisy settings. Both of my youngins are like this too, so much that my 2.5 year old asked if we could skip the big easter egg hunt with his cousins because it's "too noisy and crazy over there". My hubby and I are both pretty big homebodies also, and our moms say we were as babies too. Over time, he might acclimate to the noise a little better but I wouldn't force him to be in these chaotic situations for prolonged amounts of time.

babies get like that especially if they are tired and overstimulated. I thin k it's a little early to hop on the "something's wrong" bandwagon! LOL I remember taking my son, then about 5 mos to a company picnic. He screamed and fussed the entire few hours we stayed--as soon as we left the park, he was fine.

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Babies communicate by crying... If your grandmother was "listening", she would have heard your baby tell you that it was too loud and chaotic in the house & he preferred to be outside.

There's nothing wrong with him, but you may want to start exposing him to smaller, quieter activities for a while until he gets used to being around people. If he's home with you all day long, his "day" is fairly quiet. Going from mommy's voice only to 30 voices (probably oohing and aahing in his face) is overwhelming.

My friendly bright 3 yr old becomes a clingy baby in crowds until he's comfortable. We actually hire a sitter to come to our house when we are hosting parties b/c he likes to be in his room for the first 15-20 minutes until he's comfortable with all of the people in the house. No biggie- once he decides he's ready to come out, he'll chat it up with anyone.

Listen to your baby and maybe get involved with a playgroup or something on a smaller scale that meets regularly.

Tell gma to shut it lol. its perfectly normal. the baby was over stimulated. he will grow out of it just keep going around people in small amounts of time.