Our Strange Addiction?

Speaking from a clinical perspective, it is true what the mod said- it is difficult to link DMS-IV reocgnised addictive behaviour to that of someone 'obsessing' over their doll. It is possible that someone who finds themselves unable to part from an inaminate object and personifying it to be suffering from depression, and so if that is identified and treated then perhaps the feelings towards the doll (or need to shop or whatever) would become more healthy. Cogntive Behavioural Therapies would need to be considered- but there is likely to an underlying root cause to the obsession, as opposed to it being the doll itself. This is how it differs from addiction.

It cannot be compared to addiction in the sense of drugs or alcohol for example because they themselves are the substance being abused and it has a dramatic affect on the brain and body of the sufferer.

EDIT: I did also want to say that talking to a doll, taking it with you, creating a world or something along those lines does not a 'crazy person' make. It seems in this day and age people almost want to be diagnosed with some sort of mental disorder. They quite comfortably refer to themselves as 'depressed' or 'I am so one of those OCD people', with very little knowledge of what clinically entails. A little eccentricity and allowance for personalities is taken into consideration, and enjoying a doll and 'playing' with it, really does not make someone mentally ill.

 

Addiction is a harsh word. I really love my dolls, but if I see another one that I like better, I have no qualms about selling one for another. They fill some sort of need. When I was growing up in NYC, we were very poor. Had enough $ for living but not much for extras. I,ve always loved dolls, but had to wait until I was 13yo to get a Madam Allexander doll. Now I,m retired, have enough $ to play with and the time to sew and do everything necessary to have fun with my dolls. I,m new to DOA and I,m very happy to be here. puglynne

 

Talking to someone yesterday, and they told me that for anything to be called an 'addiction', there has to be physical withdrawal symptoms that come from stopping it. And that's not just feeling sad that you have no money and can't buy anything - it's convulsions, nausea, insomnia, and any other bad withdrawal symptom you can think of.

So, following that logic, except for pretty 'normal' addictions, such as alcohol or narcotics, none of the so-called 'addictions' are really addictions, but compulsions - which aren't the same.

 

I'm starting to fear that I'm becoming addicted to buying new dolls. Seriously, I think that's the most dangerous thing about this hobby, given the expense...I bought my first doll back in October last year, and I've already got 2 more, and then a head that's being shipped. And I just bought a Delilah Noir off of Ebay, which is an off topic doll for this site, but still related to my "doll addiction". Although, this really might all be related to a general internet shopping addiction, which probably began when I got a free Amazon Prime account -_-;;

Oh, I don't know. To some people buying three or four dolls in a six month period probably doesn't sound that bad. Sometimes I've seen the list of "dolls at home" on some people's profiles and thought "HOLY COW!"...but now beginning to wonder if my list is going to start looking like that after I've been in this hobby long enough...

The thing is, I never thought I'd buy one doll, and when I gave in to the urge finally to buy the one, I said to myself, "this is it." But they're like potato chips, I swear...you can't just have one!

And maybe it's really not as bad as all that...I mean, I should be saving my money for next Fall when I go back to school, but I did just pay off all of my credit cards. I think what it really is is that last summer I started making a lot more money than I did before, and I've always been really bad when it comes to actually saving money when there are things I want. So at least it isn't that I'm spending money I don't have. I'm just not saving it, which is probably just as bad when I know I'm going to have to take out student loans for next year -_-;;

I also might be becoming a little bit addicted to the forums as well. I should totally be doing homework right now! And I really shouldn't be checking the forums every twenty minutes while I'm at work, but...

But yeah, like other people have said, whether or not it's really a problem, I should probably just classify this whole thing as a doll obsession and not neccessarily an addiction. I'm pretty sure I could stop if I really tried, without really having "withdrawl symptoms" aside from the lack of concentration which unfullfilled compulses usually give me (a little difficult to explain, but if you're even mildly obsessive compulsive you probably know what I'm talking about - it's that "something is not right and I can't think about anything else..." feeling that we get until we've done whatever it was we felt compelled to do, like check the lock a third time or wash our hands after touching the menu at a restuarant or whatever). And I do have that obsessive compulsive nature, which is probably what leads me to sometimes press that "buy it now" button when I really should wait...

