I refer to myself as a ālifestyle Littleā, and that my little/regressed age is 2-3 years old. I thought Iād take a minute and breakdown what those statements mean, specifically TO ME (I canāt speak for all Littles, lifestyle or otherwise).
To me, āLifestyle Littleā means that the most authentic version of myself is my little side. This is where Iām happiest, this is where I feel the most completely unmasked, and this is where I feel the safest. As a result, Iām trying to make this the space where I live the majority of the time, at least to some degree. It means when I canāt fully present as little because of cultural reasons (i.e. when I have to be big bear to go into the office, deal with family/parental units, traveling), I find some ways to not completely separate from being little. For example, part of my work āuniformā for office days includes having one of my pacifiers in my pocket, with the paci leash clipped to the outer edge of the pocket. This way if I need a moment to recenter/touchpoint, I squeeze the nipple of the paci even through my pocket, and it reminds me that Iām ok and Iām safe.
Now what do I mean by my āregressed age is 2-3 years oldā?
First, clothing. If I have my preferences, the majority of the clothing that I wear, design wise, would not appear out of place for a toddler. Shortalls are some of my favorites. Bright colors (especially Tie Dyed stuff), prints with things like cars, animals, dinosaurs, Disney characters, patches with logos and such on them. Bottoms with snaps in the crotch for diaper changes are generally good. Preferred PJās are sleepers (either footed or unfooted), but 2 piece pjs with similar designs on them are good.
Second, in reality not just fantasy, I am mostly not potty trained. I make it to the potty about 80-90% of the time for messies. For bladder its about the exact opposite. Iām in diapers most of the time. The only real exceptions are showers (obviously), work (occasionally, usually when Iāve got a really big meeting and upper management is involved), the gym, and SOMETIMES for doctorās appointments. If Iām at the bar, in full big bear regalia/dress, thereās almost certainly a diaper under my kilt. Any time Iām going to be away from the house for more than 4-5 hours, I carry a diaper bag with me (or stuff for a change in the other bag Iām carrying). I CAN go undiapered without too much difficulties, though it does take mental effort & energy to not wet automatically in that scenario. Iām not intending to change this, Iām not interested in even playing at potty training. If anything, the proportion of time I make it to the potty for messies may decrease.
Third, my emotional regulation is not very good, especially when Iām unmasked. I get frustrated and moody easily when things are difficult. At the same time, I can swing from that to happy and silly very quickly. Having someone bap me when Iām struggling, putting my paci in, sending me to the corner for a few minutes for a timeout to recenter helps A LOT.
Fourth, my comfort items are very analogous to that of a toddlerās. My stuffies, particularly Pooh and Kirby, are very important, and I definitely need one or more of them nearby. Paci within arms reach is good, ideally clipped to my clothes. Blankie is good. When Iām nervous and need to be doing something with my hands, I often fiddle with a Fischer Price fidget cube. Its not unheard of that it ends up in my mouth.
Fifth, I like being treated like a toddler in small ways. Having my diaper subtly (or not so subtly) checked by the bigs around me is good. Having one of the bigger kids or bigs with me have me hand their hand while crossing the street. Having my clothes picked out for me. Being given something to do to entertain me. Being teased a bit here and there as long as its not malicious. I DONāT like having my food ordered for me thatās a hard limit.
I donāt normally engage specifically in āToddler-type activitiesā. I do enjoy things like coloring, watching cartoons, playing games, playing with toys, stuff like that. But a lot of my activities are normal āAdultā type activities, just done while Iām in little space. I play āadultā video games, like Civ, Battletech, WoW, FFXIV, Zelda, Mario, Metroid, etc. I like playing adult board games too. I read adult-level books, cook on my own, do my own chores (mostly). My cartoons are usually anime, and my movies are stuff like Star Trek, Oppenheimer, Marvel, etc.
A big point that I do want to bring upā¦just because Iām regressed to the age of a toddler doesnāt mean that my mental capacity/capability is also diminished. My BRAIN is still fully capable, and still contains all of my experience, knowledge base, and training. It might be coming out in in a lisp around my paci, from a bear wearing toddler clothes, but Iām not a ādumb babyā. Donāt treat me like one. Unless someoneās triggered my hypnosis training key words, but thatās a separate case altogether >.> Iād keep that in mind around littles in general actually. You might be surprised at how many times youāll walk into a cub gathering, and, for example, run into several cubs engaging in a conversation discussing the linguistic and phonetic differences between āhard paletteā and āsoft paletteā languages, and how those differences can create significant challenges for native speakers of one type of language in learning the other type of language.
So thatās one part of me in a nutshell. If you got any questions, feel free to ask, Iām gonna try to be an open book.
#abdl #ABDLPositivity #Little #babyfur #lifestylelittle #littlespace #kinkdiscussion