Clinical lycanthropy

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Mark Anthony Quested
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Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Mark Anthony Quested » Wed Nov 24, 2010 11:18 pm

I have argued on here and elsewhere that so called Vampyre and Werewolf / Lycan mythology may have their roots (at least in part) to mental health conditions, and that Werewolves (for example) may be age old explaination to explain away personality disorders, personality changes, etc.

Then I found this article, which in parts supports this.

Have a little read and see what you think...


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clinical_lycanthropy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Clinical lycanthropy is defined as a rare psychiatric syndrome that involves a delusion that the affected person can or has transformed into an animal or that he or she is an animal. Its name is connected to the mythical condition of lycanthropy, a supernatural affliction in which people are said to physically shapeshift into wolves. The terms zoanthropy and therianthropy are also sometimes used for the delusion that one has turned into an animal in general and not specifically a wolf.

Symptoms
Affected individuals report a delusional belief that they are in the process of transforming into an animal or have already transformed into an animal. It has been linked with the altered states of mind that accompany psychosis (the reality-bending mental state that typically involves delusions and hallucinations) with the transformation only seeming to happen in the mind and behavior of the affected person.

A study on lycanthropy from the McLean Hospital reported on a series of cases and proposed some diagnostic criteria by which lycanthropy could be recognised:

A patient reports in a moment of lucidity or looking back that he sometimes feels as an animal or has felt like one.
A patient behaves in a manner that resembles animal behavior, for example crying, grumbling, or creeping.
According to these criteria, either a delusional belief in current or past transformation or behavior that suggests a person thinks of themselves as transformed is considered evidence of clinical lycanthropy. The authors go on to note that, although the condition seems to be an expression of psychosis, there is no specific diagnosis of mental or neurological illness associated with its behavioural consequences.

It also seems that lycanthropy is not specific to an experience of human-to-wolf transformation; a wide variety of creatures have been reported as part of the shapeshifting experience. A review[1] of the medical literature from early 2004 lists over thirty published cases of lycanthropy, only the minority of which have wolf or dog themes. Canines are certainly not uncommon, although the experience of being transformed into a hyena, cat, horse, bird or tiger has been reported on more than one occasion. Transformation into frogs, and even bees, has been reported in some instances. A 1989 case study[4] described how one individual reported a serial transformation, experiencing a change from human, to dog, to horse, and then finally cat, before returning to the reality of human existence after treatment. There are also reports of people who experienced transformation into an animal only listed as "unspecified".

[edit] Proposed mechanisms
Clinical lycanthropy is a rare condition and is largely considered to be an idiosyncratic expression of a psychotic episode caused by another condition such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or clinical depression.

However, there are suggestions that certain neurological and cultural influences may lead to the expression of the human-animal transformation theme that defines the condition.

Neurological factors

One important factor may be differences or changes in parts of the brain known to be involved in representing body shape (e.g., see proprioception and body image). A neuroimaging study[5] of two people diagnosed with clinical lycanthropy showed that these areas display unusual activation, suggesting that when people report their bodies are changing shape, they may be genuinely perceiving those feelings. Body image distortions are not unknown in mental and neurological illness, so this may help explain at least part of the process. One further puzzle is why an affected person does not simply report that their body "feels like it is changing in odd ways", rather than presenting with a delusional belief that they are changing into a specific animal. There is much evidence that psychosis is more than just odd perceptual experiences, so perhaps lycanthropy is the result of these unusual bodily experiences being understood by an already confused mind, perhaps sifted through cultural traditions and ideas.
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by markandre13 » Wed Nov 24, 2010 11:32 pm

Interesting. And now that TV added hordes new creatures to our everyday live...
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Mark Anthony Quested » Fri Nov 26, 2010 12:13 am

"The light of truth always outshines the light of the sun, and the light of the night!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvikJ8MD_Co

...an old friend of ours, waggling her tail! :mrgreen:
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by gingerpazuzu » Fri Nov 26, 2010 12:21 am

I'm sorry I dont the point you are trying to make by posting that clip of Bau/Alice,she isnt a member of this forum anymore so what is the relevance?
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Mark Anthony Quested » Fri Nov 26, 2010 12:47 am

gingerpazuzu wrote:I'm sorry I dont the point you are trying to make by posting that clip of Bau/Alice,she isnt a member of this forum anymore so what is the relevance?
Old time sake. (She is no longer a member of Sumerland either, but she left a lasting impression during her time there in 2007.)

