Vampires are not just confined to movies and the pages of story books; there are also some real world people who identify themselves as vampires. These are mostly individuals who drink blood for maintaining their physical and spiritual energy.
A large share of these self-identified blood-sucking beings shy away from admitting their practice to health professionals like counselors and doctors. They feel that doing so will leave them stigmatized.
Social media has provided individuals with rare lifestyles and attractions with the opportunity of networking with each other more easily. These include both online and real life interactions. Such networking can be extremely helpful for individuals looking for support from others boasting similar interests.
D. J. Williams, the director of the social work department of the Idaho State University, said that it has become extremely important for us to comprehend these new ways of identifying ourselves and our new identities. He added that it’s also essential that we understand that many of these new identities don’t fit into the stereotypes. According to Williams, health professions of all types require more education and knowledge of these topics.
Humans who identify themselves as real-world vampires claim that they require recharging their energy levels regularly for maintaining their health. While there are some who prefer to do this using mental energy, there are others who need donors to donate blood. The population of such self-proclaimed vampires is much bigger than most of us think and includes people of all age groups.
Vampires experience similar issues as normal humans. They suffer from family and work-related issues, stress and many such other day to day problems. Researchers feel that if these real-world vampires choose not to share information about their preferences and lifestyle with healthcare professionals, they might become victims of severe health hazards.
Williams and his colleagues also affirmed that doctors and other healthcare professionals will be able to serve better by accepting the lifestyle choices of people who refer to them as vampires.
Interviews conducted by the Idaho State University showed that almost all vampires hesitate to talk to doctors and therapists about their lifestyle. They said that they feel that sharing such info will stigmatize them.
http://www.thehoopsnews.com/2015/07/09/6626/killer-sea-snail-a-target-for-new-drugs-to-treat-pain-and-cancer/
These self-identified vampires fear that if healthcare professionals come to know about their habits they will either categorize them as evil, or conclude that they are suffering from severe physiological disorders and require immediate hospitalization.
This new study on self-proclaimed vampires has been published in the journal Critical Social Work.
