Stuffed Animal Importance

[Baby Brian]

My diaper bear Fuzzy (fuzzy wuzzy was her name) are inseparable. My wife doesn't like us being closer than with her but I simply can't sleep well without either of them.

[curiositykilledthecat]

The irony of my gf yelling at me because my plushy is in the way when we cuddle is hysterical.

[PrincessDragonette]

Two of my plushys are very important to me, another only slightly less so and the rest are just good friends. The first two... One is a racoon unimaginatively named Coon that I've had since I was a chrono baby, so 27 years now. He's a he, but along the lines of being an older gentleman, he's wise and patient(and tailless ). The other is a pink Build-A-Bear named Rebecca that my best friend got me when I came out as being trans. She's really cuddly and quiet . If I lost those two... I guess life would go on, but it'd certainly be a dimmer place. They have gotten me through so much.

[babykeiff]

That explains why my stuffed polar bear is genderfluid lol. But, then, why is Wuffles male? And pink? **confuzzled!**

~Luci

Wuffles is pink, and male cause that is how you see him. Because you are a gender male and wish to be gender female, you associate PINK, the color normally associated with females as being ok and perfectly acceptable to be worn on a male Wuffles. I would think that you would see Wuffles as TG, and not specifically male or female.

(sorry to all the TGs, I am not intending to offend, but simplify TG as a third gender in Luci case)

[babykeiff]

The gender assigned to a plushie is normally what the owner assumes themselves to be. This can be confusing, since the owner will allow the plushie to take on more traits of that gender than they wish to take on/ are allowed to assume themselves. Luci's PINK MALE plushie is a example.

There is a second effect that shows, where a plushie can be more dominant and therefore stronger than the owner, where the owner hides behind the perceived protection their plushie gives them. The plushie, in the owners mind, offers security and protection from all. There is nothing wrong with this action. It is natural and healthy to seek security. DiaperedAngel's Peridita is an example of that effect.

This 'protection' and 'strength' can manifist itself in a form of gender, but most who believe themselves to be female, also believe that the female is the stronger sex, and will have female plushies. Similar for those who believe themselves to be male, will have male plushies. Their are exceptions to this rule, where a female will have a male plushie if they have been disappointed by the protection a significant female offered in their life, and visa versa. Although I don't know DW's history in full, I suspect that this is the case with DW, and others here on the board.

In simple terms, a lot can be learned by both the gender and coloring of ones plushie, cause ones plushie is the visible 'strength' a baby and/or AB/Dl is seeking. Also, alot can be read into the type of plushie one chooses, be it a stereotypical timid animal - like a rabbit / bear / whale / dog etc, or a territorial strong animal - like a fox / shark etc. Most plushies gain their 'character' from what the baby / AB/DL assumes to be the strengths of the animal. A bear, as an example, can be timid and loving, OR can be grizzly and strong and protecting depending on the owners perspective. Dealing with the owner, as many here can attest to, one needs first to understand the role their plushie plays in their life, and if their plushie will 'let you in' to the inner sanctum. Without you respecting their plushie, the owner will never let you close enough.

Curi mentioned that DW dislikes her Scorpion plushie. It might be a good idea to ask DW the reason if you don't know, but not push it. One person normally dislikes another item due to some repressed memory or fear that the item is triggering either by smell, shape or specific color. It is usually not all three. Due to the power of the human mind, and its disorganisation, we store all we see, hear, taste, smell and feel, (both awake and asleep) but can't recall without specific triggers. The trigger item can be, to some, more frightening than the original event. If you choose to go down this path with anyone, tread very carefully.

DW, others,

if you wish to talk, ask questions etc, you can email / PM me and I will respond and help if I can.

If I have offended anyone here, I sincerely apologize. I hope this post explains the need we have for plushies

[Luci Vaughn]

Wuffles is pink, and male cause that is how you see him. Because you are a gender male and wish to be gender female, you associate PINK, the color normally associated with females as being ok and perfectly acceptable to be worn on a male Wuffles. I would think that you would see Wuffles as TG, and not specifically male or female.

