Stuffed Animals

[Sofi]

I have a lot of stuffed animals and toys too (as well as dolls). I collect lots of the same characters or just various random ones. I have them for comfort, company, and security.

 

[Coupe]

I certainly do have stuffed animals! They're some of my closest friends, in fact. My social anxiety and the fact that I've had human friends who just ended up leaving me or making me feel used make it very difficult for me to make real-life friends, so I really do benefit from having stuffed animals and plushies, even as a twenty-something adult. Of course, when I was younger, my parents and other adults thought they knew best and would push various occasions for social interaction with other humans onto me, which more often than not led to the social anxiety/trust issues I explained above, but anyway.....

My stuffed friends are also my main source of calming sensory input....I still remember how the simple act of petting a stuffed dog over and over was enough to bring me out of an hour-long meltdown/panic attack that may well have ended with me passing out from exhaustion/lack of oxygen if I hadn't been able to calm down. I also carry a Tsum Tsum plush in my pocket to squeeze when I'm anxious...my Tsum Tsum of Dory goes everywhere with me - although when she's otherwise occupied (i.e. in the washing machine), a Dumbo Tsum fills in for her. I've always been comforted by having a stuffed animal with me, but it took me some years to realize that it's not only the sense of companionship that calms me but the tactile input of the fuzziness and softness.

As far as stuffed animals go, I've always really liked small-ish ones, such as Beanie Babies or bean bag plush. They're just nice and floppy, fit easily into pockets or backpacks, and when my favorite dolphin plushie was mostly filled with beans (I took a lot of them out and replaced them with stuffing so she'd feel more "squishy"), one of my favorite auditory stims was to hold her next to my ear, turn her upside-down to hear the plastic beans fall inside of her, and then turn her right-side up again to repeat the process. It had the same soothing effect of listening to rain fall. I've also recently become interested in Jellycat plushies - they're soooo delightfully soft! In fact, I "adopted" a tiny Jellycat elephant at an airport last month - her name is Eleanor and she helped stem the tide of an approaching meltdown brought on by security checkpoint personnel keeping my backpack from me and anxiety over visiting my dad and stepmom for the holidays. I secretly carried Eleanor with me whenever I was feeling particularly anxious during my two-week visit, and it really helped.

So yeah, stuffed animals are great to have, no matter how old you are - they're soft, cute, cuddly, a great source of tactile sensory input, always there for you no matter what, will never abandon you or abuse you in any way, and you can take them with you anywhere!