Mental Shift (MS or m-shift): occurs when a Therianthrope temporarily has a change in mindset from the humanside to animalside and thinks more instinctively like the therioside or other nonhuman creature. Cameo mental shifts are possible. During a mental shift, the Therianthrope often expresses animal behavior and vocalizations while the human body remains physically unchanged.
The term first appeared on Alt.Horror.Werewolves in 1995, but this phenomenon was most likely discussed earlier. This is still a commonly discussed shift in the community that is experienced by most Therianthropes.
Mental shifts can happen in the midst of any emotional state. These changes in consciousness, whether involuntary or voluntarily induced, are not always at the same level of intensity. Mental shifts can be very mild to very strong and any level in-between. During mild shifts the human mindset never fully vanishes. By the same token, many Therians claim that even when not "shifted" the animal mindset is never fully dormant.
It has been hypothesized that involuntary m-shifts are more likely when the Therian is still coming to terms with their animal nature. Some Therians choose to study their shifts to learn what triggers them. They can then use these triggers to induce shifts when they choose to. It is important to learn to control shifts of any kind, and shifts are not an excuse to cause harm to other people.
A strong mental shift can make a person lose the ability to think in words in favor of thinking in pure awareness. This full shift, especially if due to an emotionally heightened state, can be referred to a Feral Shift. If you know that you are prone to strong mental shifts, it's good to learn the sensations that are precursors of your shifts so that you can suppress it until you find a safe and private place to experience your shift.
References
http://therian.wikia.com/wiki/Mental_Shift
Orion Scribner, "Otherkin lexicon: A multi-lingual dictionary of jargon used in the communities of otherkin, therianthropes, and other similar peoples, v. 0.1 Abridged." The Art and Writing of O. Scribner. 8 September, 2012. http://frameacloud.com/otherkin/nonfiction-otherkin/otherkin-lexicon/
Therianthropes United, Mental Shift, December 18, 2007 (archived page accessed June 2, 2018) https://web.archive.org/web/20071218234939/http://www.therianthropes.com/mental_shifting.htm
Shifters.org Encyclopedia (2006 web archive) - http://web.archive.org/web/20060901112859/http://www.therianthropy.org/SO/encyclopedia.htm
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The Types of Therian Shifts
Non-FictionThis book goes in depth into describing and explaining Therianthropic Shifts including the history of the shifts and references for each.
