The internet has had it out for Disney Adults the last few years.

Disney adults are the most terrifying people on the planet and they need to be stopped, The Tab, a UK paper, sneered in 2020 .

Adult Disney fan told to grow up for crying after hugging Goofy, the New York Post headlined a story about a viral TikTok. (Some thought she was crying only because Walt Disney World in Florida had lifted its pandemic ban on character-guest hugs, but the woman explained in her caption that she was emotional because Goofy was her late dads favorite character.)

Michael Arnold knows how half the internet feels about millennials who love the House of Mouse, but he pays it little mind. As he sees it, we all choose to spend our disposable income differently look at the people shelling out $820 starting price for NBA Finals tickets and the way he chooses to spend his is no one elses business, really.

For him and so many other adult-aged Disneygoers, the park is escapism at its best and who doesnt need a little escapism in hellscapeish 2022?

Disney does a fantastic job of submerging you into the story, Arnold, who runs the fan blog A Castle A Dream And A Mouse, told HuffPost. When youre at the parks, its easy to forget theres a great big world ready to chew you up out there.

Arnold says that the parks are a salve to his mental health. I grew up in a pretty toxic environment and then immediately joined the military and deployed to Iraq, he said. Walt Disney World is a great way for me to take some time away from the mental realities that are my life and recharge emotionally.