To this very day, we (Alice and I) are still disagreeing about the definition of lycans. I think it is a mental health issue, supported by the article above, whereas she thinks otherwise but is very vague.
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by gingerpazuzu » Fri Nov 26, 2010 1:00 am

That may be so + each of you are entitled to you own opnions but the she isnt a member here,while you may have disagreed in the past,what went on with Sumerland forum isnt anything to with DR,she cant post a reply to the vid you put + more so she doesnt have any part of the discussion to with the lycanthropy thread here as she isnt a part of the forum.It taking a shot at someone who has nothing to do with this thread.Why post it here? Surely it would be logical to post it on the official website where the same discussion is also taking place + Alice is a member there as you know.It just uneccessary to bring someone who isnt part of the form into the posts,she cant reply back to you so why do it?
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by squishy » Fri Nov 26, 2010 8:12 am

Mark Anthony Quested wrote:
gingerpazuzu wrote:I'm sorry I dont the point you are trying to make by posting that clip of Bau/Alice,she isnt a member of this forum anymore so what is the relevance?
Old time sake. (She is no longer a member of Sumerland either, but she left a lasting impression during her time there in 2007.)

To this very day, we (Alice and I) are still disagreeing about the definition of lycans. I think it is a mental health issue, supported by the article above, whereas she thinks otherwise but is very vague.
You're seriously obssessed, mister. The past is past - and Sumerland is not DR, nor is the latter the blog in which you can freely obssess/rant/do whatever you like about people you met and disagreed with years ago.

If you want to talk about lycans here, do it - but don't for fcuk's sake drag people's personal lives into it. DR's no bloody tabloid message board.
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Mark Anthony Quested » Fri Nov 26, 2010 9:54 am

squishy wrote:
Mark Anthony Quested wrote:
gingerpazuzu wrote:I'm sorry I dont the point you are trying to make by posting that clip of Bau/Alice,she isnt a member of this forum anymore so what is the relevance?
Old time sake. (She is no longer a member of Sumerland either, but she left a lasting impression during her time there in 2007.)

To this very day, we (Alice and I) are still disagreeing about the definition of lycans. I think it is a mental health issue, supported by the article above, whereas she thinks otherwise but is very vague.
You're seriously obssessed, mister. The past is past - and Sumerland is not DR, nor is the latter the blog in which you can freely obssess/rant/do whatever you like about people you met and disagreed with years ago.

If you want to talk about lycans here, do it - but don't for fcuk's sake drag people's personal lives into it. DR's no bloody tabloid message board.
Fascinated by Alice/Bau from a psychoanalysis and paranormal investigative point of view, admitedly yes, I am.

Dear Bethany and Dear Squishy and Dear moderators, please accept my apologies for any offence caused. :mrgreen:

Talking about Lycans...
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Mark Anthony Quested » Fri Nov 26, 2010 9:58 am

...a friend from Sumerland recently pointed out to me another possible cause of Clinical lycanthropy.

These web pages are certainly enlightening:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tick-borne_disease
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyme_disease
http://www.lymediseaseaction.org.uk/lyme.htm

Especially these possible symptoms of Lyme Disease:

Some patients have developed Lyme-related:

Psychoses including hallucinations and delusions
Seizures
Violent behaviour, irritability
Rage attacks/inability to control impulses/out of context crying spells
Depression
Anxiety/Panic attacks
Rapid mood swings that may mimic bipolar disorder (mania/depression)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Sleep Disorders
An Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD)-like syndrome
Autism-like syndrome
A progressive dementia

Could Lyme Disease be a possible cause of Clinical lycanthropy? And could it also be the cause of some people's claims of being a psychic and/or sanguine vampyre?

