“Am I a therian?”
Therianthropy isn’t an acquired trait. It isn’t something you can see and go ‘oh I really want to be that, therefore I am.’ It’s totally reasonable to want to be a therian–humans in general long to feel connected to something, particularly our anthropomorphic view of the natural world. We see courage in lions, cunning in snakes, and innocence in songbirds. Many feel a deep connection to these images. But that on its own doesn’t make you a therian.
No, what you’re experiencing is called otherheartedness, and is a fairly common experience, from what I’ve seen. Sometimes otherhearted people have a deep longing to be their hearttype, or feel connected to them on a spiritual level. Therianthropy is a different thing altogether. It’s looking at a set of experiences you’ve had over your lifetime and saying “these behaviors and sensations correspond with those of X animal.” There’s no need for an emotional connection because you are that animal, a case of literal empathy rather than sympathy.
Sometimes I see people on Tumblr saying “oh, I’ve had a phantom/mental/etc shift and I think it was wings, am I a bird therian?” or “I see a trait of my own reflected in a cat, am I a cat therian?” And while yes, these things can be indicative of a theriotype, experiencing them on a one-off basis means it’s probably a case of shifter’s disease or a cameo shift. As the old adage goes, “One experience does not a kintype make.” Please don’t put too much meaning into a singular experience only to find out it was a cameo shift down the road, like I have done in the past.
I want to stress the fact that it’s perfectly okay to be 100% human. It’s normal to associate yourself with nature, and it’s normal to wish to be nonhuman. There are drawbacks to being a therian–homesickness, dysphoria, or distracting mental shifts. I guess my point is to not jump to conclusions. Your experiences are unique and enlightening, and you can learn and grow from them as they are. Don’t force them to be something they’re not.
