You know she’s scared because she clutches her heart and starts to shake.
Mechanical noises: washing machine, tumble drier, dishwasher, hoover (oh God, the terror when she sees the hoover, let alone hears it, is pathetic), ringing telephones, including mobile telephones, loud humming from any mechanical device (e.g. supermarket fridge).
Car noises: backfiring, breaking suddenly, beeping horns, revving up, police and ambulance sirens.
Enclosed spaces without natural light: the cellar, public toilets, lifts.
Animals: dogs, cats, donkeys, rabbits, horses, cows, goats, sheep, chickens.
Illustrations of animals: dogs, horses (have you any idea how many books for small children feature these animals?)
Her own shadow (not a big problem in Belgium in Autumn/Winter mercifully).
Thermometers, facecloths, suppositories and the spoon from the baby nurofen bottle. Yes, since you ask, she’s still sick.
on 20 September 2004 at 15:12
Anyone who is all fearty when faced with a hoover, washing machine, tumble drier, etc, sounds like she’s got her head screwed on right to me. Buy her a maid and she’ll soon overcome her fears. 
on 21 September 2004 at 17:49
I’m not quite sure what to make of all that. It’s ok when she’s small, but you better get her over all these things by the time she’s 20 or she’ll have serious issues. So she doesn’t just get a fright and move on, she’s actually scared of these things all the time?
on 22 September 2004 at 10:44
Krista, stop it, you’re scaring me (clutches heart and shakes). Have googled “sensory integration” and am terrified. Silver, much more inclined to go with your views. Locotes, well, not everything all the time but she is a nervous little child, I blame her father.
on 22 September 2004 at 11:34
belgian, don’t worry, i am 24 and i am still terrified of loud noises – so much so my boyfriend automatically glances at me to check I am okay if there is a bang in the street. I can just about watch fireworks now, but when I was younger I’d hide inside. I’m also terrified to the point of tears by seagulls if they get anywhere near me, and by motorbikes. If I even see a motorbike I can feel my heart pounding and I do shake a bit.
It’s a big joke that I’m nervous of things and it hasn’t affected me really.
My dad used to scare me ‘for fun’ when I was little. Suddenly growling if I stroked his beard or shouting ‘BANG!!’ if I was touching a socket or something. He only stopped doing it because once I jumped so voilently I hit myself in the nose and got a nosebleed.
I was one of those kids that hated, hated, hated being thrown in the air and carried around on shoulders etc.
To be fair, I am terribly clumsy (this is also a big joke – ‘don’t let Em touch anything important!’) and not very good at dance etc and once a counsellor told me I had self-esteem issues but I don’t think I do.
So, basically, ummm – your kid is cute. Don’t worry too much.
on 22 September 2004 at 12:50
Em, this is very, very comforting. Thank you. She’s alright on the being thrown in the air thing (actually she likes that) but there’s no doubt that she hates loud noises. I think that she gets it from my father. He has started refusing to travel by air because he hates the noise of the PA systems so much. Have you any idea how long it takes to get from Cork to Brussels travelling by train and boat? Actually, not as long as you might think, but still, a while.
on 23 September 2004 at 03:26
Oddly, she loves fireworks and amusement parks, so it’s not just noise, it seems to be only particular noises.
And, yes, she does have some sensory integration issues, but it’s really not as scary as you would believe from your reading (I believe a previous generation would have just called her a timid child and left it at that, but at least here in the U.S., we like to put labels on our kids and try to “fix” them).
I’m sure your princess is just fine–she looks like a beautiful and charming baby!
What happens when they fire the cannons on her Pirate ship? 🙂
on 23 September 2004 at 11:20
Jan, I am much comforted, thank you. Our baby seems to be a happy enough child on the whole, so fingers crossed she won’t need “fixing”.
ChaOtic, they use a silencer.