Interesting stuff! :mrgreen:
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by weebleswobble » Fri Nov 26, 2010 2:33 pm

I'm sorry I called you a meatloaf, Jack.
The first bit sounds like Bruce Wayne, and the second bit sounds like Batman.
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by baba » Fri Nov 26, 2010 4:06 pm

I saw a werewolf drinking a pina colada at Trader Vics.....and his hair was PERFECT!

Image

http://itcamefrommonsterplanet.com/2010 ... got-nards/

*cthulhu*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZLDOC2rl6s :D
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by gingerpazuzu » Fri Nov 26, 2010 4:34 pm

:D :D :D *notworthy* *notworthy* *notworthy* The importance of well groomed is vital for a 21st century werewolf,a uncombed pelt is a social faux pas :wink:
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by markandre13 » Fri Nov 26, 2010 4:41 pm

baba wrote:I saw a werewolf drinking a pina colada at Trader Vics.....and his hair was PERFECT!
:shock: Holy shhhhh... Ain't that Chewbacca?
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Mark Anthony Quested » Fri Nov 26, 2010 5:33 pm

weebleswobble wrote:I'm sorry I called you a meatloaf, Jack.
Aye! And so you should be; you should know by now that Jack is vegetarian! :wink:
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Mark Anthony Quested » Fri Nov 26, 2010 5:33 pm

markandre13 wrote:
baba wrote:I saw a werewolf drinking a pina colada at Trader Vics.....and his hair was PERFECT!
:shock: Holy shhhhh... Ain't that Chewbacca?
There's me thinking it was me in my very long hair days! :shock:
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by ThomasB » Fri Nov 26, 2010 7:00 pm

weebleswobble wrote:I'm sorry I called you a meatloaf, Jack.
…Meat Loaf ? :shock:
As in : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4P_qAMA ... re=related
*whistle*
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by baba » Sat Nov 27, 2010 4:37 am

:lol: *notworthy*

but don't you mean THIS meatloaf? *whistle*
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by ThomasB » Sat Nov 27, 2010 2:15 pm

baba wrote::lol: *notworthy*

but don't you mean THIS meatloaf? *whistle*
…I like the other version better ! (Without Jim Steinman's pseudo-operatic thingie) 8)
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Jen O. Side » Sat Nov 27, 2010 4:04 pm

Personally, I see the Werewolf thing more from a romantic point of view. And when I'm all over my girlfriends sweetest bits,
believe me, I'm all wolfman (ok, it happend on one occasion, that I found myself being more of a Chihuahua than a wolf, but anyway...) *smoking*
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Re: Clinical lycanthropy

Post by Bau » Wed Apr 04, 2012 11:26 am

they are working on a new Bill and Ted movie, hurray! so i was watching some interviews of Keanu Reeves

spontaneous snarl alert @ 2:18 http://youtu.be/Z8FmruXF9xQ

grooo? you just never know about people. I always knew there was something about him I liked haha he says he's seen ghosts, I wonder if he has ever seen any werewolves?
And I don't think he was flirting I think he was just hungry :P he was probly sick of fish and rice. For god sake I hope they gave that man a steak after the interview before he bit somebody :lol:

I could definately see him as the leading man in a werewolf movie though.
Produced by Richard Stanely of course. That would be bodacious. *smoking*
With me as the leading lady, even more so. *whistle*
Even better if Carl could do another cameo. he would make a great wolf imo
Image
Image
Only we might run into a few technical difficulties whilst filming
Image

actualy i would like to see Carl cast as a werewolf hunter (in his usual nephilimy look and way) -as a rarely and barely seen meanacing shadowy figure through out the film who is stalking the main character adding that element of suspence ( "I'm a hunter your a wolf " :P ) but turned werewolf at the end , then he and Keanu's character could have a big battle like at the end ala 'Wolf' with Jack Nicolson, and I know Richard would do a MUCH better job of it.

Of note Ennio Morricone did the soundtrack to 'Wolf'.

http://youtu.be/NiOYjasKe8Q
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