Are the Women who buy these realistic baby dolls normal?
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Some months back I turned on our television and inadvetantly ended up watching a documentary about women who in general, have no children of their own, but have an obsession with buying these incredibly expensive baby dolls that are the spitting image of a real child. What I found particularly strange about this was the fact many of these women were more than capable of bearing children themselves, but freely admitted they preferred the lack of demands placed on them by a "fake baby".
The weirdness got weirder though, as I watched in fascination as women pushed these dolls around the park in buggies, allowing people to admire their "baby", without letting on that it wasn't a real baby.
It was about to get stranger still though......
One lady had looked after her baby grandson in order to help out the parents. When the parents decided to emigrate to a different country (I wonder why!!), she was so distraught she paid thousands of pounds simply to have a certain company make a replica of the lad as a baby. Years later, when the boy was now some years older, she was still mothering this replica baby as if it was her Grandson, (to be honest she now seemed more interested in the doll than her real grandson!), she even named the doll with the same name as her Grandson.
The next lady featured had literally built up a huge collection of these "dolls", all with names, and all treated like real children. I am talking twenty or thirty plus of these too, not a handful.
One woman's Husband was asked what he thought, and you could see he was rather freaked out by it all, but trying to be supportive to his Wife. I actually don't recall any men in the program finding this normal, or partaking equally in the enthusiasm their partners had.
In one sad case, a lady had lost her baby, and had arranged for a replica to be made based on a photograph. Although I felt for her, I couldn't help wondering if this was healthy or not, and if it was quite possibly preventing her from grieving and recovering as she should. It felt like she needed beravement counselling, not a fake version of her original baby.
Yet another woman had already built up a huge collection of these dolls, and had now been shopping online for her latest one. she lived in the UK, but rather than have the "baby" posted to her, she took herself and her adult daughter all the way to the USA to collect the doll in person. They booked into a hotel, and awaited delivery of the new baby. When it arrived it was all wrapped up in tissue paper etc and in a large cardboard box. Neither her or the daughter could have been more excited if they had been expecting a real baby, and they had already bought new clothes for her etc etc.
Upon delivery they carefully unpacked it and immediately found a fault with the doll, (for the life of me now it escapes me what the fault was, suffice to say it was quite trivial). They were so upset, and bearing in mind they had already been waiting weeks for this doll to be ready, they were going to have to return to the UK empty handed whilst they waited for a replacement to be made. Oh, and the price of this doll.... well if i am correct in my recollection it was over $30,000, (plus flights, plus hotel etc). To me this is very much like an illness, and I pitied her poor Husband working his socks off to pay for over priced, but realistic looking babies. To say the least he must have been incredibly tolerant!
So what do you think?
Would you buy one of these dolls?
Do you think it is normal to behave like these women do?
Please vote in the poll below and let me know what you think.
Would you buy one of these dolls?
See results without votingDo you think it is normal to buy dolls like these?
See results without votingDo you find these dolls a bit creepy?
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Hm...some people never grow up. It reminds me when we were all, like children, playing with dolls.
Very interesting Hub, Misty.
Hi Suiiki, I agree it is okay to simply collect dolls for pleasure, but as you noticed, these women wanted them for far more odd reasons, and actually seemed to think of them as real babies. Thanks for posting :)
Hi Tatjana, I think it is worse than that, as even children know their dolls are just that, but these women had emotionally bonded with these babies in an incredibly weird way, even pretending they were real when taking them out in buggies, and not letting on to admiring passers by that these weren't actually living and breathing babies. Thanks for the comment :)
Hello Misty, another interesting hub. I really was surprised how very realistic these dolls looked. I think it's at least a little creepy...a plastic baby instead of a real baby? I wonder do we not value the real babies enough?
Hi Paradise, It is rather strange I agree, but especially when the person buying these dolls is, in many cases, more than capable of having a real baby, but freely admits this is "better" due to the lack of crying, nappy changing etc.
hmm...you got some weird information there....but interesting nevertheless.
