trauma in a 2 year old

[grandma1944]

My mother with Alzheimer's Disease badly scared my grandson by sticking out her false teeth at the dinner table several weeks ago. He is 2 and 1/2 years old. We don't know how to help him. He is scared to visit the house. Begins crying and pleading when my daughter approaches the neighborhood in her car. He shakes, sobs, and pleads nonstop for several hours. He needs to be held and we hold him and reassure him but his discomfort continues. The crying and pleading to go, saying "Bad grandma." He won't eat, play, eat candy. He is in a panic. He has visited only twice since this happened. Both times the same thing happened. My daughter says he is fine at home, but he did have a meltdown at Walmart at an elderly woman in line behind him. She became a bad grandma.

Yet when he is leaving and we ask him to say goodbye, he'll go over to my mom and hug her and say goodbye.

[MImom0608]

I have a two year old and I have found that the best thing to do is talk in their terms. I explain my FIL false teeth by talking about her teeth and her cousins teeth. I remind her that we all have teeth and need them to eat. I ask her about her teeth and if she has any new ones. Then I count her teeth. Then I go into her cousins who are a little older. We talk about their teeth. I show her pictures of them with their teeth missing from being loose. We talk about how one day her teeth will get loose and she will get new ones in their place. Then we go into adults and how they only get the one set of teeth and if they fall out they are gone forever. But, these people get "special teeth". They have to clean them differently and care for them differently. They can be taken out for the person to brush easier. She will now go to FIL and ask him to see his "special teeth" LOL

Other then that I would suggest you going there for awhile to reasure him that nothing can happen to him in your care.

[Austin7]

Wow,
sounds like the little guy is pretty shook up.  I think the best thing to do would be to play it down and  NOT talk negatively about her in front of him.  Kids are little sponges for sure.
You might also slowly expose him to older women similiar in age to "bad grandma" so that he can have positive experiences to counter this negative one.  He might be too young to grasp the whole False Teeth concept so that may be something you expose him to slowly as he grows up.  
I do NOT think you should force older people on him just slowly expose him to them and make sure it is positive and on his terms, a little pressure but not much and slowly.
Keep it light, fun and as natural as possible.
Good Luck!
Dawn

[margypops]

I am wondering if a lot of this is from ovehearing the adults talking about it and making more of it than it is, children dont usually overreact like this possibly you wre upset by it and it became an issue ,your child was fed into it,having heard the regailing of the story? So how about you try to play it down now and say no more ignore the issue let it be laid to rest..