it started a few weeks ago. i was feeling really stressed out, and kind of rummaging through some stuff on a table next to the couch. i pulled out a can of play-doh, and just started squeezing it and squishing it in my hands. it was soothing.
i played some more. it continued to be soothing. the play-doh started to get stiff and dry out. i bought more play-doh. i continued to squeeze and squish.
before long, i found myself reaching for the play-doh even when i wasn't feeling especially stressed out. i wanted to hold it when i was talking to someone, or just sitting and thinking.
i went to therapy, and realized i had forgotten to grab a can of play-doh. this couldn't work. i went and bought more play-doh, and asked my therapist to keep some of it in her office, so that it would be available even if i forgot to bring some with me.
but now i have to admit i have a problem. i went to a party the other night, and had to take out my play-doh halfway through. i have found that i can't go more than a few hours without playing with play-doh. i need to play with play-doh when i get up in the morning, and before i can fall asleep at night. in fact, the other night when i couldn't fall asleep, i had to get up and get the play-doh to squeeze as i was trying to relax.
Monday, October 29, 2007
play-doh addiction
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
Is it possible that some one else is stressed/triggered and finds the play-doh soothing? We have a small, polished rock with a Chinese character carved into it that our T gave us...it goes everywhere with us. We have actually gotten half-way to school and returned home to get the rock because we forgot it. Our partner who is 51 and has no ab*se history has a beeny baby in her messenger back...it goes with her everywhere. Back int eh early 90's, young adlts were walking around with giant pacifiers (!?!) hung around their necks. Honestly, I'm not sure where I am going with this comment...I think I am just trying to say that having something that is soothing to you is not necessarily strange...and there are definitely worse things than play-doh!
should admit that i'm not especially concerned about the play-doh addiction, any more than i am concerned about my reading addiction (that one is actually slightly more troubling, but given that the side effects are things like blurry vision, and quickly alleviated, i'm not gonna quit!)
i have lots of self-soothing things that are always with me, and i'm okay with that. the only problem with the play-doh, honestly, is that it's hard to type while playing with it. that, and that it dries out and stiffens so quickly!
Have you tried modeling clay, like the kind that needs to be baked in order for it to harden? Or I don't know how you are in the kitchen, but imaybe you could find a recipe for salt dough (home made play-doh that you could adjust the moisture in it to meet your needs and if you want color, you can use food coloring to create any color you want ... maybe I'm furthering your playdoh adiction, but I figure it's better then my smoking adiction ... I've got DID and trying to quit smoking is like trying to choreograph a major broadway musical so none of the dancers collide ... go with the playdoh it's safer and healthier not to mention not likely to be made illegal or taxed beyond belief.
maybe I'm furthering your playdoh adiction, but I figure it's better then my smoking adiction
sadly, i also have the smoking addiction.
honestly, i'm really okay with the play-doh addiction. a pack of play-doh is cheaper than a pack of cigarettes, and lasts quite a bit longer. and i can use the play-doh indoors.
i suppose i could make my own, but i find that the home made dough has a tendency to either dry out or mold far more quickly than the play-doh. sculpey and other modeling doughs tend to be too stiff for the kind of squeezing action i want (although they are much better if i actually want to *make* something!)
Was just trying to think of things that might stay soft longer, but from the sounds of it, you found what works for you, which is actually pretty cool. I get fixated on things like marbles that I can roll in my hand, so I can kind of understand.for me, I think it's the repetative rythem as the marbles roll around each other in a sort of circular pattern. Seems to help me focus better if my hands are busy. Stick with the playdoh though, marbles are tough to keep track of I'm forever loosing them. That just didn't come out right I meant the actual marbles, not my mind.
Post a Comment