Stuffed Toys: From Childhood Companions to Emotional Guardians
Stuffed Toys: From Childhood Companions to Emotional Guardians
Stuffed toys; are soft, warm and comforting companions. Many of us must have at least one stuffed toy during childhood- teddy bears, plushies, bolster; you name it. They are huggable, soft, and cute. Especially, if it is your favorite animal or cartoon such as a cat, bear, or penguin. The magic of stuffed toys is immeasurable, and although it doesn’t talk, you can always be vulnerable and dependent on them for comfort. They can be your outlet to express your stress.
Written By: Rose Mardiah Mazlan (Intern)
Verified By: Shaundtrya Ganasan, Licensed Counselor (KB11097)
What makes plushies your emotional support?
Stuffed toys embrace your clinginess and need for warmth without any judgements. After hours of tiring days, many of us tend to seek solace from our beds and stuffed toys to snuggle on them. The relief of being back to your emotional guardian can be heartwarming and beautiful. It gives you a safe space to rest your stressful head and overwhelmed heart. Sinking on them can regulate and lift your mood; promoting a sense of belongingness.
Moreover, many of us also become more attached to our stuffed toys, especially when we keep them for years from childhood. Indirectly, they have accompanied your journey since your younger days, witnessing all your ups and downs. Time sculpts your adoration for them, creating your core memories as you cuddle them.
Reminder: If you or your loved ones are struggling with mental health conditions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at Soul Mechanics KD or Soul Mechanics Ipoh. Remember, seeking help is not a sign of weakness but strength!
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The recuperating treasure of stuffed toys
Keeping stuffed toys or plushies contributes to your mental well-being. As minor as it seems, it can mark your journey in many checkpoints of your life. It also offers priceless comfort to your life while giving you company while sleeping. Every feature of stuffed toys can be adorable to our eyes making it eye-pleasant to see everyday. What are the underlying benefits that contribute to this serenity? Is it only related to their cuteness or more? Below are some benefits of having stuffed animals:
Provide emotional connection
Clinging to your stuffed toys can stimulate some physiological reactions. Interestingly, hugging them will release hormones like oxytocin and dopamine. Both these hormones are involved in creating a sense of love and pleasure. That’s probably why you feel instant happiness and comfort while hugging them.
Reduce stress and anxiety
Not only that, they also allow you to be more transparent in expressing your feelings, making you pour your thoughts and feelings to them; making them your personal listeners and confiding space. This will create a safe space without judgment to uncover your underlying feelings. In turn, it envelops security for you while snuggling with it. That way, you can direct your negative thoughts and receive tranquillity in exchange.
Beneficial through all ages
Interestingly, stuffed toys serve different purposes throughout different age groups. During childhood, you find that stuffed toys are your companions that you befriend and play together. It becomes your security and regulates your emotions as a child to keep your happiness intact. For teenagers and young adults, stuffed toys mostly model as your companions as well, and they provide you support to go through your daily lives. In comparison, adults keep stuffed toys to alleviate loneliness and seek connection. Humans are social beings, so stuffed toys can become one of the alternatives for coping with feelings of loneliness.
The therapeutic alternatives
Stuffed toys help manage your stress, not only as a daily happy pill. Furthermore, stuffed toys are also beneficial as your therapy tool. It has been often used in play therapy and animal-assisted therapy. The purpose is to aid you in expressing emotions, exploring your trauma, and constructing healthy and efficient coping mechanisms in a safe environment.
Combating Anxiety
Anxiety can be a silent attacker in your daily functioning. It can deplete your ability to grasp reality, making you constantly feel on the edge and restless. Stuffed toys often come into the picture to soothe your tangled emotions and shift away your mind temporarily from anxious thoughts while indulging in its comfiness.
Shielding your stress
Stuffed toys can turn into your armour to protect you with a sense of security and comfort. As mentioned, the release of oxytocin by hugging them is beneficial to alleviate your stress. Your stressful thoughts can be patched for a moment and your mood can be improved significantly. This will also lead you to have better sleep and improve your mental well-being.
Overcoming Depression
Since stuffed toys offer emotional support, they can pose as an emotional connection for your feelings of loneliness or sadness. You can also express your feelings and emotions in a non-verbal manner like hugging it tight or releasing pent-up emotions through tears which do not always need words to describe the feelings. This further aids you in uncovering your suppressed emotions and releasing them healthily.
Reminder: If you or your loved ones are struggling with mental health conditions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at Soul Mechanics KD or Soul Mechanics Ipoh. Remember, seeking help is not a sign of weakness but strength!
SOUL MECHANICS THERAPY CENTRE
Treating Alzheimer’s
Interestingly, stuffed toys are also integrated for older people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. They aid in stimulating memories, cultivate social interaction, and contribute comfort to these elders.
Beneficial for Autism Spectrum Disorders
Beyond providing comfort, stuffed toys are also beneficial in developing social and emotional skills for autistic or special needs children. These toys can stimulate and activate specific senses in these children due to their differing textures, colours, shapes, and weights. It also builds a sense of security, company, and calmness for these children.
Seeking Help
Sometimes finding solace in these childhood toys alone may not be sufficient for your healing. We suggest seeking a professional therapist's assistance to explore and address underlying issues that may lead towards being emotionally overwhelmed often. A therapist would guide you to uncover the underlying and provide you with tailored interventions according to your personal needs and issues.
Conclusion
Now you can have a better understanding of why stuffed toys can be so close to your heart. Not only does its soft textures relieve you and keep you at ease, but it also embraces your vulnerability openly without judgment. Once you let your stress out, you will find the priceless calmness you had searching for. Celebrate your bond with your favourite plushies as it has been a true companion in your journey of life!
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If you enjoyed reading this, why not broaden the horizon of knowledge by learning about "FOMO: The Agony Behind Fear of Missing Out"? You can read the blog here.
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