How Do I Help My 22 Month Old Let Go of Mommy?

What you are seeing is a very normal 'stage' for a child his age. The best thing you can do is to be calm but firm when you are ready to leave him. I know it's tearing you up inside, but try not to let him see that at all. Be sure a new caregiver is aware before you leave him that he does do this. A good caregiver will be able to help him calm down and will also be able to put up with the one hour time it takes him.. if it goes that long.
Some things that may help at the point of you leaving are ... let him go to a window and wave while you leave (never try to sneak out of his sight as that creates a distrust on the part of the child). Be sure he has one favorite toy to hold on to. Talk a bit about what's going to happen after you leave... let the sitter tell him something about the plans for the day and something may just catch his attention and make the transition easier.

I was just at my son's regular check-up yesterday and talked with the Dr. about this. The whole aspect of clingy just decided to appear at 18 months...so it's what I've got going on here at my house too. My son is so clingy that he's not been happy sitting next to us at the dinner table, he now cries "Mommy! Daddy!" to sit in our lap. We went to drop him off in the nursery at our church, which he's always been easygoing about and he went into hysterics, and set off all the other little ones :( Either way, our Dr. thought it was normal for this age...he said anywhere from age 1 to 3 they can be this way, and it's all part of their normal development. He added that some children may not experience this as much and that others might...just because children will have different emotional wants/needs. I read an article online from the Today's Parent magazine called "The Clingy Toddler"...good article.
Here's the article:
http://www.todaysparent.com/toddler/article.jsp?content=1...

They used the following book as a resource:
The Emotional Life of the Toddler , by Alicia B. Lieberman, Maxwell Macmillan, 1993. Lieberman describes the common issues of toddlerhood (dependence versus independence, separation anxiety, limits) and explains how different temperaments affect young children's emotional responses and needs.

Hang in there! They won't be crying out for us like this in the future, so even though it's a hard phase, it's also a special one. Reminds me of that song "It won't be like this for long" by Darius Rucker...so true.

My older daughter went through some clingy times. The younger one hasn't gotten there yet. (7 months)

Don't pull surprises-- let him know ahead of time that there will be a sitter and discuss some fun things that they can do together.

Discuss with the sitter or caregiver ahead of time that they'll need to physically take him away from you and provide some distraction as you're leaving.

Give a hug, a kiss, and tell the kid you love him. Then pass the crying child to the caregiver and let them take over while you leave as quickly as possible. Don't let yourself get upset just because he is. You know that most of the time he'll be fine after you're gone. (I find that much of learning to be a better parent is growing a thick skin towards my kid's tears, which is tough when at the same time any actual hurt to your child is like a hurt in your own body...But I'm learning to separate the tears from the actual hurts.)

Keep the leaving pretty upbeat, and not drawn out (if you can!). It seems like you truly know he is OK after you leave so just say "I'll see you when I get home, Be a good boy for Mary. I love you. Bye!" And go. Good luck. Remember we've gotta give our kids roots and wings--this is the wing part. :-)

It may or may not be a stage that most kids go through. Just acknowledge his feelings, tell him you'll miss him while you are gone and leave after whatever goodbye ritual you have. They always calm down and sticking around just drags out the drama. HTH!

It is a phase. My son's only lasted a few months. My daughter's lasted a couple years. But my daughter's phase was fueled by my mother and my ex husband.

Now, my son is pretty quick to let go and have fun. Like today... His first day of Daycare... I was talking with the teacher and I put him down. He clung to my leg for about 4min tops... Then he was off and running. I don't give that clinginess attention. But I do give him some time to get comfortable.