I was wondering how many of you have plush dolls or stuffed animals as adults.  I keep one, but have had a multitude of them, in secret of course.  I was always embarrassed of this and thought I was the only one.  There's a part of me that still likes cute and cuddly plush toys.  I just hope I'm not the only one.

Just a few. One of the lucky benefits of having a large living space.  

Dear Danielle,
You are the only one. I would personally never dream of such a thing! ( Except my secret ones.)
Kirsten.[emoji6]

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Quote from: Kirsteneklund7 on July 21, 2018, 07:24:54 AM
Dear Danielle,
You are the only one. I would personally never dream of such a thing! ( Except my secret ones.)
Kirsten.[emoji6]

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Umm...  Kirsten...  Secret ones???

Danielle, you are not the only one.

Raggedy Ann came into my home in 1985.  Not only was I not publicly out as Trans, I wasn't even out to myself -- and not even out to myself for YEARS after that.  I still can't really say what it was deep inside me that wanted her.  All that and when I saw her I shelled out $40 to get her (rather a LOT in 1985).  The lady selling her thought I was buying Ragged Ann for a very special little girl.  Well as time comes to its fullness I now understand that indeed I was buying Raggedy Ann for a very special little girl...


Erin

I have loved teddy bears since I was little. I got a lot of teddy bears as gifts over the years because everyone knew I would like them. I have almost 200 of them now. Where does someone keep 200 teddy bears you ask. My dad put floor to ceiling shelves on 2 walls in my room and I keep most of them on those plus a few on my bed, dresser, etc. When Tristan moved in with me he said he was really glad I didn't collect dolls because a room full of dolls would creep him out. Lol

Quote from: Julia1996 on July 21, 2018, 10:31:31 AM
I have loved teddy bears since I was little. I got a lot of teddy bears as gifts over the years because everyone knew I would like them. I have almost 200 of them now. Where does someone keep 200 teddy bears you ask. My dad put floor to ceiling shelves on 2 walls in my room and I keep most of them on those plus a few on my bed, dresser, etc. When Tristan moved in with me he said he was really glad I didn't collect dolls because a room full of dolls would creep him out. Lol

Not only do I have plushies, but I also have a few Asian Ball-Joined Dolls (BJDs).   Most of my collection is in the basement, since we live in a small home, but I DO have two that sleep with us on the bed every night.  One I hug so that my (wide) shoulders don't hurt as much when I wake up.  He was given to me by my SO. 

The other I've had in one form or another since I was a baby.  His second incarnation has become so worn over the decades that he sleeps over my head.  He's also one of the three house guardian spirits (other than the cats).

My SO has at least four that I know of.    And he's older than I am.  (I'm 56).

So no, you're never too old for plushies!

Ryuichi

There is absolutely NOTHING to be embarassed about. "Comfort Objects" are common sights in nursing homes, hospitals and mental wards. As a survivor of childhood sexual and psychological abuse I have slept with a pillow over my head my entire life. As a young body I slept with a stuffed animal and started sleeping with one again while my wife was out of town when I was in trauma recovery. Read more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comfort_object

We have a member who routinely passes around a back back full of plush animals for comfort and caresses during our gender support meetings.  Soft, fun and evocative it seems

Guilty as charged... 

I always thought it was some strange quirk I had.  I even purged my plush dolls, with the exception of the one I sleep with, so if people come in my house they don't see my collection.  I wish I hadn't though.  I miss them.  A lot!!!

I think it's silly for people to be embarrassed about having stuffed animals. My brother has a stuffed monkey that he's had since he was like 3. He still sleeps with it but as soon as he gets up he puts his little monkey in a dresser drawer. He has never left it out in plain site. I think it's hilarious that he is embarrassed about sleeping with it. Those of you who know me are probably thinking I tease him about it. But no I never tease him about it. He is my older brother and I totally love teasing him and messing with him and telling him blonde jokes but I don't ever tease him about anything I think he might be truly sensitive about or that would actually hurt his feelings.

Quote from: Julia1996 on July 21, 2018, 10:31:31 AM
I have loved teddy bears since I was little. I got a lot of teddy bears as gifts over the years because everyone knew I would like them. I have almost 200 of them now. Where does someone keep 200 teddy bears you ask. My dad put floor to ceiling shelves on 2 walls in my room and I keep most of them on those plus a few on my bed, dresser, etc. When Tristan moved in with me he said he was really glad I didn't collect dolls because a room full of dolls would creep him out. Lol

200!  Bless!  No wonder you are concerned about your father's book collection.  They take up space that your teddy bears might need.

Soft toys from my late mother are a dog, a Bob the Builder doll, a swagman, a koala that plays Waltzing Matilda,  a rock hyrax and a Herero woman doll.  Also a cabbage patch doll and a Chinese girl doll but they probably don't count although they are partly soft.  I have no other soft toys.  Well, technically,  I also have a couple of small teddy bears, a tiger and a mouse but they belong to the ghost of my mother's Yorkshire terrier.  (How creeped out would Tristan be by that?)

I have a few porcelain dolls that I bought but I've never bought soft toys.  I still wish that my grandmother hadn't thrown away my teddy bear and bunny, though. 

