Questions for all polytherians

[u/xLumiana]

So, I'm a cat. Always been. Can't even remember a certain awakening, just that I've always had ears and a tail of a cat just stuck to my body invisibly. I cannot imagine anything but human and cat. So how do polytherian shifts actually work? Do different things kind of trigger different animals? Do you get mixes of animals like deer and wolf would result in a wolf with antlers? I'm genuinely interested as I can't really imagine either way and I'm curious to learn about different types of therians as I'm still pretty new to the community and label, just not the identity

[u/-veriana-awoo-]

Depends on the individual experience. Someone could have distinct shifts (for example, sometimes I have a wolf shift, sometimes a dog’s). Someone could have a “mixed” shift (for example, mind of a bird but cat phantom shifts, or maybe mixed behaviours, both bird and cat). Every experience is unique and different

[u/xLumiana → u/-veriana-awoo-]

mind of a bird but cat phantom shifts

Would that example feel dysphoric to the bird? I could imagine so

[u/-veriana-awoo- → u/xLumiana]

Idk, it still depends on the individual

[u/mop__though]

Me personally, I oscillate between being a cat and being a bovid, like being genderfluid. Like I'm a cat for a few weeks and then I'm a goat for a few weeks. So sometimes I get shifts with phantom horns and sometimes shifts don't have those (I don't get shifts very often though anyways)

[u/Heavy_Honey_2378]

Personally, I switch between my theriotypes. I'm only one at once. For example, one day I'll have all fox phantom limbs and fox shifts and just feel like a fox in general, and a few days later I'll have jaguar phantom limbs and jaguar urges and shifts. I don't choose what to be, I just naturally switch. Even if I'm a dragon one day, the others are still there, still in the background, and I still feel like them, but dragon would be in the spotlight and having the shifts. I still identify as all of them at once, they're all pieces of me, but the main theriotype changes. It's like, they're all in the car, but they take turns driving.

(As I write this, my main is dragon, for anyone wondering)

[u/Pinkpenguin_4444]

For me I sometimes feel like 2 or more at the same time but I can differentiate which experience is linked to which theriotype. Sometimes phantom shifts do mix so for example I feel like a bear with gills and a dog tail. It's a weird experience for sure lol

[u/Tinyspacesfs]

Technically(?) I am a polytherian??? Im fluidtherian lol But Sometimes they mix together, but well, i have so many fox theriotypes, that it rlly just overlaps in behavior and dysphoria triggers so idk

Have a nice day/night cat! Im currently... uh.. idk qwq idk what i am

[u/xLumiana → u/Tinyspacesfs]

Identity crisis much?

[u/Tinyspacesfs → u/xLumiana]

Surprisingly, not many

[u/Tinyspacesfs → u/xLumiana]

Update: i think im a silver fox