the thing it comes down to is that everyone deserves to feel loved and safe and happy. and you can hate on regressors and cgs but it won't change the fact that some people didn't get these extremely vital things in early childhood and thus have to cope with that now by either longing for or experiencing that phase, or are stressed and anxious enough to seek refuge in the rare space of extreme innocence and simplicity that almost only childhood brings (or should bring), the fact that people are willing and wanting to support others, to give them the love and patience they are/were missing.
especially in our modern world (and with this i am specifically referring to the last five-ten years in comparison to the last few decades, not an overall comparison of centuries) it makes a lot of sense to me that more and more people turn to regression or are unable to push that part of themselves down - there's been (at least in my perception) a huge surge in regressors especially since covid, and an especially big plus in regressors who are minors.
i think it is fair to assume that a relatively big part of that group doesn't regress due to early trauma (not because today's teens have it easier or anything, simply from what i've gathered from listening to minor regressors' stories) but rather due to stress or anxiety. if we view this in the light of what has changed in the past five years and obviously the pandemic, i don't consider it very surprising that regression has become a more popular coping mechanism:
many people, and especially young people, are missing an innocent form of connection and love in contrast to the isolation of covid (and the general isolation of a post-digitalised world, that is even moreso noticeable in many western countries) and both the rising shaming of sex (again, this concerns women and female-read people more, and has always concerned poc more than white people) and the extreme sexualisation from a young age that is happening at the same time.
many people long for simplicity in our current geo-political climate, and especially groups that are already marginalised long for safety now more than ever. in my opinion, regression offers both this innocent, almost familial feeling of love and connection (which doesn't have to be to another person but can even be to yourself) and simplicity and the promise of peace in a time that feels uprooted and unsure.
(that's a whole other thing, the strange "people just turned weird during covid" explanation for more people turning to things like regression when it's extremely logical that teens missing out on vital years of their childhood or young adolescence and being in a very isolated situation in exactly the phase you need differing experiences and voices in most might drive them to trying to make up for it.)
and it is so ridiculous to me to make fun of it or see something harmful or fetish-like in regression because it is such a rarity, such an exceptionally vulnerable place and an almost survival-seeking urge in many people because our brains and bodies crave that connection and safety and peace - it seems like a very raw, very natural coping mechanism because you get the hormones and sensations you're craving not through substances or porn or something but by literally reverting back to the state of mind that most fits the basic needs you are expressing, and you're trusting yourself and your loved ones that it'll go better this time around.
it seems quite like a sort of psychological trust fall into your own arms and that's exactly why it doesn't surprise me at all when people say their regression has changed for the better almost in synch with their self-worth, self-perception and all around mental health getting better - the better your self talk is, the better your mind can take care of you when you're suddenly in a regressed state and long for very basic needs.
turnnoffyourmind
jbbartram-illu
tangentwithtanner
gummygunk
origamiaround
stormborns
