Watch it – the narrative and ideas are very enjoyable. It’s a crash course on vampire folklore as well as weaving an argument pro-and-con vampire existence using history, forensic science, modern medicine and chilling case studies.

The most intriguing part of the episode for me was when they interviewed so-called real life vampire Don Henrie. I’ve seen Don before on television interviews (Tyra Banks show I think from a couple years ago) and he’s apparently the “face” of the real life vampire community in the U.S. That being said, I recall hearing that the vampire community is torn about having a real life celebrity face like Don. Though it’s nice that real vampires finally get some recognition (Don’s openness welcomes others of his kind to step out), other vampires are furious because their very existence is supposed to be shrouded in mystery. Also, anti-Don vampires are upset because now pseudo-real vampire posers are stepping out and claiming the dark gift and they’re obviously not the real real thing. Because technically real real vampires would never do such a thing. And pseudo-real vampires are obviously just impostors channeling the fictional myths fed to the public by media so no one truly knows what vampires are really like … and then the argument gets supremely confusing (and preposterous) and probably best not to think too deeply about it.

Visit Don Henrie’s Myspace page if you’d like – he lives by the motto, “You cannot see the stars without the darkness.” (I believe he only found his darkness a couple years ago because he used to be a computer programmer or something in a 9-5 job… before he suddenly realized that he was a vampire. That’s called “awakening.”)

Some of the stories National Geographic shares concerning real vampires are not as nice as Don’s (since he doesn’t prey on innocent humans). Some are deeply unsettling. But that just means it makes for a good watch and lessons to learn.

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In European folklore, when demons possess a person’s body then that individual becomes a vampire. It seems that the transformation process has become more elaborate than those days. I’d like to clarify and go over different myths by which vampires come to “life”:

1. Via a vampire’s kiss (otherwise knows as the bite)… this is the method that the Twilight family adopts. Some other popular vampire fiction also cites this method for turning (like Blade, Dracula, From Dusk ‘Till Dawn). The basic idea is that any individual who is bitten by a vampire will ultimately become a vampire – they don’t even necessarily have to be drained of all their blood. The rationale is once you’re bitten, you’re infected with the vampire virus and eventually it will take over your body and turn you. And then the thirst begins. I’ve always found this theory for turning into a vampire too outlandish since all vampires have to feed and if just one bite will do the trick, then the world would experience a rapid exponential growth of the vampire population. Since this never happens, this biting business can’t be right. Plus vampires would have to be really picky with choosing their meals… which just doesn’t seem practical.

2. Via a blood transfusion… which basically means an exchange of blood between the vampire “sire” and the human “childe”. This is how vampires are made in Buffy, True Blood, the Anne Rice ‘verse, etc. This is what I live by as the “official” method of becoming a vampire. Vampires can then feed on a regular basis and not worry about producing all kinds of strange and non-worthy offspring. The vampire chooses which human they would like to sire. (Understandably it’s a big decision considering this person might be with you for all eternity.) After draining the human of almost all their blood, the vampire can make a cut on their own body (usually the neck, chest or wrist) so that the near-death human can drink some of the vampire blood. In doing so, said individual will wake up next as an immortal vampire childe. This method of siring also provides a hierarchy to the vampire community since all members would have a sire and mentor. Bonds between a sire and childe are also the strongest since they share a blood line; you can share thoughts and emotions with each other beyond words.

3. Via awakening… for those who believe they are real life vampires. This process requires that the human wake up and realize that they are of another kind. You can awaken during any stage of your life. The two primary types of real vampires are sanguinarian (blood-drinking) or psychic (energy-drinking) vampires. This explanation is most intriguing. The awakening process will naturally come for those destined to be vampires. It’s impossible to resist the change even if you don’t want to become one. Read more about real vampires here.  

P.S. For a morbid take on how to become a vampire, follow this link. But let’s be clear that these methods don’t work. So please don’t try them.

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