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I don't have any sources or anything like that, being as this is something that I just sorta thought about..
But for those who believe in vampires, do you believe they can get sick?
Or do you think they are immune from everything from the common cold to serious mental disorders?

Many have argued in the past that vampirism itself is a sickness, or a psychological problem, or it may be both.

It does appear to be an 'affliction', which cascades through he three aspects of the human, from the soul at the fundamental level of identity, through the spirit which animates the physical shell, which in turn manifests the symptoms.

So in a way, it is partly mental, partly physical, but all spiritual.

I think that the mythological vampire would be immune to all diseases.

misterstikki,

Would you care to elaborate upon that please?

Is there some evidence, or folklore you're heard or read which leads you to believe that?

If thought about it logically, Vampires who feed on sick people would get what ever the donor had. But other than that, I do not recall reading of any sicknesses that they might catch any other way.

Stab you always do make good points. Besides it being looked at as a sickness. Hollywood vamps, who we all know most of them are immune. I would have to say that normal vampires, yes they can get sicknesses. I believe that anything a normal human can get, so can a vampire.

I would imagine it depends on what you mean by "vampire." Usually the fictional "Hollywood" vampire is immune to all human ailments, of course you knew this. Other believe that being a vampire is a disease in and of itself.

Personally I subscribe to the notion of vampirism, not out right vampires. Which leads me to say that they get sick :) I would like to think that vampires have a heightened immune system thus lessening their ability to get ill.

i would think they are not. they are still part human and therefore not amune to desease, like someone else said i would think it would depend on the donor.

I believe that the vampires here are human all which seem to have different abilities. The body and ammune system is still which of a humans. Though there is no such thing as the average human anyway, and we all seem to be ammune to different things.

i would have thought that although undead, a vampire isn't exactly living, and if it's heart has stopped i assume that cell production would also have stopped, and imune systems would be down, and although there is nothing to fight against diseases in this case....i dont think that it would affect the vampire though.

Vampires in movies must be immune because we never see them get sick. People who think they are vampires in real life risk getting sick with what ever thier donors may have

we are human in many ways and yes we can succomb to human frailities

Great points Stabb.

The Hollywood and written vampires are immune to almost any disease since their bodies immunesystems were transformed into something else ( I do not know what that would be though) and it is as far fetched as it becomes.

Maybe they are given the status of being immune to all kinds of diseases to add to their mystery and to increase the fear and respect from those who belive in them.

As for people who live the vampiric lifestyle, yes you will catch whatever your donor has.

As for the common cold, some people have better immunesystems than others so they have a harder time catching a cold, but that is not the same as being completely immune to them.

In my opinion I believe they're immune from colds and the like. However, I do think its possible they can develope mental disorders overtime.

Such as getting chronic depression from being alone too long or getting multiple personalities from the same thing.

I think whether sanguine or psychic vampire, if they were to go without their needs, blood or energy for an extended amount of time, they could become sick. The question I have is, if a vampire goes without these needs and becomes sick as a result, would it lower their immunity to other diseases or afflictions?

Sure Stabb. I'd be more than happy to elaborate.

Hollywood vamps: whatever is in the script.

Real vamps: nothing more than human beings who prefer to live the lifestyle of being vampires...which means they have allergies, colds, flu...etc.

My evidence pretty much comes from living life, my friend. Thanks for asking though.

I agree with Stabb. I'd also like to add that people that truly believe that they are vampires must have some kind of sickness already. It is one thing to try to live a lifestyle of a Hollywood vampire but when you start to believe that you truly are one then you have problems. Everybody gets sick in one form or another.

There are many diseases that are linked to vampires, Anemia, Celiac, Porphyria, Migraine Headaches, Lupus, TB, bubonic plague, ect... Through out history many people with these affliction have been thought of as real life vampires, however, it may be how the legend began.

Is it a sickness or rather a manageable mutation. I am thinking of the X-Men approach - not a mutation but rather an evolution.

