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I think it could well be the origin of some of the original vampire myths

Most of the other myths have symptoms that are not close to this disease (turning into animals) to account for them all

But couldn't most the legends be based on this disease and the rest...fanciful embellishments of the story?

Thats fucked up. Is there a way to learn more about this disease? People like the dark. So they don't go out at day. But theres people that hate the night and thats the only time the can come out. Its not right.

Indeed... I suppose all mythology must have some basis in fact. The disease may well have been the origin of the myth, embellished by the religious perhaps... and then later by novelists and hollywood

I agree with that. THe fact that someone would explot it though is wrong.

CHORDEWA

yes ma'am, some of them but not most of them.

There are hundred of vampire legends out there that don't have any of the signs of Porphyria.

I can how some, mostly the Hollywood-type, might start and be embellished - but a lot of the others are too far removed from the symptoms of the disease

artemka

I understand what you are saying. I just thought it interesting that a medical disease, COULD be the beginning of all the myths.

As real as the disease is. Doesn't make those of us that are Vampires and less of who we are. I am in no way a carrier or inflicted with this. And I do think perhaps this may be where some of the afflictions via fiction wise comes from. Just like there is a disease regarding werewolves. I don't recall what it is called.

In a way she is right. But I don't hink that it was the only reason for it. theres also the human imaginaion. (sp?)

SatinMist

This wasn't posted to put down vampires, i'm sorry if you thought it was. I respect those that aren't afflicted with this disease. There are several different kinds of Porphyric. None of them completely fullfill every "symptom" that a vampire has. I just wanted to put it out there and see what people thought.

I think its an excellent thread that will get everyone thinking.

Its clear that it has nothing to do with those people living the modern vampire lifestyle. I can't see how people could take offence.

I wonder how many people with the disease in the past would have survived long enough into adulthoood to have myths made about them ?

Porphyria... i believe that it is a myth used for vampires as well, giving them another belief.

even diabetes two is one used for vampires a long long time ago.

when diabetes 2 was not treated or was even known, a untreated patiant would get the symptoms of the vampire traits.

for untreated diabetics: a sweet smell of sugar came off of them from so much sugar in their blood. their blood was over the chart. the smell soon after turned to a rotting apple smell. their gums would recede making it look like their teteh grew and that they had fangs, sunlight hurt their eyes, they would gain this pale reflection and they would lose weight like crazy, even if they ate everything in site. they were known to go into comas which then people would bury them thinking that they were dead. theres more onto this but i do not want to ramble on. :)

Katye

This desease reminds me of the XP syndrome, that is making ppl alllergic to the sun to the point it could kill them, and other similarities, I know a case of 2 little girls of 6 years old who had to run awya with their parents cause they were called vampires by the town ppl, even tho it was a civilises and advance comunity. They manage to find a small town with open minded oppl who took in th efamily.

Yes this indeed could be where some myth derived from. Just as the werewolf disease did the same. Years ago if something were different they didnt have technology to study things so they assumed things. This very well could be the beginning of alot.

porphryia isnt a myth sorry, when i reread that it didnt come out right. porphryia is a rare disease that some people claim to have to go along with their vampire beliefs.

it may be some of the reason, but I dont think its solely the cause for it. People have chemical imbalances and you being a med tech should know this. I have been a RN for a while now and I have seen very little of the disease

I think that many things combine to add to any given myth of vampires and even werewolves another very possible problem may even be due to certain mental illnesses we have named now..
Which at this time people claiming to be the actual artical such as an immortal type of vampire or a werewolf are being dx'd. I read this in yahoo news and I will go see if I can find the link and add it here later.

I was unable to find the article I had read about them adding vampirisism and werewolves to the count in the book that calssifies certain mental illnesses but I did come across a rather charming and even fun page that talks about a federal agency dealing with zombies and vampires.

http://www.fvza.org/index.html

Also dont forget Renfield's Syndrome, Xeroderma, Pigmentosum, Anaemia, Cattalepsy, Sleep Paralysis ..they say all these contribute to people being accused of being Vampires....sad but true little mind's little thought's....

Porphryia is a rare disease that some people claim to have to go along with their vampire beliefs, yet who are we to judge or say... just an opinon.

thats a good opinion indeed. we should not judge those who do have porphryia. i infact feel sorry for those who have the rare disease. when they have a attack their blood ceels erupt and when they go out in the sun, the sun causes a reaction to their disease so they then stay inside and become palid.