(sorry to all the TGs, I am not intending to offend, but simplify TG as a third gender in Luci case)

Actually, I identify and conduct myself as a woman. I am not a third gender. As for the male-pink relation, I honestly don't care what males are/aren't allowed to associate themselves with. However, I do associate dogs with masculinity, and that could be why I see Wuffles as male.

I understand that you're not trying to offend anyone, but you did offend me when referring to me as a third-gender. It's not something a gal like me wants to be called by anyone. Just a heads up .

[Guest]

Hi have lots and lots of plush toys, none are from my childhood. mum says i never really had any normal security objects when i was very young, instead i used to carry rocks about with me, i really liked shiny pretty stones, and that has stuck with me all my life.

i do remember actually having some plushies when i was a bit older, the 2 i remember most was a funny looking many legged creature, alosmt spider or octopus like but i thought it was cute! and i had a E.T. plushie, i remember him well, dad took me and my sister to watch it when it first came out in the cinema and got us both one of the ET plusies, he didnt look anything like ET really!, i was 6 when ET came out.

we moved from Wales to where i am now a year later and the plushies i had then became more important to me as they served as a link to my childhood in wales, and i really missed wales badly, being born and bred in the valleys of south wales with views of the brecon beacons, lovely place to grow up then moving to a realativly large town, leaving behind my childhood freinds, so yes my plushies became quite special to me, bud dad didnt realise that and thought that his son needed to start to become a man and i remeber him saying something like you are to old for these now dont you think, kinda put me on the spot becuse i didnt want him to think i needed them so i guess i probably said nah but secretly was thinking i really wanted to keep them, he put them all in a black plastic bag and that was the last i saw of them. to this day i always wonder if he just threw them, out with the rubbish, i reaslly hope he took them to a charity shop or a car boot sale and someone got them and loved them and looked after them.

Well many years passed and eventually i had my own place and was now fully aware of being a adult baby so i decided i needed some cuddly freinds.

My first new plushy is very special becuase me my mum stepdad and sister (mum got divorced and re married) went on holiday to south wales, right back to where we lived, we even went to see if our old houses were there and they were, amazingly one of our neighbours still lived there abnd recognised mum so invited us in for a cup of tea and biscuits, anyway there is a market in the town and they had these plush welsh dragons (for those who dont know the red dragon is a national symbol of wales) there were quite a few there but there was one that stood out, all the others had strait mouths, like a poker face! but one seemed to be smiling slightly, maybe it was a defect but that was the one i decided to be my first plushie, nothing else can bring back memories of home better then a red welsh dragon from the very town i lived in, well actually it was in Aberdare, we lived in Aberamon which is a smaller town just a mile or so away. his name is Puff, and mum got one as well, one of the poker faced ones and he is called ash, you cvan really see how well loved puff is because his red hair isnt all fluffy and bright red as his brothers, who spends his life sat on a shelf, also there are patches wher some of his hair has gone and you can see like white criss crossed threads but he is quite old now, over 10 years old and ive never had a night without him tucked up with me.

After puff i got many more plushies, lots of plush teletubbies (i was well into them when they were on tv), well i still do love them! 2 cuddly sharks many bears a few dogs and a bunny.

they all have stories to tell! one of my first plushies after puff was a small floppy bear called cubby, i liked him becuase he was small enough to fit in my pocket so he becmae a traveling companion, i took him out with me often! I must mention Bobby (and Billy) the blue bunny brothers, back when DPF was a ok place, well it was the first ab/dl place i discovered when i got online, i made a good friend there and i sent him a blue bunny, i got one as well so they were brothers, we have visited each other a few times now and its always nice when bobby and billy get to meet again, one funny time i remember was when my freind visited me and we went to London, took bobby and billy with us (in fact i think i had puff and cubby with me as well!)we decided to do a photo of bobby and billy either side of the greenwich mean time line that sepertes the east and west, as my friend is from germany billy sat on the east side and bobby being from the UK sat on the west, i even have a mug with that photo printed on as a reminder of that day! the funny thing was the ladies who were in the ticket shop saw us and when we left they spoke to us like little kids, asking if we had remebered our bunnies or something!

