4yo Can't Be Alone

I have a four-year-old who has recently been going through this phase of not being able to physically be alone for more than five seconds. It is more than just not wanting to sleep alone at night though, which I know is common. If I am in one room, he refuses to go get something or get dressed by himself in his room. He will constantly tell me that he wants someone to stay with him and that he doesn't like being by himself. It is not a matter of entertaining himself as he is used to independent play, but he will not play alone in a room by himself anymore. Someone has to be physically present. He will sometimes tell me he is afraid of his toys, to which I remove them from his room, even though I know that is not the root of the problem but just a temporary excuse.​Has anyone else gone through the same thing and how did you overcome it? I know I can easily give in and go with him, but sometimes it is just impossible nor do I really want to start that habit. I will often tell him to get something from another room while I am attached to food cooking on the stove, but it will often result in a meltdown. I'm sure there is something deeper going on, I'm just not sure what or how to get to the bottom of it. via /r/Parenting https://ift.tt/2Aj8quy