Therapy Babies; Do They Work?

Disclaimer: The photographs used in this article were all taken by me (not including the cover photo above). Please do not take for your own personal use.

Realborn and Reborn baby dolls are pieces of artwork that a whole community of people collect, both as artwork and as a way to help them cope with anxieties, depression, PTSD, etc, or even just so they too can have a baby when they are unable to conceive their own children due to medical or other reasonings. Yes, collecting baby dolls is "just a hobby" for most. But to some people among the community, these dolls are a way to help them manage their own anxieties and trauma.

I, too, am a collector of these such dolls. My love for these dolls only came to me a year ago when we were all stuck inside our homes during the pandemic, but I had definitely known of what they were years prior to that thanks to the YouTubers I would watch on repeat throughout my childhood/teenhood. Now, only being 22 (almost 23), I don't really use these dolls to cover up for the absence of not being able to have kids. Although I do like the idea behind those who use them as their "children" when it comes to "roleplaying", I just don't really see myself collecting for that specific reasoning at my current age.

The reason I personally love collecting reborn dolls are mostly for the photography aspect. I guess you can say they also do help me when it comes to my anxieties or trauma responses, but mostly.. I just love the idea of having a subject when it comes to doing photography pieces. Although I guess you can say that I do also use these dolls as my own therapy dolls as well.

The Purposes For These Dolls

Now this will only be based off my own experience mostly from what I use them for or what I've seen others use them for; I cannot speak for everyone who collects these dolls as everyone who collects have their own personal reasons based off their own opinions and/or traumas.

For some, collecting these dolls is a passion. They do it for the art form behind each and every detail an artist does when making a reborn doll. Usually, these are the people who tend to buy a doll for display use mainly - they would rather preserve the artwork behind making the doll instead of using the doll as a roleplay character.

For others, collecting these dolls are having to do with some sort of therapy or trauma response.

Reborn dolls can be used for multiple different uses, such as;

• Therapy for different mental illnesses (autism, ptsd, bpd, anxiety, depression, etc.)
• Coping mechanisms for the loss of a child (miscarriages, child deaths, etc)
• Comfort; although this will usually fall under the anxiety/depression branch for "therapy dolls"

My reasoning behind collecting these dolls, besides for the idea of having a subject for photography, does fall under the first and second categories; therapy as a way of comfort to help me cope with ptsd, anxiety/depression, and bpd.

Roleplaying with Reborn Dolls

People roleplay with their reborn dolls for all different reasons. Some people use their dolls as a chance to become a mother when they physically cannot have children of their own, while others use their dolls as a way to cope with miscarriage or the loss of their own baby. There are plenty of those who do just collect these dolls simply because they just love dolls and doll collecting.

I have been obsessed with American Girl dolls since my mom brought me my very first one in 2005 when I was five years old, so getting so attached to the idea of collecting reborn dolls came very easy to me. Both of these collections are not the best deal when it comes to my wallet, but it's definitely worth it in the end.

Although, the aftermath of these collections have turned my house is not so friendly place for those who are terrified of dolls to be in.

The Reality of It All

Most people don't get the fascination for these babies. For some, they just seem like some creepy hobby for adults to be into.. and that's alright. It's not for everyone and people in the reborn community have grown used to that. But for others, it's a hobby that they all admire.

The amount of times I've personally had someone stop me and my reborn doll in public just to ask about "my baby" is one of the times I really love this hobby of mine. I don't know what it is.. it's just the idea of being able to inform another person about these dolls and telling them all about what they're used for, or even to help educate a mother about the dolls because her daughter was interested in owning one, brings some sort of joy to my eyes.

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This article is only short because I once started it with all the hopes and ideas stirring around in my head.. but suddenly just blocked on the purpose behind this article.

I do hope that I at least helped maybe one or a couple people to understand/learn more about these babies.. Hey. Maybe I just helped someone join the community.

If you like this content, don't be afraid to check out my other articles here.