Therian Help

What is Shifting?

Hey guys! It's Scorch here! This is where I'm gonna cover shifting. All newer therians or people misguided on therianthropy should read this.

A shift is when your human mind weakens and your animal mind strengthens. Usually this happens when doing/seeing something related to your theriotype, when feeling strong emotions, or when out in nature.

The main type of shift (and in my opinion, the most important) is the m-shift, or the Mental Shift. The mental shift is when a therian has the mindset of their theriotype and begins to think like them.
Example: At dinner, a cat therian holds down the food with their hands (or paws) and uses only their teeth to eat it, and purrs at the good taste.

Next, we cover the p-shift, or the Phantom Shift. Don't be freaked out by the word phantom in the name. It simply means that a therian gains a phantom limb that their theriotype has. A phantom limb is a limb that is felt or seen in the mind's eye, but not actually there.
Example: A hawk therian who climbed a tree is feeling like they have wings and need to soar through the sky, although physically, they don't.

The third kind of shift is a Dream Shift. This is where a therian will dream that they are living the life as their theriotype. During a dream shift, they can learn a lot about the past life of the animal, or the life the animal was supposed to live.
Example: A lynx therian dreaming about protecting her kits from a bear

The fourth is a sensory shift, where your human senses strengthen, lessen, or change for some time. I had one of these where I was in line for a water ride, and I was the only one who could smell the water. They (my fam) only smelled it when we were extremely close to the water. Cool right? Or riptorn711 seeing in blues, yellows, and greens for a day. (I think I got the colors right)

How to help control shifting:
Although shifting is natural for therians, it can pop up randomly when it's not wanted, such as meowing during class or eating with only the teeth (meaning crouching over the plate and biting off the food) at a family dinner. The involuntarily shifted therian needs to take some deep breaths, remind themselves that they are not physically an animal, and promise themselves that they will do some meditations or something similar to connect with their theriotype later.

Now, there are two different ways to shift. Voluntary and involuntary. A voluntary shift is where you purposely shift. Imagining yourself as an animal and bringing a shift upon yourself. An involuntary shift is when it happens randomly. You don't provoke it in any way. It's triggered by strong emotions, being in nature, or seeing/hearing your theriotype.