animal in disguise

And almost all the comments were like "what do you mean you "stopped being a therian"? Therianthropy is forever!"

Who...who told them that? Where did this idea come from? Becuase it is very much not true! I have said it before and I will say it again: identity, in every sense of the word, is fluid. What labels you use, how you style you clothes and hair, even down to what food you like to eat, all of that has the possibility to change over the course of your life.

There will be aspects of yourself that will stick with you for your whole life, but there are plenty of other things that will change over time. Including alterhumanity.

So, if you see someone promoting the idea that "therianthropy is forever, you can't stop being a therian." I encourage you to try and educate them, becuase I think this way of thinking can and will be harmful to young therians. If someone in the community finds themselves changing their mind about their identity, they might get it in their head that they have to "stay a therian or else they were never valid." (Again, very much not true!!)

It's really funny cause I'll post about the most random shit imaginable and then it gets like 500 notes???

I am. I simply am. Therianthropy is an involuntary experience, so why would I say I “identify” as a dog and a horse??

I tell people that I AM a dog and I AM a horse.

Be it feeling half human half not, a little creature pretending to be a human or some other arrangement,

If you're unfamiliar, which you're probably not, the 5 senses technique, or 5-4-3-2-1 technique, is meant to be an exercise that helps one recover from a panic or anxiety attack; name 5 things you can see, 4 things you can feel, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell and 1 thing you can taste.

Just speaking for myself here, as a nonhuman, I tend to prioritize different senses than a human does. Not even referring to sensory shifts; just constantly during daily life I notice auditory input over other types. I've tried the 5 senses technique before and it never worked, so I assumed it was some pop psychology therapy-speak bs.

I'm more likely to be paying attention to my auditory or olfactory environment than my visual one. Sounds and scents will take my mental focus more than sights.

I'm a polytherian across multiple phyla so it's not 1 to 1 what senses are more important to me. Taste seems least important to me because I'm a bird, but despite being a bird, vision is less important to me than it would be for others because I'm also an arthropod, because I'm an arthropod tactile feeling is really important to me but despite being a bug I'm also a mustelid so hearing is important, etc. If I had to redesign this process just for me personally, it would be more like this:

5 things I can hear

4 things I can feel

3 things I can smell

2 things I can see

1 thing I can taste

And I did, and it worked. If you're non/alterhuman and you've ever tried this process and it didn't work, take a moment and really give some thought to what senses your mind instinctively prioritizes over others; it may be different for you than it is for typical humans.

A list of shout outs to people who experiences things that are often looked down upon by the community.

Shout out to those with violent urges

Shout out to those who actually hunt/want to

Shout out to those with delusions or other mental illnesses

Shout out to those who want to attack something/someone

Shout out to those who feel more comfortable nude

Shout out to those who want to live in the wild

Shout out to those with kinks/fetishes related to their identity

Shout out to those who want to live/be treated like an animal

Shout out to those with "ugly", "gross", or "nasty" 'types

Shout out to those who want to sh because of their identity

Shout out to those who want raw meat

Shout out to those who like gore

Shout out to any "negative" experiences I've missed

Shout out to those who feel guilty for some/all these things

Shout out to those who don't.

Being alterhuman, nonhuman, etc. isn't just identifying as a cute little creature. When your identity leaves you often outcast by society, it can carry some pretty dark and/or negative traits. It's simply our nature as alter-beings, and we should learn to except ourselves and others for having these experiences.

I understand some of you may be triggered by dark, gorey, or generally morbid things, but that doesn't mean you should look down on or discriminate against those who deal with those experiences. There is a dark side to being alterhuman. Always has been.