Propherya(sp) is a real disease not disclaiming anyones beliefs here just a discussion as to way certain beliefs are held so many different things lead up to so much..I am really loving the site I did find again the cut and paste link is above dealing with the "fvza" whihc is for entertainment and does come with a full discloser that it is for entertainment pruposes only. I am not so closed minded nor set in my own belief system to rule anything out.
I was looking for the Renfield syndrome ty for the above poster but there is also one for werewolves stil looking for that and well anything I can find to study to understand all things as clearly as I can.
Not to put anyone down nor use what I do learn as a way to say haha I know more just I am a natural scholar and as such I want to research all things and all sides.

from what i understand and have read the original vampirism came from a disease of the blood, lacking certain nutrients that required replenishing by drinking the blood of others

Darkmaster I have heard the same and must agree that Vampirism can be from a disease that you your body needs and craves the nutrients in blood.

Most ideas of grand things such as Vampires, Dragons ect...are based in fact in one way or another...

If anyone watches CSI: Las Vegas there was a episode with the killer having Prophyria. She was a nutritionist and would kill people for their liver and blood, make it into a shake and drink it, supposively so she didn't die from this disease. Calling it the vampire disease.

Oh and lets not forget the insanity addition to the symptoms.

I can't say for sure that this disease was a source for the vampire myths, but I suppose it is possible.

As for the disease itself...it's kind of scary. I mean...I have different reasons for not going out in the sun that are medical, but never being able to even if you wanted to? I don't think that even I could live that way...

It's always interesting to have something real to point to. Certainly this disease, untreated diabetes, and others can share origin of vampire myths, but I doubt that this one disease alone explains away the origin of vampires of legend. I think a conglomeration of observable but inexplicable things like unearthed corpses who seemed fatter, bloody, etc... coupled with superstitious and religious fancy spun our tales.

Remember, we have pantheon of gods, witches, werewolves, zombies, and scores of other fables, myths, and legends to explain. There just isn't always that one truth we can point to as origin.

My personal opinion on this subject is that these diseases are the result of individuals that watch too much television and think they are vampires. These individuals are not true vampires or would not suffer these ill side-effects.

On the flip side of that coin maybe these diseases are where some of the urban legends and myths originated from.

The disease is rare,like many diseases in the past,the villagers or towns people didn't know of such diseases or illness'.So they assumed the people were possessed or "vampires".You have to realize that in the 1300's til the late 1800's most diseases were treated inhumanely and the people still followed the old ways and old myths and verbal stories.Lycanthropy is one rare condition that people believed they were wolves or shapeshifters.It has to do with a chemical imbalance in the brain,that causes one to show signs of animal behavior.Remember,back then they didn't have the internet and T.V. and scientific smarts to figure out what was what.Just like "staking" a vampire through the heart wasn't made up by Hollywood.Villagers would stake a loved one to their coffin,to make sure they didn't rise from their grave,after they were buried.So,don't demean Chordewa about her thread,she is right on her research and facts about this diease.

I have to agree with many of the above. There are just to many myths out there, that have no symptoms of the disease itself.

Though I do feel for those afflicted with it.

Symptoms of Porphyrics

-Sunlight causes burns on skin, causing someone to avoid daylight.

-Garlic contains a chemical that worsens some porphyria symptoms, causing sufferers to avoid it.

-Causes gums to recede, leaving canine teeth to appear as fangs.

-Today porphyria can be treated with red blood cell transfusions, Hematin injections and Glucose injections. Adding to the belief that they need blood to survive.

-Without these injections and treatment, disfigurement can accure, adding to the belief that they need blood to stay young and beautiful.

diabetes two goes along with the porphyric outcomes

-pale complexion, sun hruts

-sweet odorous smell of having too much sugar in their body

- receding gums which make it look like their canines have lengthened.

-its really horrible when you read about untreated cases.

i agree with both Chordewa and Vampiriclove. i think the cause for vampireism today was probably one of those two diseases. there is actually a book called 'Sweet Blood' and its by Pete Hautman. its a very good and fast read. its about a girl in high school who is a diabetic. she came up with the thought that the vampire myth came from dying diabetics. its really a very good book and i highly recomend it.

excellent read by the way. lucy szabo takes after me when i read that book. i have read it seven times now. when i pick it up i cant put it down until im finished reading with it. Pete Hautman made it very clear on diabetes two and it is all very true as well as the fact that drinking too muhc blood that is not of your own can cause diabetes two.

