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Preteens

Parenting a preteen can be a minefield. Find support here.

What the fuck are Theriens?

371 replies

Yappucino · 23/07/2024 21:56

My youngest DD (10) has taken a liking to jumping like an animal in the garden, drawing foxes, and wants me to buy her a mask and tail for her 11th birthday. She claims she's a "Therien" and feels like an animal. Apparently a few kids her age have gotten into it.

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Ihopeithinkiknow · 25/07/2024 23:33

Yappucino · 24/07/2024 14:48

UPDATE!
I talked to her, she said she knows that she's a human and still considers herself one, but being a Therian makes her happy and she only wants to do animal stuff when she's playing. Still find it extremely weird, but relieved to know it's only for fun and kids will be kids.

lol I love that your update is that your daughter knows she is a human lol I bet that's something you never thought you would have to type. When my daughter was 11 she asked me for a realistic looking dinosaur mask but that was only so she could hide round corners and scare the shit out of me and her brother haha it was relentless but we fell for it every time lol not sure what my reaction would be if she started identifying as an animal though, she is 14 now and I would say her spirit animal is definitely a sloth lol

pandasorous · 25/07/2024 23:41

@Wysteria123 do you think you feel like this possibly because you have difficulty relating to humans but find animals easier to relate to as they more direct/ straight forward?

have you had any therapy?

TeaGinandFags · 25/07/2024 23:43

This
https://intraspectrum-chicago.com/therians-in-therapy-otherkin-identity-mental-health/#:~:text=What%20is%20a%20therian%3F,polar%20bear%2C%20or%20even%20earthworm.

Tell your 10 yr old that she's a human being and can't change. That's fantasy. However, if she wants to pretend then that's fine.

It sounds like social contagion. She may also be wanting to flex some independence muscle or keep in with the cool kids. Playing along will redirect the rebelliousness. Or get her into ponies. Ponies protect her from boys when she's 14. Money well spent!

Good luck! 🍀

Therians in Therapy: Otherkin Identity & Mental Health - IntraSpectrum

Authored by Vilte Baliutaviciute, MA, LPC, a member of the IntraSpectrum Counseling clinical team. What does it mean to identify as human? Or not to? It’s not a question that...

https://intraspectrum-chicago.com/therians-in-therapy-otherkin-identity-mental-health#:~:text=What%20is%20a%20therian%3F,polar%20bear%2C%20or%20even%20earthworm.

EnglishBluebell · 25/07/2024 23:54

@Wysteria123 You really need to grow up. You're a human being and nothing more. Put all of this energy and focus into getting help and building your life back together again.

EnglishBluebell · 25/07/2024 23:55

@Dressinggowntime Why on EARTH** are you allowing your 10 year old child onto TikTok ffs????

PontiacFirebird · 26/07/2024 00:08

I mean…. If you do one parenty thing right just keep your young kids off the damn internet people. That’s all.

Incakewetrust · 26/07/2024 00:09

@Tosstyhat after having two kids and a lifelong love of cake, I definitely identify as a manatee 😂

veritasverity · 26/07/2024 00:35

LaMadameCholet · 25/07/2024 22:43

Actually @Wysteria123, I have questions. How can a Therian possibly relate to a past life as a dragon when dragons are mythical creatures?
Are Therian notions of animal behaviours based on actual zoology or Disneyfied notions of animal behaviour?

Well to be fair there are dragons; beaded dragons, Komodo dragons, Chinese water dragons and frilled dragons.
Although I don't think you'd really want to harness the spirit of a Komodo dragon; apparently their breath stinks!

Ghosttofu99 · 26/07/2024 00:38

Foxlover46 · 25/07/2024 23:04

I thought this has been a "thing " for a few years now ! I remember being a dinner lady and the year 6 kids claiming to be therians ( mostly cats ) and this was before lockdown

There is also a non related series of popular kids books about cats that all the kids I know (under 10) are playing at atm but that is just normal, age appropriate, imaginary play as far as I can tell. It’s fairly normal for younger kids to go through this phase.

What is worrying is the older tweenagers being drawn into an online world where they are encouraged to view older adults as more trustworthy than their real family which is classic grooming.

