Psychological vs Spiritual otherkin

I believe that I am both psychological and spiritual otherkin. I don’t think there’s a clear distinction between the mind and the soul. On the spiritual side, I believe I have the soul of a dog. I think that it was one or more of my past lives. This likely means I had at least one past life in Scotland, as that’s where the breed is from.

On the psychological side, I think I was greatly shaped by being undiagnosed neurodivergent as a child. I was an outcast among my classmates and didn’t have many friends. The friend (singular) I did have was manipulative and controlling. She led me to bully other students. I don’t really blame her because we were so young. I was also her only friend.

This trauma at such a young age led me to thinking and acting differently. On top of that, I am autistic and ADHD. My behavior never lined up with other people’s expectations. I would run off frustration or excitement. I growled at people when I didn’t have the words to express myself. I think this made me identify more with the animals around me. Dogs are also my special interest.  There was one time when I was little where I told my classmates I was a fairy-dog-princess.

In addition, that isn’t even questioning if I’m neurodivergent because I’m a dog or if I’m a dog because I’m neurodivergent. For all I know, my dog soul might have changed how my brain works. On the other hand, maybe my dog lives are particularly present now because of how my brain works. It’s a whole chicken and the egg thing.