Katye

after reading all this i'm inclined to say that this desease could follow along the same lines as vampires and myth... but there still needs to be more identical symptoms/traits than already said.

I agree the conditions listed have many of the symptoms of vampirism but I have to wonder if rather than giving life to the myths the rare souls who suffered found that people used their symptoms to add to the descriptions of vampirism.

I dont know much about the diseases but isn't being a Vampire a way of life?

Porphyria, in no way comes close to explaining vampirism.....just because it is the closest of medical explanations. I see it as grasping for the closest thing and it sadly does not work that way.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porphyria

read the section entitled "vampires and werewolves"

There are alot of diseases out there that are similar to vampires! It very well could be that someone took bits of all & created the hollywood version of a vampire!

I too believe that these could also have been an earlier basis for vampirism...then built upon over the centuries to become what we have today.

i am not too sure about the disease aspect....but like Marlene said...is not vampireism a way of life?

Interesting article. It's a bit strange as someone said that someone seeks to make profit or something off this disease. While it is certainly possible this disease could be at the root of the Hollywood mythos about vampires, I still see the vampire condition as one that is primarily a condition of the subtle body. Consequently, it is more of a soul condition that a physical manifestation.

I know that according to archives the vampire legend surfaced when Vlad Dracula took control of Wallachia, a region of the Balkans (in present-day southern Romania) which lay directly between the two powerful forces of Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, he was on a killing spree, he liked to impale his victims, and there were many of them, he killed so many people it was crszy, but the stories started to rise from there. Anything that happened in the 1400s is going to be stretched beyond imagination by now, don't you think. Don't bash me, this is just one of my opinions as I have many.

this is a very unfortunate disease. No, it is not fair, but public awareness is rising. Unfortunately, the Vampire disease, I believe is exactly what society is looking for. This way they can point the finger and make themselves feel better. These people are driven to unusual behaviors because they are ill. It is sad, but this very well could be the cause of the Vampire mania, as you will. The behaviors of the aflicted individuals replicates some "vampiric" behavior.

The Federal agency that supposedly is dealing with zombies and vampires is a hoax. The community is well aware of it and we have people who come in to the online groups that bring it up and porphyria and the V-5 Virus which is unproven and the symbiont theory and the list goes on. This is why the AVA did such a large research project to see what the actual community believes and really 9 out of 10 times Lilith will come up. Its all folklore but most folklore is based in some truth somewhere. I have never met anyone with porphyria but then most people think the vampire "lifestyle" as you are calling it is a bunch of people who drink blood and quite frankly they are a minority. Those of us that feel we need the energy do get ill with various things. Migrains are on the top of the list for many.

They don't run around biting people or using unsafe practices unless they are fringe people and we have them. A lot of the people Katheryn Ramsland spoke to were these fringe and books like hers give a bad name to the community. Biography showed a documentary in the Fang Club in LA and I was appalled as they dwelled on the social scene set who are mostly lifestlyers and fashion vamps. I have yet to see them ever interview the person you would never recognize as a vamp. Many of us are sensitive to the sun but not all. Have glare problems which I do...believe we have reversed circadian cycles...believe we are born as we are...some believe genetics some believe it is due to reincarnation or both. The thing is the list goes on. No one I ever have met or spoken to that would be considered reputable would ever say vampyres are turned in the sense of a bite and blood exchanges or any combination thereof. These people get ridiculed. There are people I couldnt classify that really get into the whole scene as far as lifestyle and sleep in coffins and the whole nine yards but they are a minority. They want to be like fictional vampires. Most of us think it is misunderstanding just like with Witchcraft...superstition that has people thinking so many lunatic ideas about what a vampire is. The word alone is misleading due to what has been embedded into the minds of society by the church alone and places that are not highly educated still believing in many superstitions.

I'm going to address a couple points scattered throughout this thread.

First, porphyria has been addressed in various vampire groups throughout the past few years as pertaining to the mythological vampires; there's no proof either way. It's certainly a valid point.

Second, while vampirism is a lifestyle for some, it isn't for everyone. I, for one, am a real vampire; not a lifestyle vampire.

