Stuffed animal helps woman with panic attacks

Question on Quora Is it perfectly acceptable for someone to continue to sleep with stuffed animals well into their twenties and thirties? Or do you think they have issues? Answered by Wendi XXXXX, Artist, designer and stay-at-home cat mom. "I'm forty-nine. I was actually advised to get one, by my therapist! Sounds strange, I know, but his reasoning behind it was completely solid. I have nuclear-level GAD. I used to wake my poor husband at all hours of the night, shaking, sweating, feeling like I wanted to just run and hide somewhere." "I always felt guilty waking him, though, he had to go to work in the morning and I stayed at home all day. I didn't want to deprive him of sleep he needed just to deal with my anxiety. I was telling my therapist this, and he suggested finding something from my childhood, teens or adult life that comforted me: a blanket, stuffed animal, threadbare T-shirt, anything that gave me a sense of comfort and calm. I choose a stuffed animal named Tug that looked just like one I had as a little girl. Tug is great for calming me in the midst of a panic attack. I can pet the soft faux fur, take some deep breaths, and snuggle him under the covers with me. It settles me down, calms my pounding heart, and in about fifteen to twenty minutes, I can usually get back to sleep. I can't believe it works, but it does. I understand the logic behind it, but I didn't think it could evoke such a deep feeling of calm. If it's totally psychosomatic, that's fine with me. My husband gets his much-needed sleep, I get through an awful anxiety attack-it's a win/win for us!"