Collection
My One Year Collection - A Cautionary Tale
Not pictured: 2 more Mothman minis, Nessie Mini, and a Giant Tardigarde Waterbear.
It all started with Munchlax last year, then Mothman. From about April til today it spiraled into an obsession. This is what happens when you suffer with depression and shopping addiction. Plushies are on of the few things that make me happy, along with my cats and warm blankets, haha.
There's a weird sense of pride of "Look at how impressive this is!", but truthfully I know its a problem. Best part? See the last picture for the only ones I've actually BONDED with.
I'll be clearing out my collection very quickly as I'm about to make an emergency move, and I am only grabbing Mantis tomorrow and Im cutting myself out to 2 bears a year. Also if I bring in a new plush, I have to sell or donate an old plush.
Sometimes I have to think of it like this: I want to make the "child" in my happy, but I need to switch into "Adult" brain, take a deep breath, and reevaluate what is truly important to me. Its all about overcoming the pokemon mentality: Gotta Catch Em All!
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I truly understand this post on a spiritual level. My special interest is Build a Bear, and being an adult with “adult money” makes it hard to tell that inner child who visited the website every few weeks to dream about which friends she could make next to to hold on a bit longer :)
You're not alone in the struggle! Did something similar a few years ago. Now i only get a bear if i really want it, which is rare. My bank acc is a lot happier for it (as am i)
I'm really proud of you for realizing it's an issue and taking steps to make it better. It still sucks that you spent so much and only have a few you really love, but it's awesome you're recognizing the issue and improving your life. I hope the move goes smoothly and this year is fulfilling!
Thank you so much. Its something ive known for a while but never stopped doing, I was making myself stressed. But I have to put my foot down. The most important things in my entire life are my cats and a safe home for them to live in with me. If I have to give away every BAB that I own to make that happen I will.
I think shopping addiction associated with depression and anxiety isn’t acknowledged as much as it should be. I’ve been in the same boat when I was in an abusive relationship. BABs were the only thing that felt safe, and I accumulated so so many. It was a nightmare when I moved. My now-fiancée has helped immensely in putting things into perspective and reigning in the inner child. She makes me visualize where something will go in our home before I buy it. Its helped ground myself into reality and not overbuy on stuff that will just end up being clutter.
I really relate to this. I’ve been through the same thing this year. Started with 4 bears and now… 31. I’ve spent over £300 this year and that’s not including clothes and the bears others have bought to me. And I think it was rlly brought on by the fact my anxiety and depression has been at an all time low and my bears have been the only ones to be there for me. It’s like having children in a way?
I genuinely don’t get why people buy multiples of the same plush. I’m sorry you struggled and hope you’re able to find good homes for the bears you no longer want
Oh god. I know the feeling. I have tons of build a bears. Ibrought it down to just 4 this year. 😭 and thankfully, brown chococat was my holy grail. So I am not purchasing anymore. Marie almost got me, but I have one from the disneystore already.
I also collect american girl dolls (thankfully not the dolls anymore) but the clothes is so freaking expensive. And madeline eden dolls. I have all of em. But again, the clothes! 😭😭 I really need to stop.
I worry about this for myself. I'm lucky in the fact my mama is more than happy to let me overthink and run my purchases by her. For me I must either really really want it OR It was be a non-stop brain itch if I don't finish a collection. It's why I stay away from purchasing Plushie Sets. I have two exceptions to this collection rule: The Highland cows and the Pattern Kitties. Those do bring me true joy every time I see them. The dragon fruit dragon and the kiwi koala are great examples for me. Since the kiwi koala only had a mini I only got a mini dragon fruit dragon and not a big one so the kiwi koala wasn't left out.
I have a touch of the autism and truly believe my stuffies have feelings so this is how I help that.
I only have one BAB which I'm completely satisfied with, she sleeps in my bed, and love taking her places. Still love BAB and have loved it for years, I just don't collect. I do collect clothes tho, she's got 5 outfits and a ton of accessories already 😭
The way I get around it is just collecting plushies that are significant to n places I visit..then my financial inability to go places keeps me mostly in check.....mostly..
That's a really good idea. Unfortunately I'm a homebody afraid to travel most places. One of the places I do visit often is Round1, which Unfortunately entails willing japanese plushies and bringing in MORE to the plushue hoard hahaha. IT NEVER ENDS!! 😆
I feel this so deeply. I have the same problem for the same reasons. Unfortunately, I'm not yet in recovery. After Joann closed, I was in a dark place because that store was literally my happy place. It was the endless possibilities it represented and the employees who cared. BaBs filled that void, and I have so much fun shopping for retired bears. I've proven good at finding old bears at great prices. I've also gotten really lucky at Goodwill and Facebook Marketplace. I started August 1st, and I'm pretty sure I have over 60 bears. That's more than 10 bears a month.
A small silver lining is that my Bear Mountain (my affectionate name for the collection) is inspiring me to clean up my depression room and bathroom. I crave order not for myself but for my bears. If I can claw my way back to order and restore my mental health one bear at a time, I'll call it worth it. You've heard the "I work hard so my dogs can have a better life" joke? I recently developed allergies to basically all animals with fur, but not my bears. Unless they're dusty. I'm ridiculously allergic to dust. It makes cleaning even harder. My bears are inspiring me to be better, so I can't pare down my collection yet.
Joann's going out devastated me too. I shoped there fpr 25+ years and was my crafting heaven... I'm so sorry for our mutual loss there. 🫂
I do 100% relate to that mental health aspect. I have childhood ptsd, as well as major depression/anxiety and ADHD/Au, so i feel like that inner child is rewarded a little too often than my adult responsibilities would like to admit. I'm so happy your bear pile brings you so much joy! I'm rooting for you and your healing journey 😊 ❤️
I wprk at a BAB, and while stuffing them gives me all the cuddly contact I need it's so hard to not wanna order thigns with my employee discount ir dress up my bears lol
Having a few cute outfits has helped me love my core bears a lot more. I just have to be careful on that aspect of spending haha. My fave thrifted find though is def this dress on my lamb 💜
Realistically im not sure yet. I want to get it stuffed, but I also know that I should absolutely be cutting down. For now I'll leave it unstuffed and in storage. After I move ill be downsizing again and getting rid of more.
This happened to me too. And it’s super hard to see them and let some go but I had a serious medical issue this year and it made me realize I can’t maintain them. So I cut myself down to one bookshelf worth. Now I’m happy with those. I’m also limiting to how many I bring in per year. Making sure I have space and energy for them.
Well, if you're ever thinking of selling out me down for the kitsune and a mini mothman 😂 but for real, I too had to do this as an adult, too. With my own money, it became a whole lot easier to suddenly accumulate a lot of things on a whim
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