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I'm questoning if I am dragonkin or not but how do I know for sure? Because I am a horse and tiger therian but I also feel like I have big taloned feet and wings etc. I don't know if its a genuine identity or something I am just imagining because I consume a lot of media with dragons in them and I have a very vivid imagination .

My first suggestion would be to try taking a little break from the dragon media and see if the feelings persist even without it.

There's also a lot more to identity than just phantom shifts! Check if dragons line up other ways like instincts, urges, does depicting yourself as a dragon give you species euphoria, etc. It can be helpful for this part to journal your experiences. Any time you have a shift or find yourself picturing your body as nonhuman, jot down what it felt like or what you saw for yourself real quick.

There's also no shame in being wrong. You could always try calling yourself a dragon for a while, and if it sticks, that's cool, and if it doesn't, that's ok too. Identity is a very fickle and fluid thing.

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Hello, I was wondering if you could explain what physical shifting is? I keep seeing the term around and I don't understand. Also the term "physical therian." Signed, confused critter!

So, despite their initially similar appearance, these two terms and communities have pretty different histories.

Physical shifting and its counterpart community, p-shifters, revolve around the belief that one can physically turn into their species, werewolf style, in the shared world (meaning that if they did it in front of you, you would see it. They generally believe that its as real as your kitchen table, to everyone.) Historically, p-shifters have been associated heavily with online cults and promises of being able to teach young therians to transform physically if they have the elusive shifting gene.

However, recently, physically identifying nonhumans have been having a bit of a Renaissance, with a few changes, and this is where the term "physical therian" started growing popularity. Physical therians, holotheres, and a few other terms now usually refer to those with beliefs and experiences ranging from "I am an animal and this is my body. Therefore, it is an animal's body", to transspeciesism, to clinical zoanthropes and those with other delusions that influence them to experience themselves as physically and animal. These individuals ask that you respect that physically being an animal is real to them and a part of their personal reality, but generally don't demand that you believe they can transform in the shared visible reality. They also don't generally try to spread their beliefs or impose on other's realities by trying to teach them how to shift or making sweeping generalizations about how everyone else's shifting has to work, a marked difference from the norm in older p-shifter communities.

As a disclaimer, the lines between these groups can be quite blurry, and this is all heavily simplified for brevity. Some p-shifters hold beliefs more similar to those of physical therians, and visa versa.

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Sorry for the brief absence! Overwhelmed myself a bit over the weekend, but I am back and will be back to answering questions today

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Twenty-two follows in two days. Wow! Thanks guys. It makes me happy that you all are enjoying my advice. I'll probably do something special when I reach 100!

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☢️: Feeling alright. Journaling stuff, and found another possibility that called out to me - herbivorous and lighter, like the titi, but feels right in a few other ways.

That suggestion makes sense to me. I'll do some research and journaling, try and narrow it down some more (again) and then see what comes of that, so I can be sure. I've read a few other resources too so hopefully it'll come a little easier, with more knowledge. Thanks again for your patience. Maybe I'll make a blog or a site to share my journey? Might be nice to be around the community instead of hiding in a corner on my own. Might not help so much with stage two of that equation, though.

Either way, thanks for all your patience. I'm sure I'll be back around.

If you do make a blog, I will be excited to support you and read about your journey!

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Is it valid to have VERY little clue of what your theriotype is until you see an image of an animal and go "OH MY GOD that's me"? Even if you've seen the animal before?

I don't see why not :]

I'm a bit more of an old-fashioned "months of questioning and journaling and grilling" kind of guy when it comes to my own identity, but if spur of the moment revelation are what works for you then stick with it! You get those gut "thats me" feelings for a reason, and they shouldn't be ignored.

I would just recommend still doing some research on what the animal is like. It pains me to see people spreading misinformation about animals just because they are one. Remember, you've been raised in the human world. There's no shame in needing a refresher on how your species behaves and how they live.

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Anyone know what you would call a humanoid sea monster, one looking alot like the one’s from Disney’s Luca? Like if I wanted to search for community or other people like me, what is that kin called? I know im not a merperson because my tail doesnt replace my legs and just doesnt really look like a mermaid tail

I think that would be called a fish-man or gill-man? That's what I usually hear people call the humanoid sea monsters from The Shape of Water and The Creature From The Black Lagoon, which sound similar to what you're looking for!

