Spreading the Knowledge
Scientific Aspects of Shifting
Shifting is a physical phenomenon, and is the only true kind of shift there is. There seems to be quite a few other shifting methods you can find online, but things like mental shifting, astral shifting, partial shifting, etc, are not shifting.
Mental shifting is shifting in your mind. It is not perceived by shifters as anything farther than daydreaming and taking on what you believe to be the persona of an animal you are not. It isn’t actually shifting, and is found most often to be explored by humans and therians.
Astral shifting is shifting on the astral plane. The astral body has no set form, and can look like just about anything desired. It is not truly shifting because there is no form, you are not shifting from anything in the first place, but rather taking the shape of something else that also has no true form. Similar to how water has no shape, but you can put it into a glass to give it a temporary form.
Partial shifting is shifting only part of your body, such as being a human while having a tail or the ears of an animal, or changing only your hand into a paw while the rest of your body remains the same. This is also not possible. Shifting is designed for the survival of the species in question, nothing more and nothing less. If someone were to partially shift, your human body would reject any nonhuman limbs or extremities as they would not be compatible with one another. Even down to the blood cells, humans and wolves are not similar enough to make this safe or possible. The closest you could possibly get to a partial shift would be to get stuck mid shift, with your entire body, which would leave you in a very deformed and agonizing state.
Human Red Blood Cells
Wolf Red Blood Cells
One of the most important elements of shifting is circumstance. Shifting is triggered by hormonal responses to your environment and/or surroundings. The phrase “fight or flight” is one commonly used for these types of explanations. A common misconception is that emotions like anger and rage can trigger a shift, which is incorrect. It helps to think about it on an evolutionary level. As a species, shifting helps increase the odds of survival. In dangerous and often life threatening situations, fear and the instinctual need to live are vital among every species. Fear sparks that fight or flight response, adrenaline kicks in, and shifting ensues. Adrenaline is a key hormonal response that causes shifting.
Things that will NOT trigger a shift should be pretty obvious. Your average teenager online getting angry about losing a game is not going to shift, nor is the person sitting around on their couch at home watching a horror movie. True fear and instinctual survival are necessary. An example of this is often life or death, where you need to act immediately or risk facing fatal consequences. Since the human race no longer lives in such times that causes the daily risk of lives, a large portion of werewolves go their entire lives without finding themselves in situations that could cause them to shift.
Shifting is a defensive/offensive response to danger, and as it is hormonally triggered, it is also only possible after puberty. The average shifting age ranges between 18-22 for most (assuming the basic situational needs are met), though it all depends on the individual. Those that start puberty later than average are also those that shift later than average, and the same applies for early bloomers. Pregnant shifters, due to hormones, are unable to shift, and will not be able to again until after pregnancy, once the shifters hormones have returned back to normal. If shifting were possible during pregnancy, needless to say, the fetus would not survive. Many parts of the human body don’t finish development for quite a while longer, usually into adulthood, but basic puberty must be over for a shift to ensue. Your subspecies, or breed, of werewolf may also impact your shifting age.
The shift itself is quite an experience. Your entire form is changing on an atomic level, your bones are breaking, changing shape, mending, while your muscles tear and reform to the new structure. Your skin burns and stretches to take on new shape, and you have a mass growth of hair and fur from your hair follicles. Shifting happens very quickly, as it is a means of survival and is not designed to hinder you. After a shift has started, the first thing to change is your temperature. Your atoms begin to vibrate and rub against each other, creating friction in your body, which generates a lot of heat. You will start sweating profusely in a very short amount of time, and your skin will feel like it’s burning. This is often described as “on fire”, beyond an ordinary fever. Your skin will literally be hot to the touch, and collecting air in your lungs becomes more difficult during this time.
Your bones will break. All of them, very quickly after one another, and they will begin to change shape. This starts with the core of your body, your torso, and moves out to your extremities simultaneously. Your muscles will tear and mend with the shape of your bones, your body fat will redistribute, and your skin will stretch during this process. Tattoos and piercings are no exception to physical shifting. Tattoos and scars will stretch with your skin, and body piercings and other kinds of jewelry do not transfer over well. Fur and hair growth are the last thing to happen when shifting. Naturally, as shifting fundamentally works the same way with all shifters, anyone with long hair would lose anything extra when shifting initially, otherwise you'd have wolves with almost mane-like hair, which does not happen. Your body will begin to settle into it’s new form and return to a more natural state. Your temperature will return to that of a natural wolf, breathing will return to normal, etc, etc.
When shifting has completed, you would be a wolf of equal size to your human body. The Law of Conservation of Mass states that all mass must remain constant over time, as system mass cannot change quantity unless it is added or removed. The law also states that mass can neither be created nor destroyed, although it may be rearranged or the entities associated with it may be changed in form. In other words, you cannot create something from nothing, nor can you actually destroy something.
The average weight for an adult male wolf is about 100 to 110 pounds, while females average about 90 pounds. If you are a 150 pound grown adult, you will not turn into a 200 pound wolf. Your wolf form will be equal and proportionate to your human form, even if it is larger than the average adult wolf. If you are a very fit and muscular person, you will retain that proportion in both forms. If you are a chubby or obese person, you will retain that proportion in both forms.
Likewise, your genetic appearance does not change. If you have brown hair, then you will also have brown fur. If you have brown eyes as a human, then you will have brown eyes as a wolf. Many people have several different colors naturally mixed into their hair, and this would also occur after shifting. Though rare, blonde and ginger colored wolves are found in nature as well. While blue eyes are not, keep in mind that the comparison here is between a natural wolf and a supernatural being. There are no genetic exceptions and blue eyed shifters will be the same as everyone else. You WILL NOT magically turn into a wolf the size of a horse with blue fur and yellow eyes. Dying your hair is the only way you can even partly achieve unnaturally colored hair/fur. Even with hair dye, when shifting occurs you have a mass growth of hair and fur along your entire body. New hair is not colored by the dye, making a majority of it your natural color and only spots of it the color you dyed it.
Shifting takes an enormous amount of energy to accomplish. Not only do you require a massive amount of energy to shift, but you require the same amount to shift back. If you lack that amount of energy to shift back, then you won't be able to. You will be stuck in that form until you are able to build up the energy needed to shift back.
Scientifically speaking, shifting works the exact same way in both directions (human to wolf or wolf to human). When you shift back, you lose all of your extra fur/hair. If this didn't happen, when you shifted back your entire body would be covered in fur and hair, which is not the case. Shifting also leaves an impact on your body. It does not make it weaker, per se, but shifting inflicts physical trauma. Shifting is a very dangerous event, and should be a last resort in a very dangerous situation. Shifting does not happen as often as many people make it seem, and comes with many risks. Designed to increase your chances of survival, it should only be done when absolutely necessary.
A few notable common misconceptions that are often found online:
Werewolves do not lose control or black out while in their wolf bodies. They are themselves, completely logical and in control, with all of their personal memories and knowledge in tact. Upon shifting back, all memories of the shifts and events that took place before, during, and after remain. Werewolves do not shift in their sleep and wake up naked in mysterious locations.
When werewolves shift, they do not turn into any form of bipedal creature. Identical to natural wolves, they stand on four legs. Your "wolf" does not talk to you, nor does it have any "powers" or "abilities". It also does not have another name, gender, or look aside from your own. If you are a werewolf, the wolf part of you is not a separate being, it is still just you. You don’t suddenly become “Wolfmist”. You are only one person, regardless of form. If you name "your wolf" like a pet, you are not a werewolf. It is not a separate