This is mostly for minors and those newer to the community.
There has been an influx of "new therians", specifically between the ages of 13-16, in recent years due to "internet trends" and the like. While I am 16 myself, the internet had little to no part in my awakening journey. I used it for research but not self-discovery.
Just as a (sadly overdone and little listened to) reminder. One can not choose their own theriotype/kintype. If you have chosen a type, I would look into otherlink. If this sounds like you, please do not claim to be a Therian or otherkin. It can be (even unintentionally) damaging to the community.
You do not need to believe in past lives to be therian. Psychological therians are just as valid.
Not everyone can or wants to do quads. I went more in-depth on this in another thread. Some are disabled, some have difficult body types, and some flat-out don't wanna do it.
Finally, I want to discuss gear. Not everyone wears gear and some define it in a different way. For example, owning something pertaining to your kin that you don't necessarily wear could be considered gear. Wearing gear doesn't make you alter human. That being said no one should be invalidated for wearing gear. I'm tired of the cat masks but if it makes someone happy who gives a crap?
really useful post, others should really listen to this more as it would slow and help to stop the misinformation in this community! honestly im just sad to see the state things have gotten to online etc. and how bad the misinformation has gotten. as a 15yr old who is very disconnected from the internet myself, im glad that tiktock isnt what lead me to my awakening, as otherwise i would likely have been misinformed by now in efforts to fit in. although argued tiktock can help more people find themselves and the community, i think overall it is just damaging others views of alterhumanity and making it harder for the newly awakened to be themselves! (sorry if im just repeating points others have said btw)
Good post! I have an addition to that (please excuse my bad wording):
Just because you had one or two shifts in your lifetime, it doesn't mean you're a therian. You can have cameo shifts, that's shifts from something that is not your kintype. It often happens with kithtypes. Sometimes it can be hard to differentiate between kin and kith. It's important to take your time and do research.
The same goes for having a connection to an animal, I've often seen this. There's a difference between identifying with and as something. Identifying with/having a strong connection would be considered other-hearted or kith. You can have lots of cameo shifts that are consistent and long-term too.
Just a little thought that crossed my mind. Younger people measure time in months, whereas older people measure time in years. Our perception of time changes as we age. Years go by faster. If you've discovered therianthropy a few months ago, or even a few years ago, you're still really green. It's hard to be patient when you're young and you want to know now, but give it time. If you're a therian, you will probably still be therian when you're old. If you're not therian, maybe you'll lose interest in a short time.
I agree…
Sadly, I did find most of my identity through the internets. If you look at the theriotypes I listed in my intro, you can see I’ve come a long way. It all started when-
Y’know, how about I not x3
Basically, internet is very influential. Luckily, it is not where I learned about therianthropy. Thats waht I’m trying to say lol.
As far as alterhuman identity, I've always felt that dragons were part of my identity. And they still are to this day. Of course, that was before I'd figured out what therianthropy was. I had originally heard about it from TikTok but mostly knew that Tiktok was absolutely not the place to learn about something as niche as therianthropy.
I came here to learn more about otherkinity/therianthropy as I'd already seen a few posts on how to find out your theriotype previously.
That was a while ago.
From what I've gained, there is a lot of misinformation/stigma around the community, making learning about therianthropy very difficult.
I entirely agree with perspectives like this. You're allowed to wear masks, do quads, etc. But it can't be your whole identity. If that's your entire means of being a therian, you probably are not a therian.
(2024-04-02 13:41)grays Wrote: [ -> ]From what I've gained, there is a lot of misinformation/stigma around the community, making learning about therianthropy very difficult.
I entirely agree with perspectives like this. You're allowed to wear masks, do quads, etc. But it can't be your whole identity. If that's your entire means of being a therian, you probably are not a therian.
1) I totally agree with that.
2) I agree with that to. I do feel like a lot of newly awakened therians who don’t have a real grasp on what therianthropy is resort to gear and quads to sort of prove that they are “a real therian”, especially if they have only learned about therians from YouTube and TikTok. At least in my experience that’s what I’m seeing. But don’t get me wrong, gear and quads aren’t bad at all and can be super fun!
(2024-04-05 13:56)Aspen on Pawrs Wrote: [ -> ]2) I agree with that to. I do feel like a lot of newly awakened therians who don’t have a real grasp on what therianthropy is resort to gear and quads to sort of prove that they are “a real therian”, especially if they have only learned about therians from YouTube and TikTok. At least in my experience that’s what I’m seeing. But don’t get me wrong, gear and quads aren’t bad at all and can be super fun!
yes exactly! gear is a huge comfort to me but that doesn't mean it "makes you a therian"