Age Regression versus AB(DL)

[NoodleDragon]

I use age regression as a coping mechanism for stress. I act 2-3, wear diapers, play with my stuffies, I can say short sentences etc. I feel the stress melt away after the fact. This is non-sexual for me

I separate this from ABDL where I have a fetish for diapers. I almost don't consider myself AB just because I want to keep age regression separate.

Does this make sense? Does anyone else seperate regression from being ABDL or are they one and the same? Thoughts?

 

[DisneyDaddy99]

I thought that Age Regression was the sister of ABDL?

 

[PurplePup89]

The experience is unique to everyone, and it also largely depends on how you use the terminology.

I've seen a lot of Instagram littles who adamantly distance themselves from the "AB/DL" label and community for its seemingly sexual and fetishistic connotations, but I've personally never viewed "AB/DL" as an entirely sexual label. I've always perceived "AB" as less sexual and more regressionist and "DL" as more explicitly fetishistic, but there are indeed ABs who sexualize ageplay and plenty of DLs who don't sexualize diapers.

To that end, technically I do define age regression as "one and the same" with "AB", but I see it as more of an umbrella term for different scenes and communities, ranging from non-sexual (age regression/"agere") to sexual (DDLG). So, to me, not all ABs are age regressionists but all age regressionists are AB.

My own regression is entirely non-sexual and completely removed from my diaper kink (which has kind of started disappearing since I got into regression).

 

[Blathers]

For clarification, this is just what I have been told and what I have read up on regarding this topic lets dive in lol

Age regression, is a headspace where one firmly believes they are a child (whatever age that may be) its something someone goes into usually as a way to cope/feel safe. This is different from Ageplay which is also an umbrella term for consenting adults (who in there headspace are always adults) that engage in play or lifestyles where they act out characteristics of a different age, or enhance personality traits they already have- Littles for instance (umbrella term also) for me its who I am its not a space I go into, I already have "childish" attributes about me, but I still have my adult brain/senses to communicate consent and so on. Age regression gets tricky because if you use this term and firmly believe you go into a headspace where you are a bio kid, then that makes consent murky. Not saying age regression isn't valid TOTALLY IS <3 <3

But there are age regressors who do understand and separate there regression from there kink/fetish/lifestyle (where consenting adults are needed)

When it comes to what Terms to use to describe you though, I think its different for everyone as always though communication is key and honesty.
Dont let gatekeeping hold you back tho <3 a lot of terms mean different things there is no "one way" .


I find issue with the way ageregression gets used tho, because some minors are using it on Instagram to just mean "non sexual ageplay" which is concerning because there are people who are nonsexual in ageplay (they love the power-exchange they love the vulnerability etc), and asexual people participate in ABDL. I think this type of "term misuse" can be harmful to real age regression and ageplay.

But thats a discussion for a different day lol

As for me, I dont age regress ( again no issue with age regression perfectly valid <3) being little to me is who I am, its something in me, apart of my personality <3 I am always a consenting adult. Even before I turned 18 this year ,I felt weird because I heard about this "space" people slip into where I am a totally different person and what not. Thatt never happened lol, I love ageplay for a variety of different reasons the vulnerability, comfort (which isnt the same as ageplay), and it just makes sense for me I dunno its weird to explain.

I hope this makes sense, and if I offended anyone or spoke out of turn please inform me I will try to correct the record <3 all the love I promise <3

 

[BabySkye75]

I use age regression as a coping mechanism for stress. I act 2-3, wear diapers, play with my stuffies, I can say short sentences etc. I feel the stress melt away after the fact. This is non-sexual for me

I separate this from ABDL where I have a fetish for diapers. I almost don't consider myself AB just because I want to keep age regression separate.

Does this make sense? Does anyone else seperate regression from being ABDL or are they one and the same? Thoughts?

