Otherkin

[S0ren]

Just out of curiosity - what do you mean by trans otherkin? Do you mean you transgender and otherkin or something else? I am kind of confused as otherkin is not the same being transgender.

 

I am FTM transgender myself - and I don't see sparkle's refusal to use pronouns like catself ect. as transphobic because cat -wolf ect are not genders.

Yo, trans Otherkin here. I'm male-leaning nonbinary, transitioning to be read as male. I'm also Otherkin on top of that. I don't use nounself pronouns specifically because of all the controversy surrounding them, but I really love the sound of faeself prounouns (something I knew was being used by non-Otherkin nonbinary people for over a year now). I want to use them, but I don't want to get into a fight with people over it on a daily basis worse than getting them to use he/him or they/them, yaknow?

[High Lord November]

Some otherkin use species in place of gender, for whatever reason. I don't see how it's still an issue.

 

Okay, here's the thing though: how does it hurt the community? How does someone's personal identity affect the trans community in any way? It costs $0.00 to use someone's pronouns, regardless of how you feel about them.

"Pronouns" are a collection of short, general words I can use to refer to specific people without having to use their name all the time. They're supposed to be fast and understandable and not interrupt the flow of conversation. And they use gender (or lack of) as an indicator. Using specie names is really weird because I don't do that with anything on this planet, regardless of what you are. This is something highly specific to this group in particular and I don't see why it's absolutely necessary for that to change.

[rabbithaver]

Have you considered being angry at the cis people being dicks than the nonbinary people who just want to be left alone? You cannot seriously be blaming trans otherkin for cis people being horrible.

 

Anywho, I'm leaving this thread. It's stressing me out in real life and aggravating my mental illnesses. I've tried twice now to make people understand my point of view, but I know my beliefs can be seen as extreme. I will admit I am biased. I have friends and a lot of emotional investment in the otherkin community and it hurts me when I can't communicate how much it means to me. This thread is affecting me in real life to the point where I have not been able to function in three days. I apologize if I came off as rude at all, that is genuinely not my intent, and I apologize if I offended anyone.

[Slater_C]

Lol like what if........

 

You ask someone to use a neopronoun and they politely decline for whatever reason...you say kay we still cool? And they say hella ofc we are! And you both didn't make each other uncomfortable??? 8DDD

 

 

[Lady_Lunevis]

Lol like what if........

 

You ask someone to use a neopronoun and they politely decline for whatever reason...you say kay we still cool? And they say hella ofc we are! And you both didn't make each other uncomfortable??? 8DDD

yes pls

 

personally, for me, i can't say much bc i'm comfortable with the gender i was assigned with, so i'm probably coming off as privileged but

 

tht's the way it is a lot??? i'm out as otherkin to my closest friends, but only two out of ten actually consent to using fae/faer/faerself with me. i'm okay with that--and admittedly, i do feel closer to those friends since i feel comfortable with fae. those that don't accept it as a pronoun, i'm fine with she/they.

 

overall, it comes down to personal preference and whether the person in question matters to you or not. i'm begging you, though, please don't completely hate on otherkin as that's discrimination in a way. i'm fine if you don't want to use my pronouns since i accept that this is not a perfect world, but please don't completely wipe us out either as that's really hurtful.

[birdzgoboom]

Have you considered being angry at the cis people being dicks than the nonbinary people who just want to be left alone? You cannot seriously be blaming trans otherkin for cis people being horrible.

You also cannot blame cis people of 'being d***s' for not wanting to use nounself pronouns.

This is also assuming that all people not wanting to use nounself pronouns are cisgendered, which is obviously not the case here.

 

Blaming cis people for everything is being just as rude as those who do not take being transgendered seriously. Cis people should not be used as scapegoats for every argument.

 

On the topic of nounself pronouns... they are confusing and defeat the purpose of pronouns. I speak both German and English (and I have difficulties keeping both languages separate), and I honestly do not want things to get any more confusing, thanks... so please do not call me transphobic or whatever simply because I cannot keep up with nounself pronouns, that is unfair.

 

You ask someone to use a neopronoun and they politely decline for whatever reason...you say kay we still cool? And they say hella ofc we are! And you both didn't make each other uncomfortable??? 8DDD

I love the way you put this. C:

 

I wanted to stay out of this topic, but bleh, I've been stalking it long enough so now I've said my piece.