Although actually, I think there is something to addictions that are not "normal" addictions. When we indulge in particular activities which we enjoy, endorphins are released into our brains, and endorphins can have an effect similar to morphine, because it would really be that "endorphin rush" that the person is addicted to. Because of this, I think it's entirely possible to become addicted to things like gambling, sex, exercise, video game playing, the internet, and shopping. These types of addictions may or may not be easier to overcome than say, an addiction to cocaine. And then again, maybe these things would really still fall into the category of obsessive compulsive behavior. It's probably something that's up for debate, but I think it's a debate meant for professionals in the field of psycology, to tell the truth.

 

In the same way that I have a doll "family" even though my dolls are not human, have no veins or blood, and are not actual relatives---yes I am "addicted" to dolls. I have 30 in hand and one on the way ( almost all are SD size and bigger), and two huge columns of organized storage drawers of clothes, wigs, shoes, eyes, and other BJD related stuff. If I go for a few months without buying something for them I find myself jonesing to get one of my crew something. I can afford my hobby and the satisfaction of satiating my hobby. My husband and I joke about my doll addiction and we both think it's a little strange--but a lot of interesting things are strange.

 

I think I saw that guy too on TV for a few years ago, but that was a real sized sex-doll
It feels like those who blow life into their dolls and takes care of them, maybe misses something in their life, like someone to talk deep stuff to. And needs to open up their hearts but have no one else to trust but their fictional doll character that they have created for trust?

 

Am I addicted ... I don't think so but I miss him if he's not around (like in this moment ;_. And yes, I talk to him ... but I talk to flowers, insects and a lot of things too ^^' And I think Soji is the perfect man - but not alive xD' I prefer to spend my time together with him than with real guys. But on the other hand he has no real character he is representing and I know that he's 'just' a doll ... I can't describe it ^^''

 

I'll admit to a semi-addiction. While I'm not putting money down for dollie stuff that I would use for bills, and it's not negatively impacting personal relationships, my smoking doesn't do either of those things. And I'm addicted to that. I get that I'm addicted to looking and searching for things for them (even if I'm not buying). Addictive dollie window shopping? I spend too much time online doing it. While I can and do break away for things that need doing, it's not always as balanced as it should be.

 

If your sith the for 24/7 and care for them like a human than I can be a addiction.

 

The way you described it sounds more like obsession rather than addiction. But nonetheless, I personally don't think it's strange to change the clothes, change the wigs, buy stuff for a doll. o__o
It kinda defeats the purpose if you don't. I mean that's why they sell these products for dolls. For you to customize. Customizing is fun. It's kind of like... saying it's strange to buy your own clothes and accessories. Sure they might not be alive/real but still. I think it's more of the level of obsession of the owner that might throw some people off.

Also naming the doll isn't so bad either imo. Just keeping the default name of the doll makes it less unique because other people have it too so it's like kind of like using your own creativity to name him/her. Carrying isn't so bad either if you're having meets and meeting other people. I'm.. not too sure about carrying it EVERYWHERE you go though.

I personally think yes, it's strange to talk to the doll. Like.. an actual conversation >_>;; But by yourself. If it's more like idle talk like "Oh no your hair is all messed up!!! DD: I have to fix it" it's okay. I'd just find it creepy if I were to walk upon a room where an owner is just outright having a full convo with their doll but one-sided.

Also this is coming from a newb to the whole BJD hobby that doesn't have a doll as of yet. So it's not like I have tons of dolls/experience with it and I'm trying to defend my hobby.

 

No I don't think it's an addiction, it just a hobby, a choice. I choose to be strange.

 

Well, I think about bjd's most of the day, I race to view flickr to see what has been uploaded, I search for clothes, names, wigs, furniture etc. I like to do searches on doll companies that I have not heard of before and learn all I can so I am calling it an addiction for me.