Where I live the animal costume people parade through town every so often. It seems harmless and fun but at the same time the costumes are very appealing to young kids which doesn’t quite sit right. It could easily be used as a way of gaining a child’s trust as usually a person in a costume is representing a charity or a kids entertainer etc

JFDIYOLO · 26/07/2024 00:59

Does she have any real pets?
Cleaning up after them might help.

ReadtheReviews · 26/07/2024 01:07

You could talk about older cultures that believed in having animal spirit guides? Make it an exercise in R.E. and remove the idea that it's a new thing old people don't get. But make clear that it doesn't mean she IS that animal but instead connects with some of its symbolic traits. It can be her totem.

ReadtheReviews · 26/07/2024 01:13

@LaMadameCholet nearly spat out my tea at wolves not needing paragraphs.

yasminandtheredrose · 26/07/2024 01:38

The world has gone fucking bonkers

glittercunt · 26/07/2024 01:42

People seem to forget or choose to ignore that our world is full of things based on belief, faith, feelings, urges, interests.

Dressing as schoolgirls is a kink for some. Do we ban schools or uniforms?

We have multiple faiths across the globe. All based on belief, ideology.

Some of us diverge from the heteronormative path.

Some are dual spirit, trans, non binary, etc.

Some people are just super mega into anime or games and live for cosplay and conventions.

Some people find escapism in things like furries, therians, reenactment, LARP groups.

Many have hobbies with quirks.

Some people can and will take anything and make it a fetish; it doesn't mean that that thing is therefore primarily a fetish. But adults may be more inclined to turn to fetishism because as adults we work differently to children and sometimes incorporate sexual elements. It's just important that if that's happening, in any setting, interest, hobby or group, that it's completely separate to anything involving younger enthusiasts.

No-one needs banning from anime, just check content before allowing it to be watched or read.

No-one needs to ban therians and furries, for the majority it's a harmless means of escapism or incorporates into spiritualism.

We are a massive planet filled with all sorts of crazy or fun or odd or different things. Most things aren't sinister.

My youngest has dabbled in the therian thing, she likes to wear a mask and tail and do quads sometimes. Mostly we just sit around decorating the masks and drawing together and she tells me about her favourite animals.

If you continue to monitor what your kids are accessing, and who they associate with, they should be safe from the real dangers lurking.

Wysteria123 · 26/07/2024 03:43

In response to lots of replies, @pandasorous no, I am not in therapy and I do not need it, also I DO as well as can relate more to my thereotypes than human. @LaMadameCholet I get that alot, tere are some therians called otherkins who's thereotypes/kintypes are mythical creatures, maybe existing in ancient times or perhaps a parallel universe. @sagalooshoe Nope, I don't like ripping apart rabbits, (yuck) but one of my favourite meals is macaroni cheese, and I use a real toilet. @BellaTheDarkOverlord @Tosstyhat @sagalooshoe I have a therian friend whose thereotype is a golden dart frog, actually. @chickennoodless If you're a therian you can mostly tell your thereotype through shifts and past memories. For example, I figured out I was a cross fox when I had a shift in my garden while one of my friends was round and I saw myself as one, I also had a past memory quite recently where I was in a meadow (tbh being an animal was much better than being a human), and I was a cross fox then, although thereotypes can switch in shifts (as in you can shift into different thereotypes). A shift is when your mental or literally any other state except physical is an animal's. We don't choose when we have it, it just comes to us and when in a shift therians will not respond to their name or know where they are, and when they come out of their shift they won't know what happened. It's possible for you to be a therian without having shifts or past life memories, but most have them. @EnglishBluebell I KNOW I'm human, I KNOW I'm not an animal, I was reincarnated as a human and also my life is just fine, I have plenty of friends who all care for me and defend my therianthropy(with some also being therians themselves) and no one can interfere with it. Anyone here believe in reincarnation? Therianthropy's sort of like that. I was reincarnated as a human from my thereotypes.

