Tearing it Up: My Moody Monster Creates a Foundation for Kids’ Mental Health

Jennifer Ginty lives with complex post-traumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder. She has turned her coping skills into a toy designed for kids — My Moody Monster. 

My Moody Monster is a MESH-accredited plush doll with body parts connected by a Velcro-like hook-and-loop fastener. When kids are feeling strong emotions, they can pull apart Moody’s body, venting their frustration, sadness, or anger on the doll instead of themselves or others. Each plush toy also comes with a coloring book, offering a different outlet for kids to explore these emotions. 

“I was in a therapeutic group, and I said, ‘I wish I had a monster that I could just rip apart, throw across the room, and get all of that frustration out with.’ The people in the group were like, ‘Yeah, you should have that,” Ginty says. “So, I went home, and I put together this plush doll. I made its arms, legs, and head of Velcro so that I could tear it apart. This first iteration was called PTSD Pete, and I created them solely for myself. As I was using Pete and really getting that frustration out with him, I realized that this is something that I can really share with the world.”

Ginty, who is also a single mother, realized that kids in particular could benefit from a product similar to PTSD Pete to address their own big feelings.

“Children have all of these emotions inside them that they don’t know what to do at the time,” Ginty says. “I have two boys, and I used to call them little cavemen, because they didn’t know what was going on in their brains. They didn’t know what these emotions were. They had no idea how to deal with them. That was how Moody came about.”

In addition to selling My Moody Monster through her DTC website, Ginty donates Moodys to local fire departments, police stations, and other organizations that work with kids experiencing trauma. It’s a movement to help kids develop the habit of managing their emotions, especially when faced with a fight for survival.

“A child in trauma needs something to hold onto …something that says, ‘I’m here for you,’ Ginty explains. “I want Moody to be that buddy for them.”

My Moody Monster is available in sets for families, doctors and therapists, as well as for educators in classrooms.

A version of this feature first appeared in the 2026 International Issue of The Toy Book. Read the full issue here!

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