 

Not at all, I think in the early days I was quite obsessed with dolls when there was so much to learn but now a days I feel like I could quite easily give up the hobby if I needed to for financial reasons etc. I think there are other things I am more obsessed by but I do not use the word addicted. I can understand someone being an actual addict, I have seen hobbies completely destroy people, and yes, a few people on DOA some years ago where their obsession with buying dolls and accessories got them into trouble with their families, got them in debt and I knew a woman who ended up being made homeless because she could not control her obsession with buying dolls. But then again, this could be an addiction to spending money rather than just dolls themselves.

 

I'm sure there's people in the world who are addicted to their BJDs, in the same way that this man was addicted to his love doll, or another girl on the show was addicted to her fursona, and yet another addicted to her ventriloquist dolls.

There's people who just have their dolls for aesthetic purposes, and there's people who have their dolls that have become alive to them. So, it all depends who it is and which end of the spectrum they fall under.

 

I need to read to the ends of threads before posting, because I agree with everything you just said. Addictions are only addictions when they're a problem, and when they impede you living a normal, healthy life.
Hobbies are hobbies. So long as one knows this, and can keep the distinction clear, I don't think it's an addiction.

 

Whether we want to admit it or not, I'm sure some of us are in fact addicted.

I've watched that show too, and a common thread among them is they either see nothing wrong with what they're doing, or they don't realize just how much of their life is consumed by it.

I am certain that people like that exist in this hobby. I may have been one of them at the time, but a lot of changes in my life have made my priorities a little clearer, and that addiction has ended.

 

I have suffered from an actual addiction so its easy to see how anything could become addicted to, I agree with Zuka Engel, when it comes to people acting a certain way that they think as perfectly acceptable but is distressing to their loved ones, that is something I associate with addiction.
I think some of us can relate to something like this: I have a few doll friends and there has been times where one of them has bought too many dolls, taken on too many projects, spent too much time online researching etc. As a person who likes dolls and comparing that behaviour to mine and my other friends, it has sometimes been realised that person is a bit out of control and needs to take a break from dolls for a while. Hopefully people who feel theyre addicted to BJDs, whether spending money on them, the thrill of them arriving , researching etc, have friends who have that interest in common who knows what is perfectly fun geeking out about a hobby and what is bordering on eating away at their life, and...when to help them out.

 

I do not think that I am addicted to my dolls because I do know that I can live without them I maybe a little obsessed though. Sometimes I look up doll stuff on the internet and get on the dolly forums even though I know I have other stuff to do. I have spent alot of money on them since I started collecting but my bills get paid first. I've missed out on a lot of dolls because I just did not have the money to purchase them at the time but I have promised myself that when my car gets paid off I will buy them on the secondary market if I really feel like I have to have them. I collected other dolls too like my childs, cabbage patch kids, lee middleton dolls and reborn dolls. I will say though Ive turned a corner with the BJD's and feel like its going to be better for me than all the other dolls I actually dress the bjd's and put wigs on them and I have considered selling off alot of my other dolls to make room for the BJD's or have money for the BJD's so I'm definately making progress. Alot of my other dolls are stored away in boxes or are collecting dust on a shelf and I fuss with my BJD's all the time so I feel like they were worth the money. I think the appeal for me with the BJD's though is the way I can change a dolls appearance by changing the eye color and hair color and style and they can wear clothes that I could never wear and look good in. I do imagine sometimes what it would be like if all my dolls did come alive. I do have other hobbies though like cooking and making jewelry. Well that is my two cents on the subject.

 

ad·dic·tion: the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.



yeaa...I don't think so ^.^;

 

Well, shoot if talking to inanimate objects is an addiction, then I'm addicted to my TV, computer - ESPECIALLY my computer, car, microwave, teapot (particularly when it is whistling and I'm not in the room shouting "Relax, I'm coming"), and a whole host of other random things that pass through my life on a daily basis. And let's not get into my cat and the on going conversations we have.

As to buying things, well, I buy things for my car, my computer, my cat. So I have to agree that addiction is too strong a word, even though I do talk to them and buy things for them and change them. Would I miss my BJDs if they suddenly disappeared from my life? Yes. Would I have a very difficult time living without them? Probably not. Addiction is a whole other level. This is a hobby I love and spend a lot of time and too much money on, but it's not an addiction.