Shortly after my daughter turned 3 a few months ago, her fear receptors went into overdrive. She insisted that someone stay in the room with her while falling asleep because she was scared (previously she fell asleep on her own just fine), and she started waking up crying and calling for us, saying she's scared. Initially it was just general fear, but over the last few months it's become more specific. This week it's a penguin that's biting her and a clown that's throwing her. I've tried to pinpoint any causes - maybe she saw something on TV that scared her - but we can't figure it out (she only watches PBS Kids and occasional Disney or Wally Kazam, we never expose her to adult TV or radio, nor does her school, etc.). We've given in on the staying with her until she falls asleep part because she seems legitimately worried and becomes hysterical if we try to leave. The nightwakings so far have been mild-ish. She usually doesn't fully wake up, and I'll go in and sit with her until she's fully back asleep, anywhere from 5 minutes to a half hour. But she definitely seems more tired after a night like this, when she's clearly restlessly sleeping. Also, these fears occasionally come up during the day, but not often, only at night. Ironically, she slept perfectly when we were on vacation last week, in a new house and new bed, but as soon as we got home the wakings started up again. She's also a very skeptical kid, so we haven't found any good approaches to help calm her fears.

I assume this is normal for where we are in age and development, but worried about her becoming an anxious kid. Is there a point at which I worry about this, or is it all just par for the course? She's generally not particularly shy or nervous , she plays well with others and is fairly outgoing with even strange people. Would love folks' experiences/thoughts.