Edited March 21, 2015 by birdzgoboom

[gyiyg]

I was going to say more but it's pretty clear that none of you want to listen so I'm disengaging too, see ya

[S0ren]

You ask someone to use a neopronoun and they politely decline for whatever reason...you say kay we still cool? And they say hella ofc we are! And you both didn't make each other uncomfortable??? 8DDD

 

Most of what I've seen on this on other sites (and IRL) has been "Hey, I have these neopronouns, but if you're not cool with/don't think you can remember them, I also use *insert 'normal' preferred pronouns*"

Edited March 21, 2015 by S0ren

[Slater_C]

yes pls

 

personally, for me, i can't say much bc i'm comfortable with the gender i was assigned with, so i'm probably coming off as privileged but

 

tht's the way it is a lot??? i'm out as otherkin to my closest friends, but only two out of ten actually consent to using fae/faer/faerself with me. i'm okay with that--and admittedly, i do feel closer to those friends since i feel comfortable with fae. those that don't accept it as a pronoun, i'm fine with she/they.

 

overall, it comes down to personal preference and whether the person in question matters to you or not. i'm begging you, though, please don't completely hate on otherkin as that's discrimination in a way. i'm fine if you don't want to use my pronouns since i accept that this is not a perfect world, but please don't completely wipe us out either as that's really hurtful.

THIS.

Is beautiful.

 

I have to admit out of fear of being attacked, I didn't post earlier how I feel about the subject as a whole. Me personally, I don't associate with Otherkin. I feel about it how I feel about most religions: I may not agree with it, and it's not my cup of tea, but to each their own and I can totally respect that! Just don't push your views on me and I certainly won't do the same.

 

I'm also one of those people that would probably politely decline using a neopronoun. It just makes me feel awkward as I'm not associated with Otherkin at all. I can understand the awkwardness goes both ways though and that's why BOTH parties have to find a middle ground. It's not hurting a movement to compromise; EVERYONE should feel comfortable and I certainly want everyone to be happy and healthy (including myself, because I have to look out for myself too ya know!).

 

We can still totally be friends, we can still get along and laugh and cry together and rant to each other and have fun, have arguments, make-up and still accept each other without having to push either belief on one another. :3

[MedievalMystic]

I've read through all this twice and I'm just really confused... I thought the trans thread was confusing...

 

What the heck is a 'neopronoun'?

 

I'll cut right to the chase. I don't use 'xe' or 'xir' for anyone, nor would I, even if someone told me they preferred it. Why? Because personally it makes me feel ridiculous, like I'm speaking gibberish. Plus, I'm not going to remember. Now, when the entire globe starts saying that, then I might remember. If someone I worked with demanded that I use 'xe' or 'xir', I'd avoid them rather than say that because just makes me feel silly.

 

Now, and this is the first I've heard of this, I'm supposed to remember who's a dragon, who's a cat, who's a bird, who's a insect? It's not happening. I just won't remember. Like Lord November said, it just feels weird. Same with the 'xe' and 'xir' thing for me.

 

People can do whatever they want and live how they please. I don't care. But you can't expect the entire planet to remember what species you'd like to be referred to. To me, that's pretty unreasonable.

 

I'll stick to calling people by their user names on forums. I like my life simple.

Edited March 21, 2015 by MedievalMystic

[Ashywolf]

I have dabbled in the therian community in the past but don't so much now. It is a broad subject that covers an extremely wide variation of all sorts of mental/psychological/etc. topics which completely vary according between people (or however you would like to be called).

 

Long story short everyone has their own ideas on how it works/why it works/what they want/and how they want to be treated, so it is difficult to encompass everyone/everywere/etc. when discussing this topic. Some people branch off and create their own subclass of therianthropy/otherkin to relate to how they are specifically for instance. Then others may use this subterm for themselves, or others may come in and modify it more for a new sub classification.

 

It is definitely interesting though.

Edited March 21, 2015 by Ashywolf

[Lady_Lunevis]

THIS.

Is beautiful.

 

I have to admit out of fear of being attacked, I didn't post earlier how I feel about the subject as a whole. Me personally, I don't associate with Otherkin. I feel about it how I feel about most religions: I may not agree with it, and it's not my cup of tea, but to each their own and I can totally respect that! Just don't push your views on me and I certainly won't do the same.