I believe she's asking whether or not vampires are able to get sick, not if vampirism itself is a sickness. ;]

I b'lieve that they can get sick t' severe illnesses, not the common flu b'cause o' some immunities that 'ave been passed down from gen'ration t' gen'ration, the immune cells 'ave b'come stronger like a mortals does.

Myth implies that vampires have weaknesses not sicknesses.

The mythological vampire is undead...whether it's heart beats or not, whether it's immune system is 'functioning' (which I'd doubt), the main issue here isn't defense but the motivation of disease itself. Diseases attack and feed on living tissue. I would think that a vampire could be a carrier for disease and infection but would not be affected by it at all.

Nope, we get sick like everyone else, at least I do. If I have fed for a while ,I tend to get colds more easily.

Mental Illness, I could imagine vampires that where turned against their wishes would really get some complex mental problems. I could imagine
that the various definitions of vampire have stronger likelihoods of reaction to bacteria and viruses, yet if a the plague victims dodn't effect those vampires then the Ancient ones have a real good vaccine.

The mental illness could contribute t' unwanted images or terror from exp'riencing such a turn o' events.

I could imagine that some would deny they are vampires. Like some Claim to be vampires.

Physically i havent been sick since my actual awakening... kinda weird i know but for over 16 years now i have not had a flu nor cold... now mantally i do suffer from being manic depressive and bipolar disorder... well so they tell me... but yes i do belive that Vamps have a higher immunity, prolly based on beliefs and a mind over matter thing, as i have said that i am immune to mortal disease...and have been since the first time thinking it

On anot'er point, can Vampires 'ave children who 'ave been passed on the genes of immunity/immortality?

The Definition of the Anatomy of a vampire type would be a factor in imagining such possibilities as vampire mating.

I also want t' know if they can even 'ave children? On many theories that is 'ow the Nosferatu came t' be, b'cause o' so many diff'rent genes mixin' together they morphed the child.

i believe they would be immune from sickness, seens as they are immortal so nothing would effect them, not sure about metal illnesses

For our average vr vampire, it may be an identity issue. Whether the genesis is physical, or if the psychological incites the physical is not clear to me.

Fictionally, Charlie Huston in his series starting with "Already Dead," postulates a Vyrus which infects the human parasitically and will do anything to keep its host alive. The vampyre is not dead, and possesses all the usual vampire strengths and resistances to illnesses.

The author has created interesting vampyric subcultures, all jostling for control of NY terrain, and with different goals. Humans exist and conduct their lives ignorant of the concerns of the infected.

i've seen movies where vampires get sick from bad blood
but their bodies rejected it right away ---- as for me I don't believe it ---- I would think they wouldn't get sick .

movie vampires wouldn't get sick --- us real life ones --- would .

Bad blood would do it for sure..

TheBetrayer -

Well, aren't vampires usually portrayed as being undead? E.g. heart stopped beating and what not?

A true mythological vampire would have a much lower body tempature than a human. Most viruses and bacteria that affect humans are very dependant on the enviroment of the body to live, with a lower tempature the virus or cold would not survive, thus making a vampire imune to our typical colds. I know my body tempature is usually around 96.3 instead of 98, and I rarley catch the colds of people around me, could be I have a good imune system, or may have something to do with my abnormal body temperature.

Virus' aren't technically considered living. ;] Therefore they really can't survive or not-survive.

MBK- well if they (we) are undead, 'ow d' we die? Undead is past livin' an' past Death itself. Vampires, like I say, are unique creatures an' ev'ry person 'as their own int'rpretation o' us, which is why all movies are diff'rent.

i have to agree with angelofdarknessfalls if vampires are dead how can they get sick. if a vampire could get sick it would not be imortal.

It is common for the Priest of the Kheperian to be quite sick from time to time due to inability to control the energies … quite like a burn out.

TheBetrayer -

Just because something is undead doesn't mean it can't die.

Take for example the zombies in resident evil. They're re-animated corpses. But you can still kill them [again].

thirsty -

If vampires were truly dead they'd have no brain function and therefore couldn't be.