DrJump · 26/07/2024 03:47

Wysteria123 · 26/07/2024 03:43

In response to lots of replies, @pandasorous no, I am not in therapy and I do not need it, also I DO as well as can relate more to my thereotypes than human. @LaMadameCholet I get that alot, tere are some therians called otherkins who's thereotypes/kintypes are mythical creatures, maybe existing in ancient times or perhaps a parallel universe. @sagalooshoe Nope, I don't like ripping apart rabbits, (yuck) but one of my favourite meals is macaroni cheese, and I use a real toilet. @BellaTheDarkOverlord @Tosstyhat @sagalooshoe I have a therian friend whose thereotype is a golden dart frog, actually. @chickennoodless If you're a therian you can mostly tell your thereotype through shifts and past memories. For example, I figured out I was a cross fox when I had a shift in my garden while one of my friends was round and I saw myself as one, I also had a past memory quite recently where I was in a meadow (tbh being an animal was much better than being a human), and I was a cross fox then, although thereotypes can switch in shifts (as in you can shift into different thereotypes). A shift is when your mental or literally any other state except physical is an animal's. We don't choose when we have it, it just comes to us and when in a shift therians will not respond to their name or know where they are, and when they come out of their shift they won't know what happened. It's possible for you to be a therian without having shifts or past life memories, but most have them. @EnglishBluebell I KNOW I'm human, I KNOW I'm not an animal, I was reincarnated as a human and also my life is just fine, I have plenty of friends who all care for me and defend my therianthropy(with some also being therians themselves) and no one can interfere with it. Anyone here believe in reincarnation? Therianthropy's sort of like that. I was reincarnated as a human from my thereotypes.

Edited

Not being able to respond to your own name suggest a huge split from reality. This is really worring.

Wysteria123 · 26/07/2024 03:51

@DrJump That's only when we're in the stateof shifting, which has to be triggered by feeling, tasting, doing, hearing or seeing something that reminds us of our past lives such as grass, climbing, swimming, seeing your thereotype (most of the time hopefully in its natural habitat).

PinkyPonkyLittleDonkey · 26/07/2024 04:15

Wysteria123 · 25/07/2024 21:22

Hi! Friendly therian talking here! Exclusing this to some people known as fake therians (you can guess from the name) fake being a therian, therianthropy is not a phase and can not be 'grown out of'. We don't choose it and we can't get rid of it, even if you wanted to. Being a therian isn't about acting like an animal as play, though most do quadrobics as a fun activity that makes them feel more animal-like.Therianthropy is when you identify as one, as many therians experience memories from their past lives as animals. On every level except physical, therians identify as their thereotypes and can relate to the animalistic behaviour of them. We do quadrobics on all fours to feel morre connected to our thereotypes, with mine being Northern Rocky Mountain Wolf, Scottish Fold, Cross Fox and Dragon. (Yes, you can have multiple thereotypes.) Being a therian isn't created by the internet, you are born with therianthropy, but seeing videos on platforms such as YouTube and TikTok might encourage you you're not alone in how you're feeling, that there are others just like you, and you don't feel so scared anymore. Therianthropy is also NOT from any TV shows, it is REAL LIFE, not just some thing we made up. It is us. We are it. Just like you could be autistic (which I am) or dyslexic, you are born with it and it's not inspired by anything other than our inner souls. But one thing I ask you, if your child comes out to you saying they're a therian or anything that is considered 'weird' by some of the community-whether they're a furry or quadrobist or in the LGBTQ+ community (which I myself am), please, please, please support them. It means so much to them if you support them, that they don't have to hide anything from you, that they feel safe, that they can be themselves and be free around you instead of trapped by those unspoken rules that make up 'the norm', and even if you try to beat it out of them, it's not going to work. Thanks for reading, and please no hate! 😺

Edited

What the hell?

PinkyPonkyLittleDonkey · 26/07/2024 04:18

Yappucino · 25/07/2024 22:31

exactly how i feel about it. its almost guaranteed a phase.

I mean this in the kindest possible way, but you're being too lazy to deal with it head on. It's easier to convince yourself that it's just a phase than to actually address the issue properly. You have a chance to correct the course, do it now or you'll be back here within a few years asking where it all went wrong.

