this post was submitted on 07 Aug 2025
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Blåhaj
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Unironically and nonjudgmentally asking, does having a small to mid-sized plush friend really and tangibly help you through your felt day-to-day experience? What aspects of it soothe and appeal to you? Asking because I don't hate this idea and am open to trying it again. Haven't tried to own a plush animal since my mom's dog ripped it up before I moved out of her place like 5 years ago. and my mental health has been in a very rough place, despite re-engaging with clinical and therapist help, and trying to have stoicism, "grit", and keep my struggles to myself but my depression and anxiety symptoms have been really strong as of late, boiling over into anger at times and frankly everything is just a lot to bear and I need a new cope, perhaps petting that little guy.
In therapy I used it mostly to hold against me and also I had it locked in my arm and I had my head rested against it. At home I have a larger one which originally I wanted to take with me because it's the one I use the most as I sleep with it but it just didn't fit in my bag.
How it helps me is difficult to explain, but I can tell you that, with my large one, I have a tendency to instinctively reach for it, when I'm unwell, I'm subject to panic attacks, for example. It helps. I just hold it tightly against me. Or, I rest my head against it, that kind of things.
That being said, I'm also someone who has childhood issues and I suspect I have a bit of age regression going on in my head. It helps me connect with my inner child. Allowing myself to have plushies, to have toys like that, even as an adult, is something that took a lot of effort on my part and is one of the ways in which I self-care to allow myself this.