Weighted stuffed animal experiences: what people often notice

If you are thinking about buying a weighted stuffed animal, you are naturally curious about what other people notice. On this page you can read what many people enjoy about a soft, heavy weight, what some find less pleasant and how to keep track of your own experience. You won't find a collection of reviews or personal stories here, but a calm overview you can take further yourself. You can find more about choosing and using one in choosing and using.

What do we know about experiences with weighted stuffed animals?

Research on weighted stuffed animals themselves is still in its early days. One small study is known, presented as a poster at a conference. Children aged 4 to 14 were given a 2.3 kg stuffed animal to hold on their lap at the dentist. Afterwards, they reported less anxiety than children without a stuffed animal. Whether that was down to the weight or to holding a stuffed animal has not yet been looked into.

Most of what we know about how people experience weight comes from research on weighted blankets, which work on the same idea. In that research, many people feel calmer and say they sleep better. A stuffed animal of 1 to 2 kg is lighter than a blanket and rests in one spot. So see what follows as a useful pointer to what you might notice, not as a promise.

What do people like?

Many people are positive about how a soft weight feels. These are things that come up often.

A pleasant, reassuring weight. In a British study of autistic children aged 5 to 16, children and parents preferred a weighted blanket to an ordinary blanket that looked the same.

Calm and sleep. In a Swedish study of adults with insomnia in psychiatric care, about 6 in 10 people with a heavy blanket had clearly improved after four weeks, according to their own questionnaire. In the group with a light blanket, it was about 1 in 20.

Relaxation that parents notice. Swedish researchers interviewed 24 parents of children with ADHD who used a weighted blanket. Parents described better sleep, more relaxation, less anxiety and better day-to-day functioning.

A regular moment of calm. In a Swedish study that looked back at 85 children and adults with ADHD and/or autism who already had a weighted blanket, the large majority reported an improvement. Most used the blanket every night. Children benefited more often than adults when it came to falling asleep.

In care settings too. Among 21 people with dementia living at home and their family carers, a weighted blanket turned out to be easy to use and was well accepted.

With a stuffed animal, there is something extra: you have something soft to hold. That can bring comfort, something to hold on to when you feel tense and a familiar moment of calm, for example on the sofa, after school or in a waiting room.

What do people find less pleasant?

Not everyone likes weight, and that is completely fine. It helps to know what some people don't get on with.

Too heavy or uncomfortable. In a Swedish nursing home study, 110 residents started using a weighted blanket. Of these, 38, just over a third, stopped because the blanket felt uncomfortable. In the study of adults with insomnia, ten people found the 8 kg blanket too heavy and were given a lighter one.

Anxiety or a feeling of tightness. In that same study, one participant stopped because the blanket made them anxious.

Too warm or lumpy. Parents in the Swedish ADHD study said that some children found the blanket too warm or too lumpy.

A stuffed animal is lighter than a blanket and rests in one spot. So you can easily move it or put it aside for a while. If you find you don't like the weight after all, you haven't done anything wrong. Read more about situations in which it is better not to use a weighted stuffed animal in when it's better not to.

How should you look at other people's experiences?

Experiences are real and valuable. They show how something feels. Still, someone else's experience doesn't tell you exactly what you will notice. There are a few reasons for this.

You can feel what you're using. With a weighted aid, you know it is heavy. Your expectations can then colour how you experience it. That is very human.

Feeling and measuring are two different things. What you experience, such as a calm feeling on the sofa, can't always be captured in a measurement. That is why it is so helpful to keep track of your own experience.

People who stop say less. People who don't like an aid often quietly put it away. Satisfied users are more likely to share their experience. Online reviews often work the same way.

You can read in detail what research does and doesn't show in does a weighted stuffed animal really help.

How do you read reviews and claims?

Online, you'll come across lots of enthusiastic stories. They are nice to read, and with a few questions you'll get the most out of them:

• Where is the review? On a sales site, the seller chooses what you see. A forum where users freely share their experience, or a conversation with someone you know, often gives a fuller picture.
• Is it specific? A review that tells you how someone uses the stuffed animal, what they liked and what disappointed them helps you more than just ‘works brilliantly’.
• Does it promise anything? Words like ‘cures’, ‘proven’ or ‘lowers stress hormones’ don't fit with what we know. An honest review mainly describes how something feels.
• Is there a percentage? Check where it comes from. A frequently quoted figure, that 63 per cent experienced less anxiety, comes from a small American study from 2008 with 32 adults and a blanket of just over 13 kg. So that figure tells you little about a stuffed animal.

Read more about persistent claims in myths and facts.

How do you keep track of your own experience?

In the end, your own experience matters most, and it is easy to keep track of. For sensory therapies, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) advises setting goals in advance, keeping track of use with a diary or a scale, and evaluating afterwards. A Dutch guideline on sensory interventions after brain injury says something similar: measure whether the goal is being reached and stop if it doesn't help.

A short diary can work like this:

1. Write down what you hope for. For example: settling down more easily after school, or worrying less on the sofa.
2. Make a short note every day of when you used the stuffed animal, for how long, and how you felt before and after, for example with a score from 1 to 10.
3. Write down what you liked and what you didn't, such as a pleasant weight on your lap, or that it was too warm or too heavy.
4. Look back after two to four weeks. Do you see a difference compared with the days without the stuffed animal? Do you want to keep using it, and at which moments do you enjoy it most?

With a child, you can make a diary together, for example with smiley faces. Pay particular attention to what your child shows you: do they pick up the stuffed animal themselves, or put it aside? If you are struggling with problems such as insomnia, anxiety or low mood, talk to your GP or a psychologist. A weighted stuffed animal can be a pleasant addition, but it does not replace help.