I once started a plushie swap scheme, with the idea that people swap plusghies which represent the place they live, it wasnt that sucsesfull but i got a isreali army camel and a new york state quarter bear (although she lived in pensylvania) in return i sent out some of cubbies (remember the small pocket travel bear i have) well they made him in several colours, brown cream and grey i think, my cubby is the brown one, i sent out a grey and cream one, whilst they dont really represnt the UK or any significance to where i live it does say Southampton on the label as i think that was a main base for the company that made them (Russ)

I cannot leave this without mentioning Theodore (Theo for short) he is the most cutest teddy in the world! (in my eyes) he is the ted in my avatar, I really have beome attached to him, i love just looking into his brown eyes and nuzzling agisnts his nose, out of all my plushies it is only theo and puff that get to sleep tucked up with me in bed, puff on my left side theo on the right, thats how it has always been, I am very particular about that! theo has a birth certificate becuase he was "born" in the bear factory, i think thats why he seems more special to me than my other teddies becuase i witnessed his birth, i choose him out of a pile of empty bear skins, i took quite a amount of time choosing the one i wanted, althoguh they were all almost identical i was waitingh for something special to happen and it did so i choose him, then i saw him get filled, they asked if i wanted him really soft and floppy or squishy cuddy or firm, or something like that and i said cuddly, then i picked out a heart, i had to kiss it and make a wish then they put the heart inside him then he was stiched up and then i wnr to colledt him with his birth certificate! im sure the staff there thought it was quite funny that a grown man was doing this and it was pretty obvious he was for me and not a gft for a child, but i wanted to get the full bear facrtory experience, and i didnt care if they laughted about it, not that i saw them laughthing, but i bet they did have a bit of a chuckle about it when i left with my new friend!

I have shared many adventured with theo puff and cubby, the biggest one was our holiday to the united states, where we becmae almost celbrities becuase i wasnt exaty hiding the fact i had them, they travlled with me everywhere in there own bag, which had a zip that was alowasy slightly open so they could brath and be abkle to see all the cool stuff, even on the flight over they occasionly got to look out the window (they came with me as hand luggage, no way are they going in the cargo hold!)

the people on the tour got to know me and them and thought it was cute but was never mean to me, infact they reallyed liked me becuase on this tour they had optional escursions which you have to pay extra for, i only chosoe to do the helicopter grand canyon thinga nd the hot air balloon ride over the sonoran desert (nr phoenix) but some people must have realy liked me becuase they paid for me to join them on one of the other excursions! and of course they wanted me to bring theo puff and cubby as well! and another memory i have was in las vegas, we stayed in the stratosphere hotel and i wnet up to the top to take night time photos of the strip and surrounding city lights, i asked soem japanese tourists if they could take a pic of me with the lights of las vegas as a background, and i had cubby perched on my shoulder, they were happy to oblige, then i was supprised wehn they asked if i woudl do the same for them, and they wanted cubby on theire shoulder to! well i am sorry this has turned into a novel, but you aked about plush pals and i love mine and could talk about them forever, but fior your sakes, i wont!

[willnotwill]

All of mine, save one are bears and they are all boys. There is one female bear downstairs but the boys don't much have anything to do with her.

[curiositykilledthecat]

All his pants are low riders......wait wrong train of thought, lol. Yeah my plushies are all boys/guys. If I need to hug a girl I have one stuck at my hip perpetually...oh hi hun.

[skyeluffsdad]

I don't really know. Maybe you could buy your own stuffed animals that way you don't have to experience any shame of asking for them.

[Baby.stacy]

Mii have ton stuff toys. I have a pikaxhu from long long time like 1996. Shhh... Me only 3. I love him and I don't go anywhere without him. I take him to big kid scool and hold him lots. Ppl laughts me

[lil1inlongbeach]

I have a black bear, a Pooh with baby rattle inside him along with blanket attached to his paw and a little blue floppy dog that I sleep with everynight. I sadly lost my original black bear in a move that I got as a child. Daddy's mommy bought my new black bear for me. I still have some of the stuff animals, toys and dolls from my childhood but they're in our shed somewhere. I have some other stuffies in a laundry basked up on a shelf as they don't all fit on the bed. I have Bunny Fru Fru, my turtle, a horsie and I think Chuckie (small black bear) on the bed between my head and Daddy's up near the headboard. I only sleep with the first 3 mentioned in my arms everynight. If I wake up in the middle of the night to use the restroom I make sure that I have all 3 plus my Pooh baby blanket in my arms again before I fall back asleep. I will look for doggy if I can't find him before falling asleep. He's small and sometimes get lost on the bed or falls off the bed in the middle of the night. I've had my black bear checked for chemicals a couple of times at the airport as she rides in my backpack. She's precious cargo and doesn't ride in my suitcase in case my suitcase got lost.

