2 Year Old Very Scared of Loud Noises

I know exactly what you are experiencing! My son is 2 1/2 and he was/is extremely sensitive to loud sounds - lawn mower, trash truck, vacuum, anything that startled him. I read the book "Highly Sensitive Child" by Elaine Aron and it helped me understand my son better. He is not completely like the children described in the book but I took away a greater understanding of how his brain works and what I can do to help him. For my son I had to face the loud noise with him and show him it was okay - in time he was able to identify the noise and understand what made it. He is doing much better now but from time to time we still have to face the noise together. Hope that helps!

My daughter started the same thing around 2 years old, too. So did one of her friends. I think it is a pretty normal thing for 2 year olds, for whatever reason. I acknowledge my daughter's fears ("Wow, that sounds loud, huh? I know it can sound scary, but the vacuum can't hurt you."), and then just keep playing with her or whatever, ignoring the noise to set an example of how she can ignore it, too. I'll also let her know if I'm going to turn on a loud appliance so she won't be startled by it. She already seems to be outgrowing this problem, so I think it's really just a phase. Good luck!

beside reassuring your child i would do what one of the other moms is doing and look into your dds hearing maybe something with her hearing is very sensitive or has changed??

We dealt with that with our son; and we got through it by whenever he would look unsure of a noise or something happening that wasn't dangerous we would clap and say yay!! So that it became fun (like thunder) now we are excited it might rain!! :) We found that if we would react with "it's okay" he seemed to be just more concerned for some reason. Maybe look for loud noises that you can anticipate and get excited for before they happen... go for a walk and if you see a large truck coming stop and show her ... "here it comes...ready...YAY!!!" and jump up and down and make it a silly game. Explore the loud noises. This is what we tried and it worked! It took a little time too by the way. They love to keep us on our toes!! :) Good luck!

Extremely normal for this age!!! They are starting to pay more attention to what is going on around them. Most kids just grow out of it. Calmly explain what the noise is, show them that you are not scared, and maybe even interested in what it was. If it's a jet flying overhead, look for it, a garbage truck - watch it out the window. Sprinklers?? Play in them, if you are someone who can let loose and do something like that.

My daughter will be two in a couple weeks, and we have been dealing with this with her. I realized that she doesn't like to be surprised. So, when I see something coming (garbage truck, if I am getting ready to blow dry my hair, vacuum, etc...) I tell her what is going to happen. I'll say, "A truck is coming to get the trash and take it away. It makes some noise, but there is nothing to be afraid of." Then she knows what to expect, and is not frightened.

This is probably just a phase. When my DS1 was younger we sort of desensitized him to some of the loud noises in our household... vacuum cleaner, blender, etc. What I'd do is hold him and talk it out. "Ok, you see the blender? It's going to make a loud noise like this, 'RRRRRR!' And it'll sound scary but it's not. All it's doing is chopping up food. Okay, are you ready?" And then I'd run the blender and act all happy about it... laughing and saying, "Wow! That's noisy, isn't it?" And ditto for the vacuum cleaner.

Then if we were out & we'd hear loud noises, I'd just act all surprised and do the, "Wow, that's noisy" thing and imitate whatever it was. He'd still come running to me if a big truck drove by (now at 3 1/2 he runs to the window to see what it is) but we'd just talk about it.

If you try that for a while and she's still having trouble, you might look into sensory integration issues. Seems doubtful, but just in case. They're much easier to handle if daignosed early.

Good luck!

You have had some interesting responses, but I have one more thing to add. My son did the same thing at the same age. I was concerned and I spoke to his pediatrician (a very well respected Colo. Dr.) He told me it was probably a temporary condition. He had a name for it (I have forgotten...)and he said it usually affects girls more than boys, but that it was harmless, and he should outgrow it. He is now 4 and a half and has much less sensitivity to noise. Before you freak out about some of the suggestions you have received, you may want to ask your Dr. about this.

I have two 2-yr olds and one of them can stand right beside the circular saw while daddy cuts wood, and the other screams if I turn on a vaccuum or the trash truck comes down the alley while he is outside.
It is perfectly normal for this age though, and I think my dd is just "tougher" than him! LOL!

We bought a new blender and when we showed him what it was/ what it did, he FREAKED OUT..
When he gets used to things he still tells me that they are "really loud, mommy!"

I know what you are going through. My son, who will turn 4 in September has had very sensitive hearing since he turned 2. We found out when we took him to Dinsey World for his 2nd birthday. We tried going on a Winnie the Pooh ride and I thought he was going to jump out of his skin. We thought maybe he was just scarred but when we were walking outside and loud noise would scare him. I have spoken to his doctor and he has recommened us to take him to an occupational therapist. They will run the test to see why he has such sensative hearing. We are waiting for his appointment to come up. I hope this helps.

reassurance is the best thing. but just to keep you informed , autistic children seem to have a low tolerance for loud noise. my son is autistic( mild)

H., you are right to be concerned. Especially, if everything was fine and suddenly she became so sensitive. If she starts to cry it is really something that bothers you. It is also hard for her in this age to explain you why it is so troubling. It may be some ear(s) problem, so I would recommend you to check with the doctor. Maybe it really hurts, when the noise gets louder. It may even be a headache kicking in, but it is hard for her to explain it to you, so I believe the first thing would be to chow her to a good doctor, as doctors know better how to find out from a little child what is going on...
I hope it is nothing really serious, and wish you good luck.
Take care, H.!

Just clap and cheer for it. When my almost 2 year old was much younger, she could care less about the vacuum, loud trucks, etc. Now, she hears them and starts to cry but we just cheer and clap and let her know it's not a scary thing and then we show her where the noise is coming from and now she could care less. And I agree with the other posts, don't make a big deal out of the noise by acting alarmed or jumping yourself cause they pick up on that.

Good luck :)

don't make a big deal of it. let her know it's ok, but don't baby her.