 

I'm also one of those people that would probably politely decline using a neopronoun. It just makes me feel awkward as I'm not associated with Otherkin at all. I can understand the awkwardness goes both ways though and that's why BOTH parties have to find a middle ground. It's not hurting a movement to compromise; EVERYONE should feel comfortable and I certainly want everyone to be happy and healthy (including myself, because I have to look out for myself too ya know!).

 

We can still totally be friends, we can still get along and laugh and cry together and rant to each other and have fun, have arguments, make-up and still accept each other without having to push either belief on one another. :3

im cry thANK YOU

 

yeah same i'm a lil scared here bc i know it is fair discussion but i'm tiny and prone to crying

 

!!!! yes!!!! please!!! thank you so much like bless

 

it does fit in with religion; pushing otherkin views on someone is a little like whoa calmato but saying smth like "otherkin doesn't exist u all need help" is rly,, no,,,

pls look out for yourself!! being healthy & happy is rly important above all yea h i agree

 

exactly; if ur rly friends, then them being otherkin shouldn't bother you. if you dont wanna use the pronouns, then don't use them; use he/she/they or their name and it's all good,,,

 

~

 

but also ??? pls don't tell them /not/ to use their pronouns bc what they do is their business and i can understand someone not wanting to personally use neopronouns to refer to someone but telling them to completely not use it is, kinda, not, good, pls don't do that thank u goodnight don't hate me

 

I have dabbled in the therian community in the past but don't so much now. It is a broad subject that covers an extremely wide variation of all sorts of mental/psychological/etc. topics which completely vary according between people (or however you would like to be called).

 

Long story short everyone has their own ideas on how it works/why it works/what they want/and how they want to be treated, so it is difficult to encompass everyone/everywere/etc. when discussing this topic. Some people branch off and create their own subclass of therianthropy/otherkin to relate to how they are specifically for instance. Then others may use this subterm for themselves, or others may come in and modify it more for a new sub classification.

 

It is definitely interesting though.

 

yes!! its an interesting subject and everyone can have their own opinion. i'm not going to dab into fictionkin bc tht's even more controversial than otherkin, but generally sometimes otherkin is used as something to help cope with mental illness such as depression, so it does involve certain mental/psychological aspects.

 

idk i could sit here and ramble about what exactly being otherkin means to me, but tht's a rly long paragraph rest in peace

Edited March 21, 2015 by Lady_Lunevis

[S0ren]

Now, and this is the first I've heard of this, I'm supposed to remember who's a dragon, who's a cat, who's a bird, who's a insect? It's not happening. I just won't remember. Like Lord November said, it just feels weird. Same with the 'xe' and 'xir' thing for me.

 

People can do whatever they want and live how they please. I don't care. But you can't expect the entire planet to remember what species you'd like to be referred to. To me, that's pretty unreasonable.

Nobody's really asking you to remember, their kintype, I don't think. That's really just the same as asking you to remember some obscure interest you don't share. It's really just something that people who are especially close tend to remember about one another.

[MedievalMystic]

Nobody's really asking you to remember, their kintype, I don't think. That's really just the same as asking you to remember some obscure interest you don't share. It's really just something that people who are especially close tend to remember about one another.

 

Understood.

[rabbithaver]

Okay now that I've recovered I want to seriously apologize. Looking over my previous post I was sarcastic, aggressive, and unmovable in my views. Believe it or not that's really out of character for me. I genuinely am sorry if I hurt anyone, and I realize I was wrong on many things. I don't know everything. I'm horrible at communication, and I never have been any good at understanding other people.

 

You can absolutely be friends with someone who is otherkin and not agree with it. You can absolutely work with them to figure out pronouns that work for both of you. I was wrong to say anything else.

[TehUltimateMage]

Moving away from the controversial pronouns, I want to kind of describe my experiences.

 

I don't identify as otherkin, but I believe I might have if I were exposed to tumblr's (or some other site's) otherkin community. I like to imagine feeling the wind in my phantom ears when I'm walking, and my tail swish around when I'm bored, but I don't consider them a fundamental part of myself (if that makes any sense?).