[Diaper666]

Just ask!

Doesn't matter how old you are.

Just ask for em, if anyone asks, tell them its because you wanted them.

yep im 29 and still sleep with a teady bear (winnie the pooh actualy) so dont wory be happy lol your right dont matter how old you are im still getting weird looks about it but oh well to each is his own

[curiositykilledthecat]

Keif-DW dislikes the scorpion becuase of his pinchers and tail. she has an intense fear of being confined and of needles.

[Curious One]

I Got them back! YAY...well...most of them...Two of them I have had since birth. I got them the day I was born. The others I got over time, such as the one my great grandma gave me before she died. That one is named Ash, after her. Her name was Ashman. Not sure on the spelling though. The others from various events such as valentines day. I am glad to have them back. I cuddled with them and talked in the chat room for a while. Nothing like having a soft teddy in your lap. Well...not nessiarily a bear, a stuffed tiger, wolf, or whatever you have works just as well.

[Rosy]

I'm glad you got them back, Curious One.

I am not as attached to my cuddly toys as I am to my special blankie. However I've got a teddy bear called Aubrey and a bunny called Amaryllis that I like a lot. They're both made by Jelly Cat. They sleep in bed with me.

I've also got some toys from when I was very little, like my rabbits Fifi and Christopher and my fox DDC, which I keep in my room, but I don't sleep with because they're not very robust and I worry I'd damage them.

[MLGTexas84]

Normally I sleep with Mello the Build-A-Bear Boxer (dog). He wears 0-3 Month Onsies and size 1 diapers.

Annie sleeps with Maggie the Build-A-Bear Bear (she is named after the girl in "Better than Chocolate"). She wears 0-3 Month T-shirts and size 1 diapers.

We (read I) decided that the others sleep on the floor at night and they get the bed during the day. They are 2 Care Bears (1 wears a onsie the same color as his fur and size 3 diapers, the other wears a Disney Princess Night Gown and matching night time pull-ups)and Pyramid the North American Bison although he is really small and sometimes falls in the crack beside the bed. We also have a body pillow.

In Afghanistan I have Pyramid since Annie packed him for me. I really miss our bed and all of our friends that sleep with us.

(I tried to post a picture of them, but I can't figure out how to.) (Annie if you see this will you do it please?)

[Alf Deris]

Well during my childhood I had a pretty huge collection of stuffed animals, but I never really gave much importance to then, at least, until now ^^

There are 3 ones really really important to me... two of them were part of my babyhood for real, and the another one was a gift gave by my mommy 2 weeks ago. Me and my mommy don't had a good relationship when I was a kid, but now we are getting started to change it, so i'm so happy with that.

Since she gave me my cute stuffed lion, I simply don't sleep without him

He, my paci and my baba are the rules for bed time without them, just don't play

[Guest Mummy Jeni's baby]

My mummy gave me a stuffed cow she has had since she was a little girl. She said she gave it me to look after me and keep the monsters away when she couldn't be there to do so. Now this was all before we started AB, but guss has always been on bed since and since starting AB roleplay I cuddle up to him every night (he is next to me as I type this) I live my guss just as much as I love my mummy. I'm just trying to figure out a way he can come with me on Wednesday when I go to a friends house for a birthday party (I'll be staying the night)

[Jackiewope]

I pretty much have every stuffed animal I've had since childhood. Which is a lot. Pretty much, hehe. I constantly have to refrain from buying more, as my bedroom is running low on space. But I can't help it, they're so soft and cuddly and cute!!! I love talking to my stuffed animals like they're real. I like to call that "Calvin and Hobbes Syndrome," haha. I often unload my feelings to my stuffed animals, because when I tell my mom she sometimes thinks I'm coming off as whiny.

