The man who thought he was a gopher
We've now posted about several cases of clinical zoanthropy, which is the belief that one has turned into an animal. There was the woman who thought she was a camel, and another woman who decided she was a chicken.
Here's a third case, from 1982. Walter Murphy of Los Angeles, believing he was a gopher, started burrowing holes. PCP contributed to his delusion. He ended up suffocating to death inside one of his holes.
Here's a third case, from 1982. Walter Murphy of Los Angeles, believing he was a gopher, started burrowing holes. PCP contributed to his delusion. He ended up suffocating to death inside one of his holes.
Kenosha News - Sep 21, 1982
Comments
I don't know about the "thinks he's an animal" aspect. There's a psychiatric disorder where people need to be in a cocoon, tube, or other tight space. Sort of the opposite of claustrophobia.
Posted by Phideaux on 03/09/21 at 10:34 PM
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Category: Animals | Bad Habits, Neuroses and Psychoses | Psychology | 1980s