That's why these movies nev'r made sense t' me lol. I always ask myself-Why (if they're undead) don't they just get back up an' attack again...I don't really like those movies abou' zombies, I analyze them too much lol.

It's not as if its dead though. ;] Therefore able to be 'dead' again.

I guess it's a yes and no answer to this. for one if they don't feed they get sick just like humans we dont eat we get sick but we can also get a cold and flu which I don't belive vampires can since there dead they have no immune system which for humans fight the sicknesses

I beleieve that they can still catch a disease maybe but not a common cold, ect like that...

MBK, thank you kindly! :)

Since Vampires are immortal I don't see how they can get sick like us humans would get from a coomon cold to a disease of that nature

Being immortal doesn't mean they can't get sick.

e.g. The Immortal Count [supposedly] became immortal through way of Alchemy. He could still get sick, but not die.

Okay believing that vampires are real opens up a whole slew of mental disorders. One might check out the DSM-IV.

As well as those that are vampires yet seem not be able to accept that they are.

I was talking about present day vampires, such as myself.And I see some folks talking about the make believe ones. I was referring to myself as far as catching diseases or whatever. I am not super human ,I gets sick like anyone else.

That is true as well, but there maybe a theory that wit' time instead o' b'coming immune t' the sickness/disease ov'r time our body's immune system is weakened by "over-dosing" the same illness.

That might be possible if thats what the virus originally does, however the body builds up immunity after getting a sickness.

Yes, but the vampire's immunity could be damaged or weakened by age. All these solutions are great though. :)

But there's always the possibility it would increase with age. ;] The exact opposite of the human immune system, aye?

V'ry nice, MBK! I applaud you full heartily!

i believe they can get sick but not mortally sick. they are immortal and therefore cannot get too sick.

Again ... what does being immortal have with not being able to get sick?

Not bein' able t' die!!! D' I get a prize now?

Sickness doesn't really mean death though.

I thought that vampirism itself was supposed to be a "sickness" as far as that goes. And as far as mental illenesses go... hmm... wouldn't u go a little crazy watching everyone u love die around u of old age or illnesses, knowing that u urself will never die? Seems like the thought of that would be enough to unhing someone ever so slightly.

Or you could be a Malcavian vampire who are naturally insane (or so you are led t' b'lieve). Where's my prize?

cemetary -

For the vampirism being a sickness part, what type are you referring to?

The 'Hollywood' vampire where they're created by being bitten by another and having [what is considered] a virus pass through their bloodstream?

Or those who call themselves 'sang' or 'psy' vampires?

Other than the fact the are dead already I cannot see how they can get sick as most things we catch I through the air we breathe, bacterial etc the only thing that I could see that would get is blood dieseases but what are they going to do die......... again

If were talking about a traditional vampire, then I'd say immune

I personally believe that if vampires are truly real they are more than likely carriers of blood born diseases. Since they can't be poisoned or diseased themselves, and they aren't alive, per se, the poison or disease wouldn't be dealt with, it'd just sit there and be passed to whomever.

in the first place I tend to believe that vampires are imune to sicknesses all of them. tha only things that a vampire is afraid are not sicknesses but holly water, garlic, sunlight, the cross, and all that stuff you all know about.. I never found written something about sick vampires. in the second place I don't see the poin of asking myself if vampires get sick... i like them how they are.. imaginary and strong.

I myself got sick with boils of all things just this summer.. Yeah i know TMI but it proves my point thaT NOT all vamps are immune.. LOL

I believ there bodys can't get sick because germs cannot affect the dead.

Yes .. the germs do not affect the dead.. but vampires are not dead :)

I think since vampires don't have a sit down and see what illnesses people have that they could most definatly get sick and diseases.

mythological vamps...I cannot ever remember seeing a movie where a vamp was blowing chunks.

Can't get sick physically. But I think it mental would affect them.........if they existed.

