Emotional Bond
Many reborn owners are simply doll collectors, while others have gone through miscarriages, have no means for adoption, or suffer from empty nest syndrome. They may utilize the dolls as substitute children, or forever babies who will never grow. Some women dress the dolls, wash their hair, and may even take them for walks in strollers and take them shopping. Reborn hobbyists refer to the emotional response to holding their dolls as cuddle therapy. Studies suggest cuddling a baby causes a release of hormones which produce a sense of emotional well-being, and some psychologists believe that this may happen with realistic dolls as well. Consultant psychiatrist, Professor Raj Persuad explains mothering a real newborn baby releases the hormone oxytocin in the mother, and hypothesizes that this may explain why "reborn mothers" become emotionally attached to the reborn doll.
For grieving parents who form emotional bonds with reborn dolls, some child bereavement counselors advise against parents substituting their deceased child with the dolls. Reborn mothers contend that they are not replacing children but remembering them. Psychiatrist Sue Varma, teacher at the NYU school of medicine, says mothering reborn dolls rather than just collecting them can become a problem when it is used as prop and becomes the person's only form of socializing. Psychiatrist Gail Saltz with New York Presbyterian Hospital supports the use of reborns for people who do not want to make the commitment of having a real child, and also to comfort bereaved parents. She offers that in this case the reborn may symbolize a step in the grieving process. Concern should only come if someone who lost a baby grows too attached to their reborn because it could indicate their grief is not getting resolved. In this case, the likeness of the doll to the deceased child risks being harmful as a permanent replacement for the grieving parents. Ian James, a doctor at the Centre for the Health of the Elderly at Newcastle General Hospital in the U.K., said that holding the dolls helps calm elderly residents, helping them feel peaceful and quiet.
Read more about this topic: Reborn Doll, Social Issues and Reactions
Famous quotes containing the words emotional and/or bond:
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