Plural or Otherkin?
Written by: Archie
First Written: October 26, 2020
Last Edited: January 19, 2022
Original Post (Tumblr)
First Written: October 26, 2020
Last Edited: January 19, 2022
Original Post (Tumblr)
Content Warnings:
- N/A
This question comes up a lot. Sometimes, it can be hard to tell if you’re a system or if you’re otherkin–even I made the mistake of thinking a headmate was a kintype at first. There is a bit of overlap between plurality and otherkinity, especially with nonhuman members.
Keep in mind that having one or two of these points on their own might not point toward being plural, but if you have a higher combination of these, looking into plurality may be beneficial.
You might be plural and not otherkin if:
Being confused about being plural or otherkin is a pretty common thing I find, and most of the time that confusion comes from being a median system, which is a sort of mix between singlet and multiple. This post explains median systems pretty well!
So, I think I’m plural and not otherkin. What now?
Keep in mind that having one or two of these points on their own might not point toward being plural, but if you have a higher combination of these, looking into plurality may be beneficial.
You might be plural and not otherkin if:
- Your shifts change your gender or sexuality.
- Your shifts fully change your personality.
- You can speak to your kintypes.
- Your kintypes have different likes and dislikes than you.
- You lose control of your body fully or partially during shifts.
- You only identify as your kintypes during shifts.
- You commonly dissociate during or before shifts.
- You don’t feel like you’re “you” during a shift.
- You get thoughts that don’t seem entirely “yours”.
- You find yourself acting out of character during shifts.
Being confused about being plural or otherkin is a pretty common thing I find, and most of the time that confusion comes from being a median system, which is a sort of mix between singlet and multiple. This post explains median systems pretty well!
So, I think I’m plural and not otherkin. What now?
- Don’t freak out! Discovering plurality can be a big thing and hard to understand at first, but things will be okay.
- Take your time learning about plurality if you don’t know much about it already.
- Try reaching out to your headmates. Work on communication. If you have communication already, that’s great! If not, try speaking in your head, speaking aloud or writing notes for them. Get to know them!
- Try to attempt voluntary switches, if your system wants to switch.