Preschooler cries all the time! What do I do?

Your daughter is crying because she knows it 'plucks your strings' and she can use it to control you. You need to 'strike back' in a way that she can't control. Find a 'neutral corner' with NOTHING SHE CAN SEE OR REACH, and EVERY TIME she starts the crying, set her in the corner and tell her that she has to stay there UNTIL she is done crying and has herself under control. You will have to 'hold her there' (standing, with her hands at her sides) at first, but after the first five times, you should back away and just leave her there, returning her to the corner wordlessly if she leaves the corner. This will work, but it may take as many as three months for this 'control crying' to stop completely ... and you must 'listen' to her, because she may be crying because she is in pain, and THAT you will need to deal with differently.

YOU must 'smile' and be very gentle when you are dealing with her, and if she can understand, tell her that you are sorry that she still thinks she's a baby, but that you think she's big enough now to deal with things she doesn't like without the 'water-works.' Good luck, mom ...

Well heres the first thing: in the morning, she wakes up crying, probably b/c she is still very tired. You shouldn't have to wake her, she should be getting up on her own. Try pushing her bedtime back some so she can get some more sleep. I know its really realy hard but you CANNOT let her see that you are getting upset or frustrated, it'll make it worse. If the crying is simply b/c she cant get what she wants, you have to ignore it and let her know that crying is not going to work to get what she wants. If she cries ALL the time for absolutley nothing then I would ask her pediatrician. Maybe she is depressed. I knwo shes young, but its possible. Anyways good luck!

If, after consulting with your pediatrician, you find there is no medical problem, you may just have a very sensitive child. If she is 3, then she should be able to communicate well enough to try and talk this out. If you need to wake her in the morning, she may not be getting enough sleep. Most three year olds awaken on their own. You definitely need some support and a bit of relief from the situation. Try to find a relative or friend that you can call when you are feeling frustrated.

Well you can tell her that she will not go anywhere unless she stops crying. My cousin is having this same problem, however its when she is at daycare. She cries all the time, she doesn't make any sounds just cries. A teacher from my daughters day care said what I said.. Just tell her that she will not be able to do anything until she stops crying. Then she will be rewarded with doing something.

Wow, certainly some harsh responses here! One of my children was a big crier at around 2 and 3 for "no reason" and it turned out he suffered from terrible acid reflux but had no words to explain that he was hurting in his chest.

Little kids cry because they are overwhelmed, frightened, tired, etc., and don't have the words to express themselves. She'll grow out of it.

By all means do not shame or berate her for expressing herself the only way she knows how. Definitely don't let her control you with her tears, just do what you can, explain to her that she needs to tell you what she needs, if there is nothing you can do, tell her - then walk away. She will grow out of it.

Little ones are so hard, especially this age.

Sounds to me like she cries to get her way. She knows crying will ultimately get her what she wants, so she cries until she gets it.

You need to give her some "tough love". Put her in her room, tell her she's going to be in her room with the door closed until she stops crying, and then DO IT!

By responding to this behavior, you're encouraging it.

This is not going to be easy, she has 3 yrs of carrying on like this and it has become a habit, a lifestyle for her, but you really need to do it.

My daughter also did this all the way up to 2nd grade in school. She is just very emotional. I told my daughter to go in her room and cry. She got tired of being alone in her room and slowly cut down on the crying.

crying is one way for the child to get attention or to show that he/she is in distress at this age. there is certainly a reason for the crying. it is frustrating becos you don know the reason why ur girl cries. ur girls attends full or half day session in school? you might want to check with the teacher what is her temperament like in school and together, you might be able to find out what actions, surroundings or circumstances can 'trigger' the crying from ur girl. also, set reliable expectations and make sure it's consistent both in sch and at home. 3 yrs old might not be as independent as they seem or we expected them to be. =)

Omg!!! You need to not pay attention!

What shs is doing is crying to see if you will come.

She cries because she knows that is she cries, she will get what she wants.

You dont want to teach her that, do you?

Check on her ONCE a night. And buy earplugs.

She will fall asleep and realize that yours NOT coming and will maybe learn that she cant always get her way...

Dont worry, its not bad parenting.

Always being there whenever she cries, getting her way, is being a bad parent.

well try to make it fun to get up!! make something sweet and healthy and wake her up still giving her hugs and kisses or try telling her she needs to stop crying or she wont get... ( what she wants or u want to give her) and try taking her to the park to feed the ducks show her new and exciting things that she'd like!!! or if that don't work disapline her smake her butt or hand NOT HARD just so it makes a little noise so she gets startled and tell her she can't be crying all the time that shes abig girl now and she has to strt acting like one and big girls get things that they want WHEN their GOOD!!!