Separation Anxiety - Tampa,FL

Hug him and hug him- your job is to keep him safe, and feeling safe.
I am still amazed at the 2 seconds it took for them to be teenagers, and I wished for when I could make make them safe by hugging.
Honestly it will end sooooo soon.
best, k

My son was like this when he was little.
One thing that really helped was leaving him with his daddy for small times.
I started with, going in my room without him for a few min..
going out of the house for 5 min
and kept making the trips longer & longer.
He just needs to learn that if you leave, you are coming back. And that will come.
We used to also give him to my SIL...as long as mommy & daddy were out of sight our DS would be totally fine.
The moment he saw me, he would LOSE IT lol

You're doing everything right with going to Gymboree and the library. Keep that up. It will get better soon enough. It is a phase. My son was like this too and we attributed it to the fact that it was just me, him and dad here - no grandparents and extended family.

Now he is the most outgoing child. I started him in preschool right before age 3 and he transitioned so well, while so several of the other kids clung and cried. I was amazed but I had done my best to get him in social surroundings as much as possible. You have to get out there and start making friends for him and for yourself.

Best advice is to get your son out with other kids at least a couple more times a week. We joined 2 moms groups. I would definitely suggest that - it was a godsend! Set up playdates with some of the Gymboree moms if you can or meet at a park. Push yourself to be more sociable and he'll follow your lead.

Invite neighbors over just to chat so he is used to more people too. Host weekly playgroups at your place if need be as he will feel more comfortable with that. Eventually he should warm up to others and you'll bring him out of his shell.

DD started that at around 8-9 mos too. We had her in daycare though so she would cry and cry and cry until she got used to the "regulars" and then be fine, but if we went to a new place it would start all over again. When she began preschool at 3 years 2 mos this fall, she was very very shy and didn't want to go. It took almost a good 6 mos for her to come out of her shell and now she is precocious, talkative, and talks to almost ANYBODY. I have had to ask her to tone it down...but it makes me happy that she is no longer stuck to our sides. Just keep with the social environments but do not "force" him....he will probably break out of it in his own due time. :)

My kids (1 & 2 years old) don't get to interact with other kids much or many adults either except for their grandparents & 1 aunt, so anytime that we go to parties or out in public they like to cling to mommie & daddy too. In order to break this, we simply reassure them that it's ok & let them know where we're going & who's going to be there before we go. I also don't ever baby my kids. I don't push them to socialize either, but I do encourage them to go play with other kids or say hi, or go give so & so a hug or a high five to let them know that it's ok. When I leave them to go to work or drop them off with their grandparents I give them a kiss & hug & tell them I'll be back later and let them cry it out if they have to. Once their distracted by something else they forget that I'm even gone. They still cry sometimes, but the less you feed into it the sooner they'll get over it.

Bring him for a sensory evaluation at an occupational therapist. He might not be feeling calm in his own skin and it's hard to modulate your emotions to the environment if you are in constant fight or flight.