Real-Life Vampires: Who Are They?

"The vampire-donor relationship is one of mutual respect and gratification," he said.

"We make every effort to educate ourselves on safe feeding methods, basic anatomy and physiology, first aid, sterilization, disease prevention, and safer sex practices," he told ABCNews.com. "We thoroughly screen donors for both physical and mental health conditions and concerns, as well as advocate [for] frequent updates in testing."

They don't feed from those who are knowingly infected with HIV, hepatitis or other blood-borne diseases, he said. And they avoid those whose physical conditions place them at risk of harm by sanguine or pranic feeding.

The Blood Bond

E. Mark Stern, an independent psychotherapist, professor emeritus at Iona College in New York and a widely published author on psychotherapy, has not studied the vampire subculture specifically but has dealt with a number of people who have claimed vampire tendencies.

He recognizes that there are certainly radical manifestations of the phenomenon, noting that some cults have exploited the blood theme to perpetrate fatal crimes.

But aside from these examples, he said, using blood as a way to bond people to a community is not entirely beyond the mainstream.

For example, taking communion in the Catholic tradition means, metaphorically, receiving the flesh and blood of Christ. Some Orthodox Jews practice a controversial circumcision ritual in which the rabbi performing the circumcision sucks some of the blood from the child's wound to clean it.

But the blood bond also exists outside religion.

"When I was 9, we were buddies forever -- 'blood brothers.' We pricked our fingers, mixed them and sucked them," Stern said. "In that sense, it's a way of binding a community beyond the usual forms of understanding. On a rational basis, you can say 'what the hell are they doing?' But on an instinctive basis, then we're bound much more."

Giving another person a hicky could also be considered a mild form of vampirism. "Bringing blood to the surface [means] you're bound to me by this blood sign," he said.

Although the desire to "possess" a person by drawing their blood can indicate insecurity, he said, the sign of blood means protection, too.

Vampirism certainly comes with extremes, Stern cautioned. But given the elements of vampirelike rituals embraced by cultures all over the world, he said, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, "it's hard to separate out 'vampire.' It sounds great on Halloween, [but] everybody's slightly a vampire."