Adults need comforting too. This was the overwhelming message from the readers who commented on a personal essay published in The New York Times Magazine on Tuesday by an adult who plays with, travels with and shares a pillow with stuffed animals.

Over one hundred people commented on our story, including many who said they also keep stuffed animals in their lives. And it’s not just because they like to play.

Those who had experienced serious illness and trauma said their stuffed animals helped them cope in the hospital or after the deaths of loved ones.

Others said their “stuffies” (don’t call them toys! They are real, like “The Velveteen Rabbit”) got them through more mundane stresses: graduate school exams, homesickness, the loneliness of business travel.