My Story

Have you ever asked yourself how you got to where you are today? 

Have you ever thought about your whole picture and who you are?

This is something I have been thinking about lately. I'm going to start pre-collecting reborns. A small brief synopsis before I get to reborn stuff and how I started collecting. I have struggled with my health since birth. I've been in and out of hospitals since I was a kid for various illnesses. In 2016 I started with this, I'm going to call it an eczema rash because for 2 years, no one knew what it was and I went from dr to dr trying to figure it out. Between that and my breathing got so bad that I lived off of my nebulizer, my health decline started. It wasn't drastic at first, but things continued to go downhill for me, which wasn't exactly what I had planned for my life. 

In 2017-2018, I was a frequent flier in emergency rooms, urgent cares, multiple drs trying to figure out what was wrong with my skin. This eczema rash, self-healed thanks to my knowledge, was actually a full body infection that no doctor at the time could figure out. My body was so red and inflamed that there were times I could barely move my neck. I was in pain and my skin was so itchy. It was absolutely terrifying for me. I kept having heat rashes too because of what the so called drs told me to do back then. What they had told me to do was suffocating my skin. 

During this time, I took up a new hobby, crocheting. I became an avid crocheter and it was the only thing keeping me sane and it was the best distraction. I crocheted all day, everyday. I even would have rather kept crocheting than going to sleep. Fast forward to Fall 2020 (I told you it would be a quick synopsis of the past) and that's when things took a turn. My house was just no longer safe for me and it started making me sick. My body could no longer handle hot temperatures or even just mildly warm. Every time I entered the heat, the heat attacked my body and I would have what would have looked like to the average eye bronchitis or a constant sinus infection. Since most of my house was no longer safe for my body, I had to create my safe space within my bedroom upstairs. What started with needing 1-2 fans running and hitting me in the face at all times to keep my body "healthy" became needing 3-4 fans running at all times to keep me safe. Without the fans, I would wake up in the middle of the night unable to breathe and would get really sick. I was no longer able to go outside, especially during the summer. I could go places, but couldn't go anywhere for too long and it had to be a short walk from my car to the store. There were no more beach days, no more enjoying the summer sunshine, etc. I now get to enjoy the beautiful weather safely from inside my house. If I choose to go outside to take pictures, I do it at my own risk.

Last year, 2023 was when I discovered reborn dolls. At first I only started collecting them to be a model for my crochet stuff. If you would have told me they would have become way more important than that, I don't know that I would have believed you. Last summer and into early Fall, my pcp started working with a very special doctor on my behalf where I learned a lot more of what was going on with me. I had stopped crocheting in June, not because of my health (at the time), but because it was just stressing me out. In September, my parents and I had a phone call with this specialist so that way she could talk to my parents and explain what was going on. It was that day that she told me I needed to find a new hobby and that crocheting was actually making me sick. Turns out I was severely allergic to yarn, especially polyester yarn. I grew up allergic to polyester, but I never thought anything of it throughout my teenage years and adult years, but it was clear that I was getting sicker because of yarn. Something that I had thrown my pride and joy into was actually making me sick. This made me wonder, if I have been allergic to yarn from the start, but never put two and two together. 

Thankfully I had my reborn dolls to fall back on and they saved me. It was almost as if someone, somewhere knew that my reborn dolls were going to be the next most important thing in my life because the one thing I loved was going to be taken away from me. My reborn dolls represent many things to me- a lost childhood: I could create a life for them where there were no illnesses or anything negative going on. They have the childhood and life I wish I had. That's not to say I didn't have a good childhood, I have so many amazing memories that will last a lifetime. There were just many health struggles and other events like bullying that I wish I never had to experience. 

Since I am in my room all the time, I have a special doll room too now, my days are surrounded by joy and happiness. I need a medically safe house, but that is not in the cards right now and I'm not sure if it will ever be. Each time I wake up, I truly look forward to each day that I wake up and see the smiling faces of my dolls. This year I also started collecting American Girl dolls again and I couldn't be happier having both doll collections to keep me beyond happy. It's fun creating a life for them that I wish I had. Even though I do live at home with my parents, I feel very lucky. I have their support and the last few months my dad has been building a special American Girl doll house for me for my doll room. I'll make another post when it's set up and finished.

This past week I have been really sick from a bad allergic reaction (I really need to learn patience and to know that it's okay that there are some things that I just can't do on my own) and yesterday I received two dolls of my dreams from Kory at Pumpkin Doodle Babies. They both made me so incredibly happy. I wanted them next to me the rest of the night and I will never let them go. My dolls are the biggest gifts to me and someday when I get my medically safe house, I will have a room for each kind of doll where it will be my escape and to have more safe rooms that I can go in my house. I do hope there's a way for me to get that house sooner rather than later, so that my body might possibly have the chance to heal. For now I will love and cherish my dolls endlessly. I will bring them places and just have fun.

Dolls really do heal. I can't imagine what my life would have been like if I didn't have my dolls. They are my everything and give me the biggest purpose each day.

My dolls from Kory are extremely special and they are the ones I bond with the most. I don't know what it is about her dolls, but I feel the connection instantly. From the moment I receive final photos to the time they are finally in my arms. If you want a doll from Kory, you can use my special discount code, which also helps me too!! You just have to go here to her website and enter my code whimsicalreborns at checkout. Kory's dolls are pure magic and I hope others have the chance to experience her dolls like I do. 

With my blog, I will bring you along on my journey that I feel a bit more confident in sharing.