I have a stunner here 4 some who r not aware,,,,,,,,,,,,,Count Vladimer Dracula,,,was a real person, he was of the earth realm and did suffer from 2 known diseases today,,,,,,,1 was properyeria,,,,,,,known as the low blood disease or madness disease,I t occurs in some european families, my decesed spouse was a relative of the count,,,,,,,,,,DO NOT DISPUTE THIS I GIVE U MY WORD OF HONOR I ONLY WRITE THE TRUTH,My husband suffered from both diseases and was very ill, the p disease makes your skin burn and itch horribly, they tell u the more protein the better, so in old transylvania where the count was from, BLOOD, was an easy , economical, fast and large form of pure protein,,,as he thought anyways,,,,,,,,,,it causes severe digression of intelligence and severe paranoia because of the pain level,,,,,,,,,and ALL THAT R HERE KNOW"""""""WHAT PEOPLE DONT KNOW THEY FEAR'''''''I have but one reply

I think diseases like this along with others such as some sleeping disorders started some of the vampire myths. Some is just morality tales. For example; if you kill yourself you will become an undead creature, damned by God. Tales like this are stil used. Threatening bad children with the boogy man is one. The horror formula were the "bad" teens are the one to die, leaving the virgin to live another day.

this has been very interesting. I have heard about the disease and thought that maybe it does link up with a few of the myths and facts of vampirism. But then like a few others nave said how do you covers so many check points of vampirism in one disease, thought up my novlists or otherwise.

as they say
life becomes history
hisroty becomes myth
myth becomes legend
and finally legend becomes movies

it could be possible that it started the whole vampire mythos

I have to agree with those that do not think there is a link. Perhaps some of the symptoms led to creating the myth, but if one looks into what the disease really entails- there is no blood drinking or craving for energy.

Granted the urine can be red/brown, and the skin sensitivity with possible blistering... but with out the craving of blood or wanting to "drain" someone's energy are not symptoms that physicians use to diagnose this disease.

I see no link to the disease and vampires because of this.

Basically, I see someone like most fair skinned individuals that burn in sun exposure- just to a greater extreme, that may have urinary issues and other digestive symptoms.

I think that when this was first discovered in the old days, they did not know enough about this so they just made up things about vampires"some". others could have just said this to make it seem that it was better some how.

Sorry, i don' t subscribe to any "namire disease" theory. Instead, I believe that searching for ones identity (thru whatever facet0 can lead to fantastical imagaery/belief. the romanticism behind life eternal ad sensuality of vampiric intimacy only allows for aother way for people to fid a way to relate to the universe in all its infiniteness. Why do people play dress up? Why do people go all out for Halloween? It's a sate of mind manifested to increase what we may think is depleted.
Is there a disease? I doubt it -- maybe a need for a blood transfusion lol. Anything else is based on on fantastical sensuality.
(Of course, Im no authority lol)

Honestly, I think that yes this disease is the origin and that ALL myths have been made because of it. People fear the unknown and will think of the most ridiculous things to keep themselves safe. For instance someone with this disease may have been allergic to garlic and died due to the allergy, hence the belief that garlic keeps vampires away. Or maybe one with this disease was so ill that when looking in the mirror, they saw that they were "barely there" which could be where the myth that vampires have no reflection may have come from. I'm sure that once people realized the magnitude of fear that these myths and assumptions made in any individual, they just used it more and more, making it worse and worse along the way.

I wouldn't doubt that such a disease would account for some portion of the myth, although there are other factors as well such as occurance upon a body after death that are "vampire like".

After clicking the link and reading about this disease, it makes my heart hurt to think about small children and even adults afflicted with such a disease. I think that a disease like this may have sparked some of the myths about vampires but I am sure it by no means started them all. AND I think that many suffering with this disease dont want any part of that life...they are FORCED to live it

I do believe that the disease is real. I do not know much about it, for I have only heard about it after I had come on this neat site. Where this disease originated and the causes, I would like to know a great deal more on.

Why...does...it...have...to...be...a...disease....There are genes in us that lay dormant, and they are passed down from one generation to the next, why couldn't one of them have awakened......eons ago there existed a race of beings, spoken about in Sumerian texts, as being blood drinkers. They were here before the Sumerians, before the Pyramids, why couldn't their descendants be alive today and that little gene wake up and reveal a past older than what we acknowledge as history.

Am not buying it... I am a lifeflight nurse and an EMT in Chicago.I have seen many things and I am a vampire myself.But I think the "disease" theory is crapola.

I'm sorry but i find the term "disease" insulting. It implies that there's something wrong with us and that's not the case..it's just the way we choose to live.

i wouldn't as so much call it a "disease." i call the human race a disease. there are some medical conditions of people who are allergic to sunlight.

Its not a disease as such, but a new form of life for a entirely different race

i think this one has said it all now *smile*