Being over-protective.....

[PollyA]

My understanding of attachment theory and a child being securely attached is that its not a literal or physical thing. Its about have a secure emotional base from which to explore the world.
I think everyone needs to parent how they decide to, but attachment parenting is not necessarily to the exclusion of others. In fact a child can have healthy attachment to more than one caregiver,
Anxiety has its place in our survival when there is a real threat to us (the flight or fight response to being confronted by a dinosaur or bear) but when it is triggered in the absence of a real threat it can be a very unpleasant thing to live with and can really affect a persons life.
Society and the media are constantly telling us we, as parents, need to be a fearful for our kids, but I think the threats are really overstated and hyped up. Its often in order to sell things (mobile phones, safety equipment etc, they sell early walking helmets now...)
There is a blog called Free Range kids that talks a lot about these issues and trying not to buy into the fear.

I, too, think its normal to have the feelings of not wanting to leave your children etc, but sometimes not challenging these feelings a little can make life difficult... and sometimes I think its healthy to overcome the fear, especially when there isn't a real threat. I hope you can overcome your anxiety MummaSue, it sounds like your princess is a very much loved little girl!