My stuffed animal that I sleep with every night is a cow with purple spots that I won in a crane game a couple years ago. He's special 'cause he was the first thin I've ever won from one of those damn machines, lol. I've been sleeping with him every night since I got him. He goes with me on vacation, and even went with me to my ex-boyfriend's place when I stayed the night, hehe. I love my cow <3

Eventually I plan on making a purple jackiewope plush like in my avatar, hopefully sooner than later. =]

[abisme]

I was wondering...I have mentioned I have had AB/DL tendencies a lot, one of these is the love of stuffed animals. I had several that are somewhere in storage. Sadly I do not have any access to them. I am not sure whether I am really AB/DL but some things sure do click and this is one of them. How important are stuffed animals to you? I went to the point of sleeping with them even in my teens. The only reason I do not have them here is because I could not honestly object to them being in storage at my age. I miss them greatly in recent times. I was wondering how you guys feel towards them. Are they just a toy to you or have you developed more feelings for them. Mine I have collected over a great time. From birth through around age 17 or so..Sadly I get no more sense then...and honestly what would you do...ask for them at the age of 22? Have you named any?...I can't honestly say I haven't.... Again just curious about your feelings on them.

i found my old stuffed animal recently. I sleep with it sometimes.

[lil_mike]

I never really grew out of them at all as I was growing up. As a kid, there were many times when I ended up accidentally being without my teddies (like if I was away from home and had forgotten to pack any), and I would literally cry, even when I was 14 or so. One time, when me and my cousin were 12, I didn;t have any teddies, I was lying in bed trying to sleep but couldn't, cos i felt so lonely and lost without them. I started crying a bit, and my cousin asked what the problem was, so I told him. He was addicted to his teddies, so he completely sympathised. He let me get into bed with him so I could cuddle his teddies

Obviously now I can cope without them, but I do prefer sleeping with them.

[DLcollegegirl]

I have a stuffed puppy that looks kinda like a cocker spaniel but i'm not sure I cuddle it and sleep with it every night and even take it in my purse. I call him Puppy...I have a couple other puppies but I am sort of attached to that one...I had a unicorn but I took it the Monster Ball (Lady Gaga's concert) and she held it <3 aww

[Guest Amphetamenace]

I never liked stuffed animals, ever. I felt sorry for them because they would wind up in the closet all alone for years and wind up being taken to a landfill.

I have a bit of a problem where I feel sorry for inantimate objects, be it purses that get thrown away or the little half cookie that never gets eaten, my heart breaks a little bit over stupid shit like this lol.

I never liked stuffies, until Beardog came along. My boyfriend (now, best friend) bought me Beardog for Valentine's day. It made me very happy and it reminded me of my best friend. Its so cute, with red floppy ears (my friend has red hair) beige fur (my friend also has quite a lot of fur lol), and a bow on its head! Its on all fours, on its tummy, with cute lil stubby legs and a face like a teddy bear, with a heart for a nose, and a big big snout that makes it look like a dog.

When no one is home, Beardog is always in my arms. I take him everywhere. He even sits in the shotgun of my car. I cuddle with him at night and he smells so cute. He's so soft, like silk. He's in my lap now and he's tilting his head back to read what I'm typing .

When I have to leave my friend's house (I've been living there for four months now) Beardog will be all I have to remind me of him.

Once I got mad at my best friend and threw Beardog across the room. My best friend confronted me and held me ( I was crying, I'm not ashamed to admit, it was a hard day). Before I went to bed with him, he told me "You look like you need Beardog. I'll go get you Beardog." and tucked me in with him. I held Beardog as Kyle held me and rubbed my back and I fell asleep. He spoke to me softly and I felt so in love. It was probably the most comforting moment of my life. I'll never forget it and I'll always remember it when Beardog is with me.

[babykeiff]

Actually, I identify and conduct myself as a woman. I am not a third gender. As for the male-pink relation, I honestly don't care what males are/aren't allowed to associate themselves with. However, I do associate dogs with masculinity, and that could be why I see Wuffles as male.

I understand that you're not trying to offend anyone, but you did offend me when referring to me as a third-gender. It's not something a gal like me wants to be called by anyone. Just a heads up .

Luci,

I sincerely apologize for offending you, and humbly beg for your forgiveness.