ARE VAMPIRES REAL?
Yes, we are. And no, we're not going away. :P :)
WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF VAMPIRES?
It's a matter of personal perception (what "type" they perceive themselves
as), and based on a person's feeding methods. People place themselves into three
"basic" types - those that drink blood, and those that feed off energy,
and those that need/use both. I'm not going to get into the subtle differences
between "living" and "surviving" - enough other websites
argue about that particular topic, and I don't want to add to the chaos. I will
say that it seems to add...something...to the quality of life, the "what"
it adds appears to be up for debate by many many people. I just choose not to
argue with what works. :)
WHAT MAKES A PERSON A VAMPIRE?
More information can be found in the characteristics
FAQ page.
For The Record:
I am aware that some vamps say they can only use certain types of energy or
energy from certain sources only. It had been my opinion for the longest time
that the types were not relevant, however I've now seen enough people that
claim this that I now have doubts about my previous ideas. For the time being,
I'm still collecting information.
And before someone else e-mails me to mention it, yes I *am* aware of the
terms "sanguinarian", "pranic" and the like. They are
covered in my on-site dictionary, but not in this particular article because
this particular article is written in order to be understood by anyone. "Sanguinarian"
won't mean much to a random person on the street, only to people who have
some exposure to the community.
I'm also not getting into the talk of "immortal" or other strange
and mysterious types that are occasionally mentioned on message boards and
e-lists. I have not personally met any of those type(s), so I cannot comment
on whether they're real until I do. (Hey, at least *I'm* honest about it!)
Blood Vamps
Vamps that feed on blood, rather than just energy. (I know, "Duhhhh!"
*lol*) For this category, attempting to use energy feeding methods may be
damn near impossible, even when they do know how to do it. Some people swear
up and down there's energy in the blood, others swear just as much that
there isn't because, well, they can't tell... Blood can be gotten from different
sources: donors, eating rare steaks, etc. (If a bloodvamp has no donor,
what usually happens is that they're in a perpetually Thirsty state of mind
without adequate substitutes. People who put themselves in this category
are the reason I have the getting blood
from a steak article on this site.)
Energy Vamps
There are many "subtypes" that fall in this category. I've heard
people describe themselves as "prana vampires" (some even consider
"empath" to be a vampire type, when it only means you're able
to read people's emotions. If you don't believe me you can look here,
here,
here and here.
I *am* an empath, I *also* happen to be a vampire - it's not my fault the
vampiric community at large doesn't bother to look things up first.), "elemental
vampires", "sexual vampires" , "astral vampires"
(Not even going there...heh) and many others as well as the more generic
(to me) "psi vampire" or "psy vampire" depending on
the spelling. No matter how it's described, it's still *energy* in some
form. For other people, the differences seem more important, swearing they
can use one type of energy but not another.
Those that use both blood and energy
(Other terms: "dual fueler", "Hybrid", and others no
longer used.)
I fall in this category, and this is the reason I don't generally consider
different feeding methods to be indicative of a "type" per se.
I can utilize both blood and energy (mostly) interchangeably. (I've had
a -few- occasions where I've really wanted "A Drink" and the energy
I was able to grab just wasn't working, but they're very very rare.) This
is pretty typical for the other admitted dual-fuelers that I've met. I,
personally, am do not appear to be limited to types of energy I can use
- from thunderstorms to electrical power plants to "ley lines"
to damn near anything else I can think of. (Naturally, the stronger the
source, the better, but -that- seems to be pretty standard.) There are others
who swear they can only use certain types of energy. *shrugs* I can only
personally vouch for what works for me - I did a lot of my intense theorizing
and experimentation before the internet was popular, so I didn't have a
lot of information sources to draw on.
IS VAMPIRISM A RELIGION?
Contrary to what "some groups" would have you think, no, it's not
a religion. A religion is a belief structure followed by a mass (however large
or small) of people. Most vampires tend to have different beliefs, outlooks
and life philosophies, the same as everyone else. There are vampires who are
Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Atheist, Wiccan, or any other religious (or non-religious!)
path you can think of. Those that promote a "vampire religion" are
not selling anything any more valid than any other religion. Just hold on
to your wallet, mmmkay? :)
ARE VAMPIRES IMMORTAL?