Thanks for commenting K Kiss.
This is a fascinating phenomenon. Thanks for writing about it. I would love to see the documentary.
Clearly these women are filling some emotional void. I can imagine playing dolls, but not pretending it's real in front of others.
I love freak shows like this. Human nature is fascinating.
I totally agree the woman who lost a child would benefit from bereavement counseling. At least she seems to have a real reason to need a fake baby.
Thanks for commenting here abcd1111, I too find these kinds of articles fascinating.
I'm one of these women. I was pregnant once n I lost my baby.I find this doll is not only a doll or a toy to play ,sometimes I feel like I want to go out with her ,show everyone that I'm a mumy and to make people admire my baby even if he's a fake baby .
these are cute but its sick when people get their baby they have lost done
I say each to their own....we all handle lifes obsticles differently - if it makes these woman feel better who cares!?
Although I do understand that women who lost their babies have a hard time trying to cope up with the loss especially if the baby is what they are waiting & praying for but I have to admit that I find it eerie to buy real-like baby dolls and treat them like they're really real. I wonder how many real babies and real-like babies have i met at the park.
Hi Brandy, I am inclined to agree with you. It just all seems a little too weird to me. Thanks for commenting.
i agree w/ barbiegirl...but i must say, i have two daughters,and i would absolutely love to have dolls looking exactly like them when they were first born...im sure lots of mothers out there would as well. how can you not miss the newborn days of your children, right? its weird tho how those women act like a doll is alive. can we say childs play[chuckie-doll]...???lol
I love the doll they are so good i would love to buy them
Hello, I am most likely the only male to contribute to this 'debate' here on the hub. I thought you guys might like to hear what I had to say. Personally, I own a child doll, and find it to be therapeutic and refreshing to be able to hold and love them. I love kids, but I refuse to bring a child into this corrupted world. I would adopt a child, but I am single, and I refuse to rush into a relationship. So, until I find that someone special, I choose to have a child doll. A kid I can call my own. I maybe a bit of a loner, but staying true to yourself can be, and I refuse to sell myself out. My mental state is fine, and I realize that a doll can never replace a real child, but for now, I enjoy the company of one. Not only that, but I also consider my self a doll collector. I appreciate the art and love that has went into them. The scenarios that Misty has given here I admit are a bit concerning. As much as I like to imagine and be creative, these Women seem to be disturbed and obsessive, which is not normal. Such as the case with one woman pushing around a doll and letting they think it is real without a clue. They are living in a fantasy world that is dangerously close to closing off reality. Especially, admiring a 'carbon copy' of a grandson and taking the love away from the real one, the family she does have. I believe they need help, and I say that with respect. A part of growing up is to let things go, and live the now to create a better future. They seem to be sitting in a graveyard with a haunting past. There are those who love kids but choose not to have one, so the doll would be a good alternative. I see nothing wrong with that, as long as you know it is simply a doll and admire it as it is. I find them charming :)
Thanks Rick, you made a very logical statement and comment, and it is perfectly understandable why a doll collector would find these appealing.
these women need some seriuos help... i have a realistic native american baby doll, but its just that, a DOLL. i dont pretend its my child or anythin like that. thats just weird. i am lookin to get my son "reborn" because im a mom and i kno i am goin to miss these early years because they do fly by, but i would never treat the doll as if it were my child.
Hi Lovely, Thanks for your thought which pretty much mirror my own, and what I expect the majority of people would feel.
i think those people are using them as coping mechanisms, like the grandma...that sounds unhealthy.
i think artistically its fascinating how real they look, but its sad people use them to fill a void in their life.
Hi Bette, they are artistically amazing I agree, but like you I feel it is sad when people use them in some of the ways such as the Grandma did, and these people should be seeking therapy rather than living in denial that they have a problem.
people do not know other people's situation,so lets stop crtisizing and think outside the box.
