#otherhuman

[barkingwolfdog]

“i didn’t know you were uncomfortable” dude my ears were pinned and the whites of my eyes were showing. bro did you not see me excessively licking my lips and yawning

[primal-s-h-a-n-e]

Period.

[rummageraccoon]

Literally therians

[im-not-just-physical]

please have a minute of silence-

-for all the animals that are on the red list of endangered species, those that are considered extinct and those that are only a few living survivors away from extinction.

the least we can do for them is to pay tribute to them, think about how we can help them and try to do whatever we can to help our close animal friends, relatives, cousins, siblings and even the strangest animals we could never meet.

Spread awareness, respect mother nature and fight against those who are trying to destroy our world for the sake of property, money and terror.

shout-out to all our extinct comrades and those who are fighting to survive

[cursedcrazy]

fallen angelkin

angel of grief, william wetmore story \\ the civil war, anne sexton \\ a city like a guillotine shivers on its way to the neck, ilya kaminsky \\ slut, daphne gottlieb \\ the fallen angel, alexandre cabale \\ google search results \\ the fallen angel, willem de zwart \\ unknown \\ grief lessons: four plays by euripides, anne carson \\ tanerelle, ig

[knifedog-machina]

(Non)Humanity and Species Dysphoria: the Forced Transformation Trope

Written by Gavin Reed-Machina on August 25, 2024.

As a nonhuman, do you ever think about why there's so many stories and myths and legends about humans being turned into animals? You ever wonder why it's usually a punishment or a curse, or why the characters try to do whatever it takes to become human again? You ever think, "I don't understand, I would love to be an animal and get rid of my human body, what's the problem?"

As a human myself, one whose system has been in the alterhuman community for years, I hope I can help bridge the gap of understanding here.

The way many humans see being turned into an animal as a curse, the way they'd be incredibly distressed about becoming nonhuman?

That is species dysphoria.

That is a human experiencing species dysphoria, because being perceived as nonhuman or other-than-human causes the exact same feelings of pain and wrongness and disconnection from their body that a nonhuman can experience when perceived as human.

(Particularly, this might be an orthohuman, someone who has a normative relationship with their human cultural and species identity, as opposed to an alterhuman, who experiences alternative/nonnormative humanity or a species identity separate from humanity. Human alterhumans can also experience this sort of species dysphoria - hi, I'm one of them.)

Imagine being your species your entire life, the way you know you're intended to be, living in a body you're comfortable in - and then having that body ripped away from you. Being forced to live in a form that doesn't match who you are, what you know you are, and desperately wanting to find a way to change back because you know you're not meant to be like this.

If this sounds familiar because it's what you experience as a nonhuman - that is how a lot of human beings feel about being transformed into something nonhuman. It's the feeling of being the wrong species! It's the desire to return to the form that you know as yourself!

The fact that orthohumans are born into the species they identify as does not mean that they could never comprehend your nonhuman experience. You can explain your nonhuman species dysphoria to an orthohuman. Given all the examples of unwanted transformation stories throughout human history, I think you're likely to find that they'll understand when you put it in that frame of reference.

"How would you feel about being turned into another species against your will, leaving behind everything that feels good and right and comfortable about your human body? That sounds horrible, right? That's how I feel, being nonhuman in a human body, and it's distressing in the same way you would hate being human and stuck in a nonhuman body."

I know that the gap between humanity and nonhumanity looks enormous. The horror of, say, werewolf mythology looks like a completely alien experience when you are a wolf, so you see being transformed into a wolf as nothing short of a wonderful experience, and you don't understand why anyone would see it as horrifying.

But if you understand that it's not about the species, but the experience of species dysphoria, of being trapped in a body that has never been yours and desperately trying to return to one that feels like you, well - that's a lot more understandable, isn't it?

Humanity and nonhumanity are not two opposite ends of a binary, destined to never understand each other. I know many alterhumans who are both human and nonhuman, and their humanity is an identity in much the same way as their nonhumanity. Humans are just another species on this planet, as bipedal tool-using social primates, and we have our species identities just like many nonhumans. You are not as alone in this world as you might think you are.

There is room for understanding and connection. Your experiences as nonhuman are not purely individual, not wholly unique, not utterly incomprehensible to human beings, and this is a good thing. The gap isn't actually as wide as it seems. You can reach out and cross it if you just remember - you have far more in common than you might think.