 

I also write a lot and have a vivid imagination with strong empathy (when I read books or write RP posts, I step into the shoes of characters easily and almost feel what they feel) but none of them speak to me on a spiritual level. I feel as if I'm not 'true' otherkin because I'm not a believer.

[rabbithaver]

No, friend, I understand. I feel you. My friend Laney is otherkin, but she is not at all a spiritual person. She even experiences astral limbs like what you mentioned!. I cannot stress enough that there is no one wrong way to be otherkin. For some it's just, "oh, hey! I am this thing!" and that's good enough. <3 If you want to talk more about this you can message me, I feel I know enough about the otherkin community othat I can help you out.

[Nieske]

Moving away from the controversial pronouns, I want to kind of describe my experiences.

 

I don't identify as otherkin, but I believe I might have if I were exposed to tumblr's (or some other site's) otherkin community. I like to imagine feeling the wind in my phantom ears when I'm walking, and my tail swish around when I'm bored, but I don't consider them a fundamental part of myself (if that makes any sense?).

 

I also write a lot and have a vivid imagination with strong empathy (when I read books or write RP posts, I step into the shoes of characters easily and almost feel what they feel) but none of them speak to me on a spiritual level. I feel as if I'm not 'true' otherkin because I'm not a believer.

Ah yes, this is the kind of posts I was hoping to find here!

 

For quite while now I have been pretty sure that I have wings (I can even flap them by moving my shoulder blades). I also love flying, or wild roller coaster rides that make me defy gravity (it might just be the adrenaline, or maybe something deeper?)

 

I don't identify as otherkin, although I have been aware of the existence of otherkin for years now.

This topic is making me curious though.

[rabbithaver]

Astral limbs are not an otherkin-centric notion, though a lot of people tend to attribute their limbs to being otherkin. That's pretty cool, though. :> My friend Michael has a similar thing with the wings!

[grimace]

Genuine question: Why are 99% of otherkin animals that are generally viewed as "cool"?

Like, if this was a thing that happened I would assume almost every single otherkin would be some sort of arthropod but instead everyone just so happens to say they are wolves and dragons.

[sparkle10184]

If 80% of known species are anthropods, where are all the anthropod kin?

[TehUltimateMage]

Genuine question: Why are 99% of otherkin animals that are generally viewed as "cool"?

Like, if this was a thing that happened I would assume almost every single otherkin would be some sort of arthropod but instead everyone just so happens to say they are wolves and dragons.

There are an abnormal amount of wolves and dragons in both otherkin and furry communities, I find. I guess it's just personal preference what people like to identify as -- and that's usually wolves or dragons because they are majestic and powerful. Feel free to argue with me if I am wrong on that regard. Why are there so may wolves? Why are they a popular choice?

 

Either that, or once upon a time there were billions of wolves and wolf souls roaming the earth.

 

I myself don't feel any connection to mythical or fictional beasts. If anything, I'd be a housecat, a small and yappy dog, or a lizard of some kind.

[rabbithaver]

I've not actually seen that in the community? I know folk who are kin with fish, birds, rabbits, deer, armadillos, and all kinds of things. There is a good chunk of wolfkin and dragonkin, though. I genuinely don't know. That's an interesting occurence.

[gyiyg]

If 80% of known species are anthropods, where are all the anthropod kin?

I'm over here :V

Cockroaches (and lots of other bugs, and spiders) are timid, you know |'D

 

(really though y'alls please don't pretend we don't exist and especially please don't do it to try to discredit other otherkin's experiences that's not really cool)

Edited March 21, 2015 by Pika_Oi

[Lady_Lunevis]

There are an abnormal amount of wolves and dragons in both otherkin and furry communities, I find. I guess it's just personal preference what people like to identify as -- and that's usually wolves or dragons because they are majestic and powerful. Feel free to argue with me if I am wrong on that regard. Why are there so may wolves? Why are they a popular choice?

 

Either that, or once upon a time there were billions of wolves and wolf souls roaming the earth.

 

I myself don't feel any connection to mythical or fictional beasts. If anything, I'd be a housecat, a small and yappy dog, or a lizard of some kind.

yeah, i agree with this!! this is my personal thought, too, but i think generally people identify with those creatures more since they're viewed as leaders, powerful, and the like. oddi is right too; there's a lot of otherkin who identify as much more than just dragons and wolves and what you see as more common. overall, it's just up to the person and what they feel is best for them!