Quote from: Julia1996 on July 21, 2018, 01:02:29 PM
I think it's silly for people to be embarrassed about having stuffed animals. My brother has a stuffed monkey that he's had since he was like 3. He still sleeps with it but as soon as he gets up he puts his little monkey in a dresser drawer. He has never left it out in plain site. I think it's hilarious that he is embarrassed about sleeping with it. Those of you who know me are probably thinking I tease him about it. But no I never tease him about it. He is my older brother and I totally love teasing him and messing with him and telling him blonde jokes but I don't ever tease him about anything I think he might be truly sensitive about or that would actually hurt his feelings.

It is sweet of you not to tease him.  If you did, he might throw it away and later regret it.  If he ever thinks of throwing it away, perhaps you could get him to put it in your care until he wants it again.




 

Quote from: Danielle Kristina on July 21, 2018, 12:55:55 PM
I always thought it was some strange quirk I had.  I even purged my plush dolls, with the exception of the one I sleep with, so if people come in my house they don't see my collection.  I wish I hadn't though.  I miss them.  A lot!!!

It makes me sad to hear you purged most of your plush dolls.  Raggedy Ann has been with me through thick and thin for 33 years and I could never think of parting with her.  In fact, when I mentioned you had purged dolls, I thought I might have seen the hint of a tear in her eye...

Given the travails of life I only have one soft toy left from when I was little.  That is worn and very dirty, but she still has a place.

There is nothing wrong with having a comfort object.  I know, I might think different when I "grow up" but at my current age I am beginning to think that might not happen.

Enjoy you little friends.


Erin

Quote from: ErinWDK on July 22, 2018, 02:26:00 PM
It makes me sad to hear you purged most of your plush dolls.  Raggedy Ann has been with me through thick and thin for 33 years and I could never think of parting with her.  In fact, when I mentioned you had purged dolls, I thought I might have seen the hint of a tear in her eye...

Given the travails of life I only have one soft toy left from when I was little.  That is worn and very dirty, but she still has a place.

There is nothing wrong with having a comfort object.  I know, I might think different when I "grow up" but at my current age I am beginning to think that might not happen.

Enjoy you little friends.


Erin

Trust me, you never outgrow your comfort items.  All it takes is one bad illness, a bad breakup or the death of someone close to you for you to need it.

Keep your comfort items everyone.  They're doing what they're supposed to, comfort you when you need it.

I'm heading towards 57, and I still have my favorite plushie.  (Read my previous postfor more.) 

My SO and my  immediate family all  knows that he in particular is going with me in my coffin when my time comes.  So even in death, he'll still be giving me comfort.

Ryuichi

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Apart from the soft toys I mentioned above, I forgot that my mother knitted them.  I still have quite a lot but I keep them in a suitcase as there is no room for them.  There used to be a lot more but my mother gave many away and, after she died, my brother took a lot because his girlfriend sells stuff on eBay and car boot sales.

Quote from: ErinWDK on July 22, 2018, 02:26:00 PM
It makes me sad to hear you purged most of your plush dolls.  Raggedy Ann has been with me through thick and thin for 33 years and I could never think of parting with her.  In fact, when I mentioned you had purged dolls, I thought I might have seen the hint of a tear in her eye...

Given the travails of life I only have one soft toy left from when I was little.  That is worn and very dirty, but she still has a place.

There is nothing wrong with having a comfort object.  I know, I might think different when I "grow up" but at my current age I am beginning to think that might not happen.

Enjoy you little friends.


Erin

Hi Erin,

It makes me sad to think of purging them too.  Fortunately, many of them are at my mom's house and I can take them back whenever I want.  Unfortunately, two of my absolute favorites were thrown away.  I thought about replacing the two that were thrown away, but I feel such a connection with the original two that replacing them with two more of the exact same dolls wouldn't be the same.  It's funny, but when I purged I felt good about myself, but looking back now all I want to do is cry when I think about the ones I lost forever, so much I try not to even think about them.


Danielle

My mom sold all my stuffed animals at a yard sale when I was 5 because she thought I had allergies so I plan on extending my collection as an adult. Out of what I have now, my teddy Steve is the biggest and cuddliest, then there's Mr. Gosh, Bondage Bunny, and a cute little panda I haven't named. Steve moves around a lot (because he's cuddly) and the others are all prominently displayed in my living room.

Don't worry about that! I'm 15 and still sleep with a teddy bear I got when I was 3! I also have two other stuffed animals that I sleep with. I have way more stuffed animals, so many that I can't even count them!!! (Trust me, I stopped counting at 30...)
Regardless of gender and sexuality, you can snuggle with whatever plushie you want!😊

The plushie I sleep with is Helga Pataki from the Nickelodeon cartoon Hey Arnold!.  I was a 90's kid and Hey Arnold! was one of my most favorite shows, with Helga as my favorite character.  It doesn't matter if I'm at home or if I go out of town Helga goes with me.

I have a stuffed bear named Fluff and a stuffed leopard named Friend that I sleep with. They even go on road trip with us. Taking my two along with my partners teddy bear and penguin into hotels usually raises an eye brow or two as we roll the luggage cart past the front desk...and no, they don't break the no pets policy as they are therapy animals.

Tia Anne