What Is Clinical Lycanthropy?

Clinical lycanthropy is a rare psychiatric disorder in which a person believes they can transform into, or has already transformed into, an animal, typically a wolf or some other kind of non-human creature. This belief is delusional and not based in reality. It is important to note that clinical lycanthropy is a psychological condition and should not be confused with the mythical concept of werewolves found in folklore and fiction. People with clinical lycanthropy may exhibit a range of symptoms, including: Delusions: They have a fixed, false belief that they can physically transform into an animal. Behavioral Changes: They may exhibit behaviors they believe are characteristic of the animal they think they've become. This might involve things like growling, snarling, or even trying to mimic the movements of the animal. Psychological Distress: The person may experience significant distress or impairment due to these beliefs. Social Isolation: These beliefs can cause the person to withdraw from social interactions. Impairment in Daily Functioning: The condition can interfere with their ability to carry out daily tasks. Clinical lycanthropy is considered a subtype of a broader category of psychiatric disorders known as delusional disorders. Delusional disorders involve the presence of one or more delusions without any other significant psychopathology. Treatment typically involves a combination of psychotherapy and medication. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and antipsychotic medications are often used to help manage the symptoms. It's important for individuals experiencing these symptoms to seek professional help from a mental health provider. It's worth noting that clinical lycanthropy is extremely rare, and cases are infrequently reported in clinical literature. It is considered a cultural-bound syndrome, meaning it tends to occur in specific cultural contexts or regions. What Causes Clinical Lycanthropy? Some experts think it's caused by delusional misidentification syndromes (DMS). That's a group of disorders where people don't recognize familiar objects, or they believe objects are transformed. Other experts say clinical lycanthropy may involve a culture-bound syndrome, which is a mental illness or unusual behaviors shaped by cultural norms or surroundings. DMS can happen if you have: Drug intoxication and withdrawal Cerebrovascular disease Traumatic brain injury Dementia Delirium Seizures Those who have clinical lycanthropy seem to have other things in common, too. They may have major mental illness such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or psychotic depression. They may take hallucinogenic drugs, drink alcohol, or have epilepsy. Research suggests it may be triggered by a mismatch in your brain and your self-image. More studies are needed to understand how other conditons may be linked to clinical lycanthrophy. Some possible ones include: Feelings and sensations that are medically unexplainable (called cenesthopathy), such as thinking there are wires in your mouth or feeling tightening in parts of your body Trouble processing information received through your senses Abnormalities in the right half of your brain Sleep apnea Disrupted circadian rhythms or lunar cycles What Are the Symptoms of Clinical Lycanthropy? Signs may include:

Claiming to see physical changes in your body when looking in the mirror (like your teeth lengthening, claws, or your hair growing) Making growling or howling noises, or other animal sounds Craving or eating raw meat Walking on all fours Some people who've experienced clinical lycanthropy say they had moments when they recognized they were human but could look back and recall feeling like an animal. One person reported changing into other animals (not just a wolf) before realizing they were human. In other cases, those with this disorder believe people around them are also being transformed into animals or creatures. Who's at Risk for Clinical Lycanthropy? A recent study looked at 43 cases of clinical lycanthropy and kynanthropy reported between 1852 and 2020. (Kynanthropy is a related condition when people think they can or have become dogs. Clinical lycanthropy and kynanthropy are forms of zoanthropy, which is when a person thinks they're an animal.) Researchers say clinical lyncanthropy can happen during a younger person’s first psychiatric episode or in those with chronic psychosis. But not all cases are linked to mental health disorders. Some who've experienced it had epilepsy, while others took hallucinogenic drugs or drank alcohol. In that study, the researchers looked at cases of clinical lycanthropy reported in the U.S., Western Europe, Turkey, Iran, and India. They found It can affect people anywhere in the world. They also found that how you perceive wolves can play a role in whether you develop it.