I very much separate my regression ... my regressed age is 0-5 ... I don’t want it to be sexual, I do it to take down my stress, but an interesting part of my age group is it was before my real innocence was stripped from me in real life. I wear 24/7 for other reasons and carry a slight bit of juvenilism even in my adult life to help ease my stress levels

 

[Calico]

Age regression is not ABDL and it's not the same. Age regression is used in therapy and as part of dealing with trauma. Can you be a age regresser and ABDL, yeah. Just like you can be incontinent and be DL or ABDL.

 

[BabyFee]

I use age regression as a coping mechanism for stress. I act 2-3, wear diapers, play with my stuffies, I can say short sentences etc. I feel the stress melt away after the fact. This is non-sexual for me

I separate this from ABDL where I have a fetish for diapers. I almost don't consider myself AB just because I want to keep age regression separate.

Does this make sense? Does anyone else seperate regression from being ABDL or are they one and the same? Thoughts?

I understand where you’re coming from, age regression invariably includes the use of diapers but the use of diapers doesn’t always require the age regression.

Like you, I engage in these behaviours as a form of stress relief. I rarely use my toilet at home and almost always wet and mess diapers instead.

I am limited to the extent to which I can regress as I live alone and so don’t have the parent role to call on. I do have a high chair and a cot that I use when I am in this mode, though.
I also have a number of ways of enforcing my own regression; I have a time lockable onesie and a time lock for my cot. This works so that I can only get out of the cot when it gets to the set time (usually the following morning) and only out of my diaper and onesie when that set time is reached. A couple of times I have miscalculated and ended up spending hours trapped in a wet/messy diaper but overall, it serves a purpose.

 

[S2000]

I am neither interested in Age regression, nor am I interested in being a Adult Baby

 

[Ian16545]

I'm going with PurplePup on this one: AB and AR are technically one and the same, in my view.

 

[Katie2fingers]

I'm both, I'm a baby in bed, and a toddler in my wheelchair. Two very different things

 

[DavidNixon]

The lines can definitely be blured. For me, when I'm little, I'm little. I don't want sex, I want cuddles, I want to color and watch cartoons. I love coloring.
When I want "sex" I'm definitely not little. Two different head spaces for different activities. Admittedly diapers and ab stuff are a turn on, when I'm in "big" headspace. It's weird how the same thing can elicit two different responses.

 

[Turtle]

Wow I didn't know they had a different name for that but yeah I heard they use age regression as therapy or whatever that's why I got into aBDL I got scammed for 17 years because I wanted somebody that actually cared

 

[longallsboy]

I am neither interested in Age regression, nor am I interested in being a Adult Baby

Then why did you even come here? Just wondering. For me, I'm not an adult baby, nor do I wear diapers. However, I do have Classic Autism and that in itself makes me emotionally and socially like a 4 1/2 year old. I like a lot of children's toys and cartoons and other things, but I wouldn't exactly call myself an adult baby. Unless you don't need to wear diapers to qualify as an adult baby. But if that really is the case, there could be tens of millions of people who are like that, who don't even think they are adult babies, including many people with Autism, Down Syndrome, intellectual disabilities, and so on.

- longallsboy

 

[DiaperPaige]

I use age regression as a coping mechanism for stress. I act 2-3, wear diapers, play with my stuffies, I can say short sentences etc. I feel the stress melt away after the fact. This is non-sexual for me

I separate this from ABDL where I have a fetish for diapers. I almost don't consider myself AB just because I want to keep age regression separate.

Does this make sense? Does anyone else seperate regression from being ABDL or are they one and the same? Thoughts?

For me it evolved from simply a stress relief to my life

 

[longallsboy]

For me it evolved from simply a stress relief to my life

I can see that. Or I think it would be more understandable if you were Autistic and getting bullied a lot, and then regressed in multiple ways, instead of attacking your bullies back. Sadly, a huge proportion, or the majority, of Autistic people get bullied when they are in school, or perhaps sadly, the rest of their life till they no longer exist. People with Autism get picked on no matter how "normal" they attempt to be. I get bullied for my innocuous hobbies sometimes, but then I have gotten bullied a lot for just being Autistic in itself, including being called the R word. Honestly, I would say based on statistics of unemployment rates, suicide attempt rates, and depression rates among Autistic people, I would say we are the most discriminated and least understood minority there is. There is no minority, not even convicted criminals, that have an unemployment rate of 85% like Autistic people have (and that is the unemployment rate for Autistic college graduates too....don't bother to go to college if you have Autism....I totally regret going to university). To be honest, it's easier even for those with Down Syndrome. Society thinks Down Syndrome people (even DS adults) are "cute" plus they don't lack the cotton pickin social skills that Autistic people lack. Autistic adults generally aren't cute even if they were as children and because they lack certain social skills, they are ostracized.

