#p shifters are alterhuman whether you like it or not

[aestherians]

Alterhuman Groups (v.2.0)

The alterhuman community is a lot more varied than simply the ‘kin, copinglinkers, and otherhearted we tend to see here on tumblr. Most of these groups tend to keep to private forums and mailing lists, which is why we seldom see them anywhere public.

Before moving on, the definition of alterhuman is: “A category of personal identity which encompasses identification that is alternative to the common societal idea of humanity.” It is not strictly necessary to belong to one of these groups in order to be alterhuman. Please also note that my knowledge of multiplicity is highly limited, and that any and all criticism of my descriptions is more than welcome.

With no further ado, these are the known alterhuman groups:

Copinglink A person who voluntarily chooses to identify as nonhuman, usually to better cope with depersonalization, dissociation, and similar issues. Despite the name, a copinglinker does not have to have created their copinglink solely for this reason.

Otherhearted A person who has an integral, fundamental connection to something other than human. This connection can often be summarized as a longing to be said thing, though it can also be a connection to a thing that has fundamentally changed who you are as a person or without which you wouldn’t be the same person. Synpath and otherkith are often considered synonyms. The most common symbol to represent otherhearted is the diamond heart:

Otherkin A person who identifies as a nonhuman or fictional being on a nonphysical level (i.e. metaphysically or psychologically). This is an involuntary identity, and one cannot choose to become otherkin, nor can the identity be discarded without losing an integral part of the self.

   - Fictionkin are people who identify as fictional characters or creatures. Fictionkin with fictional but human identities might choose to not identify as otherkin since their kintype is not nonhuman.    - Elvenkind are people who identify as elves. Elvenkind might choose to not identify as otherkin due to the history of the community. Elves were the first organized community of people who can be classified as otherkin, and it’s generally accepted that ‘other’ means ‘other than elf,’ not ‘other than human.’    - Divines are people who identify as angels, demons, deities, or similarly divine beings. Some divines might choose to not identify as angelkin (or whatever their respective -kin suffix might be) because it’s too vague concerning the cause and expression of their identity; some people may use specific terminology such as incarnates or godshards, for example.    - Draconics are people who identify as dragons. Draconics might choose not to identify as otherkin because their community developed separately from the elvenkin community, on Alt.Fan.Dragons.    - Therianthropes or therians are people who identify as earthly (and in some cases mythical but feral) animals. Therians might choose not to identify as otherkin because their community developed separately from the elvenkin community, on Alt.Horror.Werewolves.    - Theriomythics are people who feel that their experiences more closely align with those of therians despite identifying as mythical creatures. Theriomythics might choose to not identify as otherkin as their community developed alongside the therian community on Alt.Horror.Werewolves.    - Unicornkin are people who identify as unicorns. Unicornkin, usually referring to themselves simply as ‘unicorns’, might choose not to identify as otherkin because their community developed separately from the elvenkin community, on Always Believe.

Some people who fit the definition of otherkin might choose to reject the label for personal reasons.

The most common symbol to represent otherkin is the heptagram:

The most common symbol to represent therians is the Theta-Delta:

The most common symbol to represent phytanthropes/plantkin is the following, usually colored green: 

Vampire A person who feeds off the blood and/or energy of others, nearly always non-vampires. Most likely the oldest modern alterhuman community, originating either around 1965 (John Edgar Browning, “The Real Vampire Community: A Concise History,” 2014) or 1914 (Jim Hicks, “Transformations,” 1990). Vampires are not to be confused with vampirekin, as a vampire’s identity is physical in nature. Vampires can generally be grouped into three categories:    - Sanguinarians who feed on blood.    - Psychics who feed on energy.    - Hybrids who feed on both blood and energy. The most common symbol to represent vampires is the dagger ankh: 

Furry Lifestyler A regular furry is simply a fan of anthropomorphic animals. A furry lifestyler by comparison identifies very strongly with their fursona, often acting out the animalist behaviors of it. This might be coupled with a belief in totems, and lifestylers frequently believe that their fursona’s species chose them, not that they chose the species. The broadest, simplest and shortest definition of this concept was put forth by Renard Foxx and states simply that “A lifestyler is any person for whom furry extends beyond a simple interest and affects their daily life.”

Plurals More than one person inhabiting a single body. Anyone with more than one person sharing a body is considered a plural. In the alterhuman community, the people sharing their body will refer to each others as headmates. For some, plurality is trauma-based, and they are more than likely associated with Dissociative Identity Disorder. Recently the term ‘natural multiplicity/plurality’ has come forth as a descriptor for non-trauma based systems. Plurals can generally be sorted into three groups:   - Multiple system. The headmates are distinct, separate beings with their own personalities and thoughts. Usually incorporates the headmates sharing time in the front and cooperating with each other.   - Median system. In between singlet and plurals and share their body with fragments of themselves i.e. past lives or emotions personified. There is usually one sole fronter and the headmates are not always as distinct as with a multiple.   - Gateway system. It is believed these plurals have a headspace in another dimension/plane/reality and the headmates use the body as a gateway to interact with the world. These tend to have a very large number of headmates that come and go as they please. (source)

Starseed Starseeds believe themselves to be reincarnated aliens or inter-dimensional beings sent to Earth to make it a better place. Beliefs in abnormal spiritual powers or supernatural traits are not uncommon. A synonym is star child. There is little to no organized community of starseeds, but many individual websites and blogs. Starseeds sort themselves into three categories:    - Indigo children are the first wave of incarnated extraterrestrials.    - Crystal children are the second wave of incarnated extraterrestrials.    - Rainbow children are the third wave of incarnated extraterrestrials. Each wave serves a specific purpose in making the world a better place, according to some New-Age beliefs.

Soulbonder A person with an integral connection to a fictional character, which usually manifests in the soulbonder being able to hold conversations with the soulbond, essentially making them a headmate. A soulbond can be intentionally or unintentionally formed, and is often associated with writers/artists whose characters have ‘come to life’ in their heads. Soulbonds can be permanent or temporary, and can be projected into the physical world like a tulpa or dæmon. Some soulbonds have been known to possess their host.

Teen Wolf Teen wolves are an off-shoot of the emo subculture. They tend to dress in typical emo (or as of late, grunge) fashion with added tails, fangs, contact lenses, and collars to resemble wolves or dogs. They have a tendency to form “wolf packs” with alpha, beta, and occasionally omega ranks. They prefer to simply call themselves werewolves, living a werewolf lifestyle as best as they can, but for clarity’s sake, most people outside the subculture refer to them as teen wolves or teen werewolves. A synonym is wolf packers.

Transhumanist Transhumanism is the belief or hypotesis that the human race can evolve beyond its current physical and mental limitations, especially by means of science and technology. A transhumanist is someone who ascribes to this idea and seeks to improve on their own human self, often via (usually experimental) body modifications. The philosophy isn’t limited to just improving the human body, but also seeks to improve society. The most common symbol to represent transhumanists is the H+:

Physical shifter Though often trying to weasel their way into the otherkin community, ‘p-shifters’ don’t fit the definition of it. Otherkinity is a purely non-physical identity, and beliefs in literal shape shifting have no place in the otherkin community. Despite this, most p-shifters do genuinely identify as other than human, which would put them somewhere in the alterhuman community.