But people DO know, that is the point. I listed the situations that were included in the TV documentary in the article above, and the people who seem to take on these "baby dolls", were happily being filmed and talking about the baby dolls they were buying, or had bought, and why they did so. This is not a crime, but whether it is "normal" or not as the title of this hub asks, largely depends on WHY someone buys one of these dolls, and what the reasons are behind the purchase.... Don't you agree???
The hype over reborn babies has been growing over the past few years. While the term doesn't exactly sound "cute" and some may even regard it as eerie, reborn babies are actually dolls which look like real babies. They are commonly made from vinyl, and are have the weight and size of a real human baby! The question is, why are they becoming so popular these days?
Good point, maybe simply because they do look so very real.
Once upon a time, dolls used to be simple, plastic, and unrealistic in appearance. However, nowadays the concept of a lifelike doll is rapidly catching on with children and doll collectors alike. Many people are buying realistic babies and this trend is not about to slow down any time soon. In fact, it is probably a trend that is here to stay.
Why are you people wasting time talking about a doll. They are not human. The are inanimate. They are made from plastic. Who cares whether someone makes such a doll or buys such a doll. I asked my ten year old daughter what she thought and she couldn't care less whether such dolls are made or why people buy them, although she told me it would be cool to have a realistic lifelike ten year old boy doll.
We are asking this question out of curiosity Sally, and of course we know the dolls are inanimate. The point is not so much the dolls themselves, but the people who use them as emotional props and even pretend they are real babies to other people. What we are questioning is should these women get help for their problems or are they being normal when having a doll instead? It seems you might have missed this point when reading the hub, and of course a ten year old is unlikely to understand the point of the question, she is simply too young to think that deeply, and simply sees these as 'cute dolls', which is oversimplifying the point of this article. I suspect a Psychiatrist or Psychologist will give you a more definitive answer if you know one you can ask the same question of.
I did not miss the point. You related that you are questioning whether others should get help for their problems. First - you have no evidence those who purchase dolls have problems; Secondly - who are we to judge whether someone has an emotional problem because they purchase a doll, or needs to get help? In other words, per my 10 year old daughter who is intellectually shallow per you, "Perhaps we should mind our own business!"
That is why the title of this hub was phrased as a question Sally, not as a statement of fact. Actually the evidence on the documentary was pretty compelling that a large amount of the people featured clearly did have emotional issues, e.g. the woman who would pretend the baby/doll was real to passers by who admired it whilst she was pushing it around in a pram!! This is not to say 'ALL' people, just an observation that it would seem an element of society do seem to buy these as a result of emotional problems, but obviously there are another element that buy them purely as a collectors item. This hubpage article was meant to stimulate an element of healthy debate, not start a war!
Also I did not mean to imply your daughter was "intellectually shallow" as you seem to have assumed. More naieve if anything, i.e. to put it simply, at 10 years old she has not had time to learn from experience the extent of what life's challenges can do to a person emotionally, after all, can you honestly say at 10 years old you understood as much as you do now about such things?
This reminds me of the day my baby sister came home from the hospital a perfect little baby doll. I was only 4 and thought her to be just a doll, so you can just imagine my horror when the doll moved a bit and even looked at me and breathed too!! I had a hard time of being around her just that first part of the day, then I just loved her to pieces, though. This is not very normal no, and something is wrong why not get a pet or at least something living to love, right.
I loved your story Fluffy, I can only imagine how scared you must have been when she moved LOL.
I also agree a pet would be a better option, at least they give you love and affection back again depending on the pet of course, (Alligators not great for cuddles and love).
Suiiki 2 years ago
If you're buying the doll to play Mummy, it's not normal.
However, I know people who collect dolls (I actually have a few porcelain dolls at my parent's house, as I collected them for a few years) and if the purpose is to add to a collection of dolls for display, then I see no difference in say, people who collect teapots and angel statues.
The women on that documentary, however, scare me just a little bit more than a little.