I'm with ya Jamie. I have never heard of a vampire having the flu, allergies or whatnot. There are some crazy nutjob vamps in the movies though...

Traditionally, vampires have a much higher recovery rate than 'mortals'. So with that in mind, I'd say that while a vampire could certainly get sick, the illness would have little to no impact on them.

I think they can get sick not sick like humans but other sickiness

Like if they do not get enough blood they can some illness or they can go crazy

I wonder if a vampire can get nauseous..

In vampires of folklore, you never heard of them getting sick- that's why they were immortal...most people die of sickness, and most people died of sickness, hundreds of years ago. Since the vampires didn't get sick, they didn't die of natural causes, because their bodies remained intact, I guess.
I've never thought about mental diseases- I don't see how that wouldn't be possible, though.

I don't believe they can get sick as in the common cold and so forth but I do believe that a vampire can have a mental illness. Or at least go crazy.

Rayemoone -

Why don't you think so?

A vampire would be expected to get depression if they spent many years alone.

Absolutley. Obsessive compulsive disorder, Depression, amoung many other things!

Many, many fiction writers have used some explanation or another to show that vampires are immune to human disease. In a series I read recently, it was explained that during the transformation from human to vampire, the thing in the vampires blood that caused them to become vampires put them into a coma and slowly removed ALL possible sickness from their system - including diseases they might have in their genes, but not actually have such as cancer running in the family (something in their blood that caused them to regenerate at an accelerated rate; a Fountain of Youth, if you will).

ok

as for mythological vampires being able to get sick, yes they can. Let's think about this shall we....when our normal human bodies come into contact with something harmful or that doesnt "agree with us" we have an immune response or reaction. mythological vampires, when exposed to garlic, holy water, or silver, also have reactions whether they cant breathe, they melt, skin burns whatever, they still react to it, therefore triggering an immune respone. they can get sick


we however are not immortal and can get sick from aids, cancer, hepititus whatever else is out there. Duh


no smartass comment intended sorry

I belive they are just like us in some ways and can get ill

VelvetPassion -

How so are they like us? I'd just like to hear your views. ;]

BeautifullySadistic - What authors would those be? ;]

well, i believe that vampires would be immune to most physical diseases because they weren't alive, so the disease couldn't hinder their body functions. i think that they could be carriers though, if they drank from a diseased person though.
i believe that vampires can be affected by mental disorders, however, because they still have a consciousness that can be disrupted.

I doubt that the vampires of myth and legend could catch a disease, afterall they were undead and immortal. I guess it would be possible for them to contract a disease after feeding off of someone who had the disease to start with, although it wouldn't do much damage to the vampire it's self but I think it could pass it on to other people. As for people who live the vampire lifestyle, I think they can get any kind of sickness that any other person can.

I belive vampires can get ill but it is not the same as human illness

VelvetPassion -

Would you care to explain what you mean? What other types of sicknesses are there if not human?

I would figure that a mythological vampire would be immune to disease since he is dead...but if you really think about it problems like mental illness would probably get worse the longer they are around, and doing what they have to to feed while being hunted themselves......kinda like soldiers in a war being severly out numbered by the enemy...lol

Well, since a vampire is technically not alive, it could not contract any type of viral or bacterial infections.

Just like a rock would not be able to.

Some say that being a vampire is a sickness in itself. If you think about it , if one taking in the blood of another, if the person they are taking blood from is sick. Than I do believe that person could get whatever that individual has.

Mindcleaner -

Vampires aren't technically dead either.

With the same question I ask to DuCroix, since they aren't dead either, couldn't they still get a disease?

Well maybe they can get a disease, maybe it would cure faster or not affect them as much as it would a human.
Even if the diseases couldn't affect them I think they would be able to catch one and spread it around.

With a mythological vampire, since they are undead, I just can't see how they could contract any type of disease or illness.

All they are existing for is to feed, so all that I could see them doing is getting sick off of bad blood, but then again, according to ol' Anne Rice, bad blood is dead blood right?

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