Sunblocker · 26/07/2024 04:19

Wysteria123 · 26/07/2024 03:43

In response to lots of replies, @pandasorous no, I am not in therapy and I do not need it, also I DO as well as can relate more to my thereotypes than human. @LaMadameCholet I get that alot, tere are some therians called otherkins who's thereotypes/kintypes are mythical creatures, maybe existing in ancient times or perhaps a parallel universe. @sagalooshoe Nope, I don't like ripping apart rabbits, (yuck) but one of my favourite meals is macaroni cheese, and I use a real toilet. @BellaTheDarkOverlord @Tosstyhat @sagalooshoe I have a therian friend whose thereotype is a golden dart frog, actually. @chickennoodless If you're a therian you can mostly tell your thereotype through shifts and past memories. For example, I figured out I was a cross fox when I had a shift in my garden while one of my friends was round and I saw myself as one, I also had a past memory quite recently where I was in a meadow (tbh being an animal was much better than being a human), and I was a cross fox then, although thereotypes can switch in shifts (as in you can shift into different thereotypes). A shift is when your mental or literally any other state except physical is an animal's. We don't choose when we have it, it just comes to us and when in a shift therians will not respond to their name or know where they are, and when they come out of their shift they won't know what happened. It's possible for you to be a therian without having shifts or past life memories, but most have them. @EnglishBluebell I KNOW I'm human, I KNOW I'm not an animal, I was reincarnated as a human and also my life is just fine, I have plenty of friends who all care for me and defend my therianthropy(with some also being therians themselves) and no one can interfere with it. Anyone here believe in reincarnation? Therianthropy's sort of like that. I was reincarnated as a human from my thereotypes.

Edited

“I had a shift in my garden”
Real foxes do this in mine too…😂

AccountCreateUsername · 26/07/2024 04:24

Wysteria123 · 26/07/2024 03:43

In response to lots of replies, @pandasorous no, I am not in therapy and I do not need it, also I DO as well as can relate more to my thereotypes than human. @LaMadameCholet I get that alot, tere are some therians called otherkins who's thereotypes/kintypes are mythical creatures, maybe existing in ancient times or perhaps a parallel universe. @sagalooshoe Nope, I don't like ripping apart rabbits, (yuck) but one of my favourite meals is macaroni cheese, and I use a real toilet. @BellaTheDarkOverlord @Tosstyhat @sagalooshoe I have a therian friend whose thereotype is a golden dart frog, actually. @chickennoodless If you're a therian you can mostly tell your thereotype through shifts and past memories. For example, I figured out I was a cross fox when I had a shift in my garden while one of my friends was round and I saw myself as one, I also had a past memory quite recently where I was in a meadow (tbh being an animal was much better than being a human), and I was a cross fox then, although thereotypes can switch in shifts (as in you can shift into different thereotypes). A shift is when your mental or literally any other state except physical is an animal's. We don't choose when we have it, it just comes to us and when in a shift therians will not respond to their name or know where they are, and when they come out of their shift they won't know what happened. It's possible for you to be a therian without having shifts or past life memories, but most have them. @EnglishBluebell I KNOW I'm human, I KNOW I'm not an animal, I was reincarnated as a human and also my life is just fine, I have plenty of friends who all care for me and defend my therianthropy(with some also being therians themselves) and no one can interfere with it. Anyone here believe in reincarnation? Therianthropy's sort of like that. I was reincarnated as a human from my thereotypes.

Edited

Am I missing something? You ARE already an animal, a great ape… that’s special too!

Wysteria123 · 26/07/2024 04:37

@AccountCreateUsername I don't think that's how it works...I don't believe in evolution anyway.

RickyGervaislovesdogs · 26/07/2024 04:39

Fucking hell. “Throws iPad in bin.”

FacingTheWall · 26/07/2024 04:55

@Wysteria123 you're wrong about you not needing therapy.

marshmallowboy · 26/07/2024 04:56

Um, err, Goodness. @Wysteria123 do you see a doctor at all. You seem well , unwell. Scottish Fold cats have only been around since the 1960's. So this is a new thing but the mythical dragon is old ( or new as it's mythical it doesn't really matter).
Can you name me a fact about a wolf without googling?