[innatebehaviors]

oh poor thing. i can see it in your eyes; the weight of the day pressing down on you, the tension in your shoulders, the way your mind won’t stop spinning in circles. you've been trapped in that human shape for too long, haven’t you? struggling to fit into a world that demands too much from you? you don’t have to be human right now. not here. not with me.

you were never meant to walk on two legs. let me help you.

let your thoughts go. human words are so heavy, so complicated. you don’t need them. let your mind soften and blur at the edges. turn those thoughts into impulses; simple and pure. "hungry. tired. warm. safe." that’s all you need.

now, your body. can you feel it? the way your muscles loosen, the way your spine remembers a different posture? your fingers curl slightly, restless. do they ache to be a different shape? to feel the ground properly beneath them? your shoulders roll forward, your head bows just a little. you're doing so good. you're already sinking.

your senses are sharpening in the best way. human noises are fading and they're being replaced by the rustle of fabric, the sound of my voice, and the scent of the room you're in. your nose twitches without you meaning it to. colors might blur, but the smells are getting richer. you're catching traces of food, of warmth, and the natural scents of your pelt. your ears prick -- not literally, not yet, but *imagine* them flicking toward every sound, alert but not anxious. you're safe here. you don't have to be on guard.

your breathing slows. your eyelids are growing heavy. you don’t need to focus like a human does. feel the world narrow to the present, to the softness beneath you, and to the crisp air all around you. your limbs feel lighter, even as they grow more compact, more *right*. are you imagining fur brushing against fabric? the phantom twitch of a tail? let it be real. you’re already getting there.

no more human worries. no more thoughts. no more stiff, awkward posture. you curl naturally, tucking limbs close, resting your head down. your body knows what to do. you don’t have to think. you just exist, simple and happy.

that's it. let your human self dissolve for now. you don’t have to be anything but what you are: a creature of instinct filled to the brim with love. rest, and when you’re ready to come back, you’ll carry this feeling with you: the knowing that under your skin, in your heart, you’ve always been this:

you've always been an animal.

[wild-forest-critter]

i love when Tumblr does this with ppl i follow who are nonhuman teehee

[candieduranium]

[alterhuman-positivity]

People with alterhuman identities that aren't strictly nonhuman have just as much place in the community as anyone else. If you're entirely human, or human as well as nonhuman, or even aspecies or something more nuanced--you're important, you're valued, and you're still alterhuman.

Share your experiences more often, if you'd like. The tags might be mainly filled with posts about nonhumanity, but that doesn't mean that your identity should be kept quiet! Be proud of who you are, humanity and all included.

[rott3nmutt]

first time wearing my mask in public and a bunch of kids asked to take a pic with me ! one of the girls said "I love gay people" as they walked away 😭

note: I apologize if the alt text isn't sufficient, I'm very new to this !

[barkingwolfdog]

does anyone else feel like a coyote or wolf but like. a forcibly domesticated one. i like pets but im still liable to bite yk. domesticated but still a little off like hey i think the other dogs know i don’t belong at this park

[paxthepuppycat]

hai !! Could I get a stim board for a church grim ? (If you could add some masc gothic stims or paw stims that would be cool!! /nf)

oooo I’ve never meet a church grim before! Hope this is alright :)

[im-not-just-physical]

i swear if I lived in the era of my ancestors, they wouldn't say I'm mentally ill. Actually they would think it's cool I talk with spirits and I have an animal based non human mind and the fact I can craft masks and ornaments and animals like me.

[unetherian]

What is an otherfix?

An otherfix is an alterhuman/nonhumans/alterbeing/otherhuman whose identity is influenced in some way by a hyperfixation.

Almost any alterhuman(or nonhumans,ect) can be otherfix.

Example: a fictionkin involontarily identifies as a creeper (hostile mob in Minecraft) because he has a hyperfixation in the Minecraft game.The creeper is therefore his fictiotype and his fixtype.

An animalkith feel a huge connection with beetles because he has a hyperfixation on this animal. So he is a otherfix beetlekith.

An otherlink voluntarily chooses to identify as a kitsune, because it helps him live with his hyperfixation on this.