I often get asked how I can take my plushies outside, beyond my castle walls, so openly as a 40-year-old. Given my chronic anxiety and self-consciousness, it’s a very valid question! I thought I’d share how I came to carry them so openly in public, why I do it, and maybe it will help you, too, if you’re thinking of doing the same.

Why Take Your Plushies Outside?

Taking plushies outside is really fun, and it can also be creative — even a bit artistic if you’re photographing them! Plushies can be incredibly comforting and therapeutic, so bringing them along can actually support your mental health. I struggle with various mental health issues, and I often find it challenging to leave my house. Taking my plushies with me means I carry a little bit of home and safety along. Plus, I love coming up with photo ideas and stories for them. This motivates me to go outside, despite the anxiety, to take them on little adventures. Sometimes, I even imagine that they have cabin fever, so I need to take them out so they feel better — and, in a way, helping them helps me. When the sights and sounds outside overwhelm me, having a plushie to hold helps soothe sensory overload and grounds me.

Preparing for Adventure!

Choosing which plushie to take out is part of the fun. I have a Bartholomew bear in pyjamas named Cocoa, who I bring when I’d rather be wearing pyjamas too — like I would if I were at home. My grumpy frog, Froggy McFrogface, comes along when I’m feeling a bit grouchy about going out to do “adulting” tasks. For appointments like the dentist or doctor, I bring my most comforting plushies, Roxy, my Mortimer Fox, Seren, my medium Bart, or one of my large Barts, Louie or Charlie. There is also always a baby Percy penguin in my bag so I can feel like I’m taking my best friend WeeGee with me, wherever I go.

Sometimes I carry them openly, and sometimes I tuck them into my handbag, especially when I need my hands free to buy more plushies and sometimes like in the above photograph they’re half in and out of my handbag. I was lucky to find a handbag big enough for even my large Barts – It’s a Kipling bag, I absolutely love Kipling bags for them being able to fit my plushies. Having a bag for them is also handy for sudden rain (a common occurrence in Wales). While I try to keep their fur dry, it doesn’t always work out — like that time Froggy McFrogface’s leg accidentally dipped into my Starbucks Americano! Starbucks has great lighting for plushie photos, and I love snapping shots of them with coffee, croissants, or bearista cookies.

Adventures in Nature

Taking plushies on nature walks is another way to create stories and photos. I’ve photographed my bears climbing trees, watching rivers, admiring autumn colours, and spotting wildlife. I like to pretend it’s their first time seeing the world, and I imagine they’re as curious about nature as my son was when he was little. I also try and find nature wherever I go, these beautiful leaves are on the edge of a supermarket car park – you don’t have to go somewhere special to take your plushies on a nature adventure unless that is, you think Asda is special – each to their own.

Keeping Them So Fresh, So Clean, So Cosy

Since I take my plushies outside, sometimes they need a wash. There are many ways to clean plushies, but here’s my preferred method, which preserves the texture — important for those with sensory sensitivities!

I place the plushie in a tied pillowcase, pop it in the washing machine, and fill the rest of the machine with bedsheets. This keeps the plushie safe from any metal buttons or sharp edges. I set the machine to 30°C with a reduced spin of around 600 RPM, and I use our regular washing pods (no fabric softener, as it leaves a film that attracts dust and dirt and leads to you needing to clean them more often).

After washing, I make sure the stuffing isn’t clumped up and I brush the plushie with a wire dog brush and use a hairdryer on a low heat setting, keeping it moving to prevent overheating any spot. With a little patience, their fur returns to normal once dry, even for my Barts who have fur that sits in all different directions.

Dealing with Anxiety and Potential Negativity

Due to my disabilities and mental health issues, people have often treated me like an “other.” I’ve had to mask my true self for their comfort while they do little to make me comfortable. I’ve seen this happen in almost every community until I found neurodivergent spaces and a few soulmate friends.

As part of my healing from trauma, I realised that I needed to be authentically myself for my own comfort and mental health. No matter how much I masked, people still treated me the same way, so I decided to enjoy myself openly with my plushies. You can’t make people like or respect you; they either will or they won’t.

However despite knowing all of this, I was still anxious when I started taking them out, so I eased into it. On our way to the supermarket, there’s a quiet path by a river, and with my son’s help, I took my plushies there first. Gradually, I felt more comfortable, and I began putting my plushies in the child seat of the shopping trolley when I went grocery shopping. Most people probably assumed I’d bought the plushie at the store and was just avoiding putting him near my tins or cleaning supplies. After the supermarket, I ventured into Starbucks, where I encountered one person giving a disapproving look. I found it amusing and kept “sharing” my coffee with my bear as a little act of defiance. That moment helped me see that carrying my plushies isn’t just about comfort; it’s an act of self-acceptance, a way of saying, “This is me.” This is the only time I’ve ever had a somewhat negative interaction and it wasn’t even too bad. I doubt anyone is even paying that much attention, I am just an NPC holding a plushie in their storyline. If I am remembered, I’d rather be remembered for that, than any other snap judgement they’ve made about me. There are still some days when I get too anxious to get them out of my bag, but just having them with me still helps me, and I tend to just go easy on myself on those days. The next time I go out, I carry them openly and hug them the whole time, the plushies are supposed to help emotionally, not cause additional stress so I just let them do what I need on the day.

I prefer to blend in, like a face in the crowd, rather than standing out in public, which is why taking plushies outside felt so anxiety-inducing at first. I usually wear plain black clothes to avoid drawing attention, and I like to feel like just another passerby — kind of like the NPC crowds in Cyberpunk 2077, where no one stands out. Thankfully, even with a plushie in hand, I’ve still managed to just be another face in the crowd. The few times someone has noticed, it’s brought out kindness rather than judgment. A lovely woman who works at Lush adored our plushies and chatted with us about them, and another woman who works at Greggs, who’s also a Jellycat fan, lit up when she saw us carrying our plushies so openly. We even had to snap a few photos of our plushies where our favourite food is served!

Another layer of my anxiety about taking plushies outside comes from the fear of losing them. It’s unlikely, given how obsessively I keep track of my belongings — I’m always doing a mental and physical “phone, keys, purse” check every few minutes. But as we know, anxiety isn’t always logical, so that’s where my “backup plushie” comes in. I have multiple of certain Jellycats and recently bought a second Mortimer Fox to ease my mind when I bring Roxy, my other Mortimer Fox, outside. Just knowing there’s a “backup” at home makes a huge difference. Funnily enough, I end up bonding with the backup plushie just as much, and they develop their own personality over time! However, it’s especially comforting with Jellycats like Mortimer Fox, who’s hard to find and sells out quickly. If I had incredibly rare Jellycats, though, I doubt my anxiety would let me risk it.

Society often shames softer hobbies like plushies, dolls, and cosy video games, labelling them as “weird” or “not real hobbies,” while interests like sports or cars are accepted without question. Maybe the best way to handle it is to be defiantly yourself — with your plushies and whatever cosy hobbies bring you comfort.

Being 40 now, I can tell you that, that old saying, “You regret the things you don’t do” is so true. But you know what I regret most? Not being myself. I missed out on years of being myself conforming to what society and other people wanted me to be for their comfort, all it did, was make me miss out and sometimes even forget who I was, and I missed out on what I wanted to do and having comfort for myself. Don’t make the same mistakes I did, let your whimsy show, and be defiantly you, even with plushies!

Be brave frens, and be you!