It shouldn't be surprising even that some Autistic people act like children to regress as a therapeutic thing. And the thing is, I'm not sure what is really consciously regressing versus actually always having been emotionally and socially like a 4 year old, for instance, and perhaps, mentally also?? For instance, if you always act like a 4 year old child (though you are in your 40s chronologically), even in regular life, 98% of the time, is that really even regression if you act like a 4 year old? If that is called regression, is purposely (or not purposely, even) acting like a 3 1/2 year old if you are chronologically actually a 4 year old preschooler called "regression"? To me, 4 years old and 3 1/2 years old is hardly different, and to me even a 5 year old is not that far removed from being a 3 year old, or even a toddler.

- longallsboy

 

[LaLoneDigi]

I feel like these terms were more nebulous in the past, and were often used interchangeably. It's in more recent times I started seeing younger folk push hard to distinguish these words.

Age regression - Headspace/lifestyle often used as a coping mechanism.

ABDL - Sexual fetish

I was loose with these terms, but now my conversations seem to go more smoothly if I adhere to the above uses.

 

[DiaperPaige]

I can see that. Or I think it would be more understandable if you were Autistic and getting bullied a lot, and then regressed in multiple ways, instead of attacking your bullies back. Sadly, a huge proportion, or the majority, of Autistic people get bullied when they are in school, or perhaps sadly, the rest of their life till they no longer exist. People with Autism get picked on no matter how "normal" they attempt to be. I get bullied for my innocuous hobbies sometimes, but then I have gotten bullied a lot for just being Autistic in itself, including being called the R word. Honestly, I would say based on statistics of unemployment rates, suicide attempt rates, and depression rates among Autistic people, I would say we are the most discriminated and least understood minority there is. There is no minority, not even convicted criminals, that have an unemployment rate of 85% like Autistic people have (and that is the unemployment rate for Autistic college graduates too....don't bother to go to college if you have Autism....I totally regret going to university). To be honest, it's easier even for those with Down Syndrome. Society thinks Down Syndrome people (even DS adults) are "cute" plus they don't lack the cotton pickin social skills that Autistic people lack. Autistic adults generally aren't cute even if they were as children and because they lack certain social skills, they are ostracized.

It shouldn't be surprising even that some Autistic people act like children to regress as a therapeutic thing. And the thing is, I'm not sure what is really consciously regressing versus actually always having been emotionally and socially like a 4 year old, for instance, and perhaps, mentally also?? For instance, if you always act like a 4 year old child (though you are in your 40s chronologically), even in regular life, 98% of the time, is that really even regression if you act like a 4 year old? If that is called regression, is purposely (or not purposely, even) acting like a 3 1/2 year old if you are chronologically actually a 4 year old preschooler called "regression"? To me, 4 years old and 3 1/2 years old is hardly different, and to me even a 5 year old is not that far removed from being a 3 year old, or even a toddler.

- longallsboy

I am autistic and was bullied so you’re right on the money there

 

[Peepeegirl]

I think regression is more for self regulation and no sexual at all
As adult baby is more of a decision and sometimes sexual

 

[Turtle]

For me it evolved from simply a stress relief to my life

Same

 

[Anemone]

On a Venn diagram there is a lot of overlap between AR and AB.

As we are dealing with not very well defined terms there isn't really a clearly defined boundary between the two.

Personally I try to avoid engaging with tribalism of this sort and would advise others to do likewise but must acknowledge that it is easier said than done when confronted.