Therian Guide: Forums

The discussion linking therianthropy with those who are in some way associated with Asperger's (which is now officially simply referred to as "in the autistic spectrum") is a thought I've had several times.

It's strange, as a female talking about Asperger's because there isn't much research conducted on women in general in this topic. I've read a lot about the history of this identification within the Autistic spectrum and most of the infinitesimal research on the subject is recorded in males.

(that's not my point at all. Just wanted to state for history purposes that those who have never read of such a thing that it may be just as prevalent in women as in men, it's just not recorded as much currently)

I'm interested in reviving this conversation if anyone else is interested in joining in, but I'd like to pose a new hypothesis... Could it also be potentially tied to depression and coping mechanisms?

I don't believe I have met a single person on this site who has not (from my limited interactions with people here, admittedly) said that they have had depression and quite possibly still do.

Animals are used quite regularly in all kinds of therapy. Take therapy dogs on college campuses for example, one of the most effective methods universities have developed yet, besides offering classes such as yoga and creating de-stressing facilities to aid with anxiety.

Is it quite possible that in some way all of us, as children, identified ourselves personality wise with a certain kind of animal because either we shared those qualities, or found great comfort in them so much so that we began to embody their qualities as we grew.

Some people create imaginary friends, others find strength in nature because, while primal... it's primal qualities are also what make it so revered and admirable in some ways. It represents a kind of strength that at times we had to dissociate from ourselves and hold onto something more essential within the global genomes (whatever that may be).

In some ways, though most of us are very protected as humans, more so than animals... Within every animal is a desire to survive, and when it seems like there's no other human to cling to, we find other things that we admire.

I 100% agree that no one chooses to be therian, but within that, I'd like to pose the idea that we grow in those ways because of our experiences in life. Pain, at times, is the most artistic and diverse teacher when it comes to thriving in the world (or at the very least, coping with it).

Have you ever noticed the personality of the animal you identify with coming forth in your day-to-day interactions and why do you suppose that is?

I would think that we have a predisposition to grow in those ways. People say, "Nature or nurture" but like Prof. Gerald E. Schneider emphasizes in the MIT course on animal behavior, it's always both.

Many Weres, like myself wasn't exposed to any more or different pain than the Mainstreamers around us growing up. Growing up is problematic - stressors trigger adaptation and maturing is adaptation. But how people adapt is tied to how they're constructed - what they're made of.

Yeeeeah. It's generally been in the "were creed" (yep, I'm joking) that we know we're human but that there's something about us that isn't human. For sooth, 'tis that we have a human bodkin. DNA and all that.

There are people who do actually believe that they physically shift into other beings. I've met a few and the ones I've met are quite aware of their schizophrenia.

Now, if by "human" one means "homo sapiens" I'm not totally convinced that we are. I strongly suspect that therianthropy is a product of homo Neanderthalensis. But some would call h.N human so I will demure (I know, when have I ever been demure? Just sayin'.)