I won't entirely rule out the possibility, however I have not met any. If
I'm still around in 100 years in relatively the same physical condition I
am now, or actually meet one who can verify advanced age, I'll probably revisit
this question. :) Yes, I am aware there are those online who claim to be immortal,
but that always begs the next question - why is their grammar and spelling
so terrible, or another example, why do they only speak in "Internet
shortcuts"? If they've truly been around for a few hundred years already,
there would have been some substantial improvement in their writing
skills. And no excuses about about "using Internet shortcuts" to
save time, because that really hampers communication, and anyone as old as
they claim would find it just as annoying as I do, if not more so. :)
CAN VAMPIRES GO OUT IN THE SUN?
Certainly! It's just not fun because most of us are photosensitive to one
degree or another. How well it's tolerated depends on the person - it's affected,
at least in part (but not entirely) , by their genetics. For example, someone
who already has pale skin will already be very prone to sunburn if they're
out in the sun too long. Someone who tans easily certainly won't burn as badly
under "average" exposure times, if at all. It all depends on the
person.
Personally, I'm a big believer in liberal applications of QUALITY sunscreen
(I have a list over here), and keeping a
good portion of my skin covered while in the sun. (Typically, in the summer
I'll still be wearing long pants and sometimes long sleeves. I also work in
an air-conditioned workplace, so I have an excuse for "wearing too much.")
DO VAMPIRES HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT BLOOD-BORNE DISEASES?
Absolutely! Blood itself has more diseases than you probably know, and being
a vampire does not make you immune to them, regardless of what some nutjobs
out there would have you think.
Some blood-borne diseases include: HIV/AIDS, Herpes, Gonorrea, Ebola, Hepatitis,
Syphilis, Septicemia (bacteria in the blood, causes blood poisoning, one of
the reasons a person's bite can be so dangerous) variant Crutzfield-Jackobsons
disease (wasting disease) and Spongiform Encephalopathy (one name for the
human form of "mad cow disease" - 'spongiform' comes from the appearance
of the affected brain - it has holes, like a sponge) just to name a few. And
as an additional note, some "stomach bug" viruses can also be transmitted
by the blood (just what a vampire would need, feed and then in a day or two,
spend about 24 hours in misery. I'll pass, thanks, I've done that once already...)
WHAT ABOUT THEIR DONORS?
Chances are that most realvamps don't have enough medical knowledge to know
how to use the instruments they choose, or how to sterilize them properly,
or have enough anatomical knowledge to know where to use them safely, without
causing harm. (And a bite from a person is nastier and more infectious than
most animal bites. I can respect that some people prefer the bite method,
however, they need to be aware of the amount of germs - and I'm sure their
donor would appreciate not getting an infection from it.) For instance, some
major arteries are located in the neck, groin, inner thigh, wrist, upper inner
arm, and so on. Cut into one of those, and you'll suddenly have a lot more
blood than you expected, and a VERY dead person to try to explain. No returning
from the dead in that situation.
Spending some quality time with a decent book on anatomy (a large copy of
Gray's Anatomy is recommended - the paperback sized one is often too small
to read - but other, unfortunately also expensive, medical anatomy books with
color plates will also work to provide the necessary knowledge.)
CAN VAMPIRES EAT NORMAL FOOD?
*burrrrp* Yes, and enjoy it quite well, thank you. Rare steak anyone? There
are some foods that just will not agree with us, but which foods disagree
are not the same for everyone - believe it or not, some of us CAN tolerate
garlic quite well, and eat it regularly. There are still food allergies to
consider, and ailments like Chron's Disease
or Celiac Syndrome that will prevent
a person from eating certain foods, however that will be an issue whether
or not a person is a realvamp.
AREN'T PEOPLE CLAIMING TO BE VAMPIRES JUST CRAZY?
We're actually more sane than you think. Of course, that begs the next question:
Crazy relative to what? Religious fanatics who refuse to have a reasonable
conversation with anyone who doesn't agree with them? Politicians who insist
on taxing the poor and giving to the rich (as if THAT is ever a sane way to
support a country...)? Sports fans who paint their faces and bodies in the
teams colors and run around half naked, screaming, during half-time? People
driving while talking on their mobile phone, and being unable to control their
car as a result? "Crazy" is all a matter of perspective. :)
This article is presented as part of an ongoing effort to present other views outside of, as well as within, the online vampire community. Those of us who consider ourselves vampiric don't always look at things from the same viewpoint due to our life experiences. As such, the views and opinions contained in this article are entirely those of the author(s), and may not necessarily be shared by SphynxCatVP. The webmaster is not under obligation to update or otherwise keep current the contents of this article. Most importantly, only you can decide for yourself whether this article or any of the author(s) other views are useful or applicable to you - you are responsible for using your own reasoning and judgement, so judge wisely.
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