Some helpful journal questions (follow-up post)

othermagic:

To add onto the post on “Otherkin and the Alchemical Ladder”, I’ve made some journal questions that correspond to the general theme of each rung on the ladder. You don’t need to be at a certain point in your development to use them, they’re simply grouped by rung for convenience. Asking yourself questions is always helpful, self-evaluation is a wonderful way to start working on yourself and understanding yourself better.

Awakening (Calcination)

• What was awakening like for you? Was it
  slow, was it painful, did you feel better when you found out otherkinity wasn’t
  something only you had to deal with? Did you always feel nonhuman or
  otherworldy?
• Did you put your initial awakening off
  by denying your nature? If so, what happened because of it? If not, what do you
  imagine could have happened if you hesitated in accepting it?
• Has the initial perception of your
  kintype changed, or were you right all along? Do you wish your first guess at a
  kintype was the correct one?
• Was your initial awakening sudden, slow,
  or did it come in stages?
• Do you feel better or worse now that you
  realize you’re otherkin? Do you have more hatred for humans, or more
  compassion?

Introspection (Dissolution)

• What led you to your conclusions of
  being otherkin and eventually your kintypes?
• What recurring memories have bothered
  you? Do you even have memories from your other life?
• In what way are you otherkin? A past
  life, a parallel life, walk-in, born with a different soul? How would you feel
  if your nature came from a different origin, such as a walk-in rather than a
  past life?
• What places, foods, music, etc. remind
  you most of your kintype? What part of that life do those things remind you of?
• Did realizing that you are otherkin
  change your beliefs, lifestyle, or magical practice? If so, how? If not, why?

Withdrawal from Humanity (Separation)

• Were you ever tempted to join or make a
  pack/clan/group? Did you actually join one or make one? Have you wanted to make
  one but dislike the stigma?
• What parts of the community are you
  active in? What parts of the community do you dislike? Are you active at all,
  or completely solitary?
• Do you wish to meet more otherkin? What
  types? Online or offline?
• Do you spend more time communicating
  with members of the community, exploring yourself, or a balance of both? Do you
  wish it were different? What’s keeping you from changing it?
• Have you met any otherkin online or
  offline? Are you open about your nature to anyone, or are you the only person
  who knows?
• Do you wish to meet someone who shares
  the same kintypes as you? Why or why not? Have you ever come across someone who
  shares kintypes?

Return to Humanity (Conjunction)

• How do you express your otherkin nature
  in day-to-day life? Do you have accessories, articles of clothing, buttons or
  pins, a tail/ears, etc. that you use to show off your nature? If not, is the
  reason personal or societal (i.e. school/work dress code)?
• Do you contribute to the community? If
  so, in what way? If not, do you wish to? Do you have an idea of how to
  contribute?
• Have you been to a gather, howl, or convention?
  If so, what were your favorite and least favorite parts? If you have never
  been, why is that? Did you not know they existed, or were time, money, and
  travel concerns more important? Do you wish to create gathers, howls, or
  meetups?
• What does your experience of otherkin
  feel like? What have you noticed about yourself as a human and as otherkin? Do
  they conflict often?
• What parts of your otherkinity help you
  through your daily life?
• Has your discovery affected your
  hobbies, eating habits, or choice of media (music, movies, video games, etc)?
  What have they affected and how? Do you like the change?

Self-doubt (Fermentation)

• Have you ever doubted that you’re
  otherkin? What caused it? How did you get out of it? Did it affect the view on
  any of your kintypes you held?
• Did your beliefs about otherkin,
  spirituality, and the world change during a time of stress? Did they go back or
  have you re-evaluated your entire outlook?
• Have your doubts caused you pain or
  harm? Were they self-inflicted because of the community’s expectations, or your
  fear of not “being otherkin” to enough people? Was it something else
  altogether?
• Have your doubts ever lead to
  discovering a new kintype, rather than realizing you were wrong about a certain
  kintype?
• Do you feel like you’ll ever figure out
  your purpose for being otherkin? Do you have any ideas as to why you may be
  here?
• Have you had energetic confirmation from
  a Reiki master, aura reader, or other energy worker? If not, do you believe it
  would help or hurt your outlook on your nature to do so?
• Have you ever worried that you have
  created the narrative of otherkinity to help you cope in some way, or to seem
  cooler or more powerful? How do you deal with intrusive thoughts like this?

Taking a Role (Distillation)

• Do you have any interest in becoming a
  prominent figure in the community? Why or why not?
• What are your beliefs about otherkin and
  what is and isn’t possible in regards to it?
• Do you want to leave the community
  entirely? Will you still identify as otherkin if you’ve left?
• What issues do you see with the
  community? Do you believe they are harmful, overbearing, etc.? Do you believe
  in anything or engage in any activities you’d scorn others for believing or
  doing?
• How do you feel about the community at
  large? What do you feel is missing from it?
• Have you helped someone else come to
  terms with their otherkin nature? Have you done an energy reading or divination
  to help them confirm?

Integration (Coagulation)

• What makes it easier for you to remain
  shifted or in a certain mindset regarding your kintypes? What makes it harder?
• What have you done to promote balance
  within yourself? What makes it harder to stay in control? What helps you calm down and return to a “human” mindset?
• Have you altered your home or personal
  environment so that it’s easy to be both human and otherkin inside it? Are
  there changes you feel need to be made to reach that point? What can you do to meet those needs if finances or space are a concern?
• Has your otherkin side affected your
  choice of degree or career? Why or why not?
• Have you ever experienced species
  dysphoria? If so, what do you do to alleviate it? Are there things that make it worse you can avoid or learn to cope with?

Cloud (Portal)