The Dark Side of the Web; Do Vampires Really Exist?

An exploration of the online ‘vampire’ communities. 843 words, Laura Connolly.

*UPDATE* After reading responses from the Vampire Community in relation to this post, I would like to stress that I tried to be as objective and non biased as possible and I apologise if anyone was offended after reading*

 The Dark Side of the Web; Do Vampires Really Exist?  

“I either have a donor or a girlfriend who allows me to drink from them, that is how I get human blood. Otherwise I have to feed on raw beef blood or have a very very rare steak.” Jason De Marco explains how he obtains human blood to consume.

Speaking to Mr. De Marco, he tells me that he first realised he was a vampire at the age of 4. He is now an adult – “I do not reveal my age,” and the founder and administrator of the Facebook group ‘House of Obsidian Raven.’ The group has over 500 members, and all of them claim they are vampires. “A group for real vampires be you a blood sucker, pranic, or a mixture. Seekers are also welcome, but NO wannabes or fakes.”

There are many other groups just like this on the web. There’s no proof that these people are actually blood drinkers, and maybe they are just looking for somewhere to fit in. However, there have been several cases in the media involving the actual drinking of blood. Dr. Brendan Kelly, Psychiatrist at Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, speaks on the issue.

“There is a theory that the reason people like vampire movies is that it allows the vicarious satisfaction of oral sadistic impulses. In other words you watch people in movies biting each other, so that you don’t feel the need to bite people. So maybe a lot of this on the internet is the imaginal acting out, however the real thing does go on as well.”

On the internet, it’s too easy to pretend to be something you’re not. Dr. Kelly explains, “Given the anonymity and the ease in which you can hide your identity on the internet, it’s extremely difficult to figure out who really believes he or she is a vampire and who’s just playing this fantasy role.”

One case with someone showing vampiric behaviour was a case of schizophrenia with vampiric delusions in the past. This case was involving a twenty-one year old man, who believed he was becoming a vampire and felt he needed to drink human blood or else he would die. The man did not want to kill anyone. That is why he presented himself to medical services in order to get blood from the supply within the hospital. According to psychiatrists he “had a series of bizarre delusions.” He had been diagnosed with schizophrenia in the past, and this time he had a diagnosis of “schizophrenia with fantastic delusions.”

There is even such a thing as Clinical Vampirism, also known as Renfield’s Syndrome. This syndrome is when someone has an obsession with drinking human blood. It has been newly named and not yet accepted by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, however it has been around for a long time dating as far back at 1886.

Someone who has done a lot of work for the ‘Vampire Community,’ is a man called Merticus Stevens. Unfortunately, Merticus was unavailable for an interview however he has an extensive amount of information about himself on his website www.merticus.com .  He is the founding member and the site administrator of the Atlanta Vampire Alliance [AVA], and on his site he also explains to us the different type of vampires that exist. “Psychic and sanguinarian vampires are individuals who cannot adequately sustain their own physical, mental, or spiritual wellbeing without the taking of blood or vital lifeforce energy from other sources.  Without feeding a vampire will become lethargic, sickly, depressed, and often go through physical suffering or discomfort.”

He also says that there are others who simply self-identify with vampires. “While there are those who self-identify as psychic or sanguinarian vampires who adhere to the “vampire lifestyle” by adopting a vampire aesthetic, wearing prosthetic fangs, or participating in roleplay games, vampi(y)re lifestylers are not synonymous with those who believe they must feed on psychic or life energies and/or blood.”

When Dr. Kelly was questioned as to why he believes people may see themselves as vampires he says, “Some people identify strongly with the feelings of alienation that characterise fictional vampires (i.e. not being understood, being different, etc.). I think that’s why these stories appeal to teenagers so much. But sometimes people develop a firm belief that they are a vampire, and this can be a delusion (a fixed, false belief, persisting despite evidence to the contrary, and out of keeping with cultural norms).”

So are these ‘vampires’ a danger to the community? It’s hard to tell. Some are simply self-identifying with the idea of being a vampire. Some actually carry out the act of blood drinking. If it was the matter of teens becoming obsessed with the vampire books they read, such as Twilight and Dracula, then adults up the age of 50 probably wouldn’t be involved in these online communities. However perhaps they too are looking for a place to go and try to be themselves. The internet allows all types of subcultures to do this, and can make people finally feel that they fit in somewhere.