Other humanoid sea monsters feel free to add on to this with what you call yourself, or just give yourself a shout out so you can find each other

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I have this problem where I so badly want to wander and walk around a nearby park in the late evening/night or just generally on my own because I’m a cryptid but unfortunately the vessel they stuck me into isnt great at self defense and I can’t do it without risking coming under possible harm from shady people :((

Any advice? Like for example, what could I bring with myself that could be used as a weapon but wouldnt get me stopped by the police? (I like in the uk if that helps)

So, the best strategy for defending yourself in a dangerous situation is to not end up in a dangerous situation. Try to find any information you can about crime reports in your park to judge how dangerous of an area it is and what times are the most dangerous so you can go outside of those. Stick to better traveled and more well lit areas. Let someone who can look for you know where you're going and when to expect you back. Keep your phone on you and charged, and bring a flashlight. Don't bring anything valuable (or that looks valuable even if it isn't).

If you want to carry some kind of weapon, do UK police stop you for a knife? I'm not very familiar with UK laws. If a knife is a no-go, pepper spray or a stun gun might be good. I would really recommend not jumping to weapons, though. By the time it comes to a fight, you are probably going to get hurt even if you win. Sticking to safer areas, not making eye contact or inviting any sort of interaction with strangers, screaming and drawing attention if something does happen, and calling someone are all safer initial options.

Ultimately, this comes down to legal advice and personal safety practices, neither of which I feel super qualified to speak on beyond this level of basic stuff. I would recommend looking into your local laws, crime rates, and reading about personal safety or maybe even taking a self-defense class.

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Any kin activities for voidkin?

Oo, okay, this is a tricky one. I'll do my best!

I'm not sure exactly what kind of void you are or if space is something that you jive with, but the first thing that came to mind was planetariums. They may give you the floating eternal emptiness feeling you're looking for. If space is a good theme for you, regular star gazing or setting your room up with a constellation night light may be nice too.

Leaving the space theme behind, if you got the opportunity to do a sensory deprivation tank experience, that is about the most void experience I can imagine. They're actually more common and affordable (for like one hour) than you might think these days.

If creepy liminal space vibes are more your thing, night walks, cave exploration, and urban exploration might be good for you. Be safe with these. The last two especially are best done in a popular area, with a person who has done it for a while.

I'm sorry this is a bit of a shorter one! I don't have a lot of experience with voidkin experiences.

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☢️: Oh! That looks exactly like my tail! I watched some videos and read their Wikipedia page; I don't want to jump the gun, but without writing another essay, they're definitely the strongest contender I've seen up to now.

shiftedspecies: I hadn't considered New World Primates at all. I found a few that had some things right- woolly monkeys in particular have a tail similar to mine, and titi monkeys check a lot of boxes, except, mostly, for just how small they are, which I won't deny could be a miscalculation on my part. (I also can't stop staring at pictures of them... fuzzy...)

All that to say binturongs and titis feel like the strongest contenders now, especially the prehensile, muscular tail, 'bear' claws, kinda lumbering/clumsy movement, and slightly more meaty diet of the former. I'm hesitant to kinfirm so fast, though. I'm damn certain in the moment, but it could just be excitement to see something so similar to myself. Any suggestions for further reflection, or does it seem appropriate to move forward calling myself a binturong? Or both?

Sorry for the anxiety, and thank you (both!) for your guidance and patience.

I'm so glad those were good recommendations! How are you feeling now?

As for steps moving forward, I personally like to divide my questioning up into two stages once I have an animal that seems like it fits. Stage one is doing lots of research on them, watching videos of how they move and behave, and journaling about their traits and how they do and don't match up with myself. Stage two is not engaging with any content about that species at all for a week or two to see if the feeling persists even when my immediate jolt of excitement and hyperfocus on them fades. You could do that if you would like, or if it feels right to just go with it, then do so! Everyone's kinfirming process is a little different.

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I’m a Vancouver coastal sea wolf and I loooove doing quads, but my chronic illness has been making it worse and worse on my wrists. I was wondering if you had any other activity ideas to help me feel connected to my theriotype? Thanks!

I'm sorry your wrists are hurting :(

Some other theriotype activities that you may enjoy would be:

- Swimming! Vancouver Island wolves are extremely skilled swimmers, even trekking back and forth between islands this way. Swimming is a great workout like quads are, while being very low impact to be gentle on your joints.

- Fishing! You can do catch and release if you're not wanting to eat them. This one does require a bit of a learning curve and some initial cost for tackle and licensing, but it's a lot of fun.

- Vocals! Different varieties of wolves have slightly different howls if you really pay attention. Try and find videos of Vancouver Island wolves howling and practice replicating their howling style.

- I've also got all of these recommendations for a werewolf with mobility limitations, which I think will be relevant for you too

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hi! i'm lookin' to get more active this year (and to pick up drums but more importantly the first thing), but i struggle to keep myself motivated, or even to get motivated in the first place some days! any ideas for physical activities and motivators that might be enriching for a west virginia 'possum? thanks in advance! (right now, i plan to hit my local gym for bodyweights and/or maybe find some nearby hiking spots!) if it helps, i live in a pretty suburban spot.

Absolutely! And have fun with the gym and drums! I've been wanting to learn to play drums for a good while now, but I don't have space for a set.

So, the first thing that comes to mind for me is the fact that possums are big foragers. For this reason, I think something like geocaching could be really fun for you. If you don't know what that is, it's an activity where people hide canisters of small gifts along hiking trails, in parks, and even in interesting or historic areas of town sometimes. They register where they hid it on an app that you download, and then you set out to find them. The app gives you a general location, and a kind of "you're getting hotter/you're getting colder" guidance when you get close. Some have riddles to help you out, too. When you find one, you're free to take whatever little item you want from the canister, as long as you put your own trinket in there to replace it for the next person.

That reminds me a lot of being a critter out on the edges of human areas sniffing out things they have left behind. You may not get a snack out of it, but you do get a sense of satisfaction and a cool trinket.

Possums are also really good climbers, which makes me wonder if you would enjoy bouldering or ropes courses. A lot of animals I know find these a lot more fulfilling than grinding out reps in the gym. I know possums are generally climbing trees, not rock faces, but a lot of the skills should carry over, and ropes courses are very reminiscent of clamoring through swaying tree branches and rooftops.

As far as staying motivated during workouts you're already doing, most animals put in hard physical work in pursuit of food. I wonder if finding some kind of tasty animalistic treat you enjoy and only eating it after you finish your workout might help make the animal side of your brain think the exercise is more worth it?

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Hii !!

I've been questioning tigers for a bit and I want to do more tiger-like activities to see if they resonate or make me feel anything in particular!!

Could you possibly give me some ideas/examples?

Thank you sm !!!

Here's a few tiger activities I already have up!

But I've got a few more for you.

- If you live near a pool or any body of water that you can swim in, try throwing a big ball or pool float in the water, and then launching yourself at it from the shore and gripping it in your claws like you are pouncing on prey. Have you ever noticed how zoo tigers almost always have big plastic balls floating in their pool? That's because they love doing this, and it's one of the safest ways to simulate a prey takedown in captivity.

- Consider trying yoga or tai chi . Big cats are known for their flexibility and powerful core strength. This will also improve your body awareness, which I find useful in shifting as when I have a good grip on my own body and how it moves, it is easier to shift my perceptions of that body and move it in an animalistic way. Working these abilities in your own body may make you feel closer to the abilities and body of a tiger.

- Try dressing in similar patterns to a tiger. The stripes aren't for everyone, but I think the more important part of this would just be wearing clothes with warm colors broken up by black. No stripes needed if you don't want to go that far with it.

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Hey hey hey! Can you help a werewolf out?

I seem to not be shifting as often and I was wondering if I could have some advice or like ideas on what i could do to help shift (any kinda advice is welcome!)

(Nothing too physical as I am disabled with my legs, not drastically but it can be hard to do thing for extended periods of time)

So, similarly to what I told the tiger yesterday, start with time outside being still and observative. Animals spend lots of their time idle, and sometimes settling down and getting yourself out of your head and into your surroundings is what it takes to quiet the human side of your mind and let your animal instincts take the lead.

In fact, here is a little practice that I personally do to help induce a shift, modified a little for wolf specific language.

Go outside and find a comfortable place to sit. Consider kicking off your shoes if you're in an area without many sharp things to step on.

Look all around you, notice what any birds, bugs, squirrels, etc, are doing around you. Notice what kinds of plants are growing in different areas. Is what grows in the shade different than what grows in the sun? Is anything blooming or fruiting? That sort of thing. This should start to help you stop mulling over your day or any human life worries you have.

Once you feel pretty relaxed and familiar with your surroundings, close your eyes. Remembering what you saw before, try to now mentally recreate your landscape using other sensory input. Notice how the wind hits you and any scents it brings (Did you have a field of flowers? Sun baked grasses? Exhaust from the road?). Notice how it sounds rustling through different plants. What temperature it is. Notice what animals you can hear and what that means in relation to the surroundings you remember. The sound of birds tells you which direction the clumps of trees were. The croak of frogs tells you the direction of any water. The click of grasshoppers wings forms a picture of where the tall grasses were. Slowly, you should be able to paint a pretty vivid picture of what is around you using your other senses even without sight. This trains you to notice that input the way a wolf would.

When you feel you have painted a pretty good picture of what is around you, keep your eyes closed and hold onto that image, but start to turn some focus on yourself. Picture the way your ears would swivel to follow those sounds. How your nose might twitch and flare to investigate that scent. The way your fur and whiskers would be blown by the wind. Think about how your claws might squish into the grass and dirt or scratch against the stones beneath you. Slowly but surely, you should find yourself painted into that mental image as well.

Open your eyes. Look around yourself as a wolf, sharp and ready. Notice how the world looks and feels different in this state. If any of the scents and sounds you noticed earlier interested you, and you feel safe to do so, investigate them. You might be surprised what you find. From this point, do as you wish! I usually find that the shift peters out on its own after a while.

Keep in mind that you don't need true wilderness to do this. A backyard or city park is just fine as long as you won't be bothered.

That's a pretty long intense one though!

Here are some smaller activities to help either as a supplement to doing that practice or in place of it if that one doesn't speak to you.

- Journaling. I've fallen off the habit lately, but I used to love just sitting down by myself with my pen and paper and writing a little journal entry about my kintype or nature or any small shifts or animalistic things I noticed about myself that day. If you're worried about not having anything to write, pick a day to think of a bunch of writing prompts and put one at the top of each page. Then you can just flip through your journal and pick whichever one you feel like answering that day.

- Sleeping with the ambiance of your biome playing

- Watching videos of wolves doing whatever you are doing at the moment. Wolves eating while you eat. Wolves sleeping or cuddling while you rest. Wolves fighting when you're angry. That kind of thing. Wolves are very social creatures, so I imagine seeing others participating in the same thing you are would be euphoric.

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What are some of the blogs you've seen that do moldboards??

After scrolling through tags for a bit, these seem like good active ones!

@gracklegift

@the-jesters-kinhelp

@riversknicknacks

@kitthefoxkin

I hope y'all are ok with being tagged ^^'

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Do you have any advice for meeting others if the same kintype when it's not a super common one????

I recently realized I'm otherborn and angelkin and really want to meet more people like me but even after joining the few communities I have found for people like me it really feels like me and the few other angels I've met live worlds apart in what being an angel means to us. So far I've actually only met one other angel it feels like I can really talk to and it feels really lonely honestly because they're in a system and very rarely front, so we very rarely get to talk and just..... I really really want to meet other people who understand this part of me since it feels like something I've repressed for so long.

Sorry for the ramble, thank you for running this, really helpful for a lost angel just finding their place 🫀🫀🫀

TL;Dr: angelkin wondering how to meet other angelkin? New to the community

( @anotherangeltype )

@anotherangeltype

I'm sorry you're having a hard time finding other angels you relate to. I know it can be really lonely when there aren't many people who experience their nonhumanity similarly to you.

My first recommendation, unfortunately, isn't a very satisfying one: time.

The longer you're around in the community, the more people with similar beliefs and experiences you can accrue. Those people will probably want to be your friend and stick around with you since they likely feel the same way you do. In this way, over time, you can build a pretty solid friend group together.

Stay active in the wider community and in the angelkin tags, and over time, you are sure to find more people you click with.

My second recommendation is to not just seek out spaces specifically for angels. I know, in my experience, when I've joined a server or other space specifically for my kintype, it's been very easy for me to feel upset and out of place if I don't relate to them all. It makes me feel like there's something different or wrong about how I experience my identity. But when I join servers with a variety of different kintypes and styles of alterhumanity, it's easier for me to feel comfortable because there is no norm for me to feel contrasted to, if that makes sense? So then I tend to find more people with similar experiences to my own (regardless of if they are specifically my species or just something similar) than I would in a space that is all my own species.

You might notice something similar! I would seek out spaces to frequent by some other qualification (age range, otherborn specific, or designed for introspective discussion are some ideas) and looking there. You may find other more similar angels who were dissatisfied with angelkin specific spaces the same way you were, or you may find other similar beings who you end up relating to more (say, for example, a valkyrie, who isn't quite an angel, but maybe experiences their identity in a way that speaks to you)

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Would it be wrong for someone to say their alterhumanity is similar to being transgender?

I don't think so. As someone who's both, they are very similar experiences for me. Obviously, the mileage of that analogy may vary from person to person, but if it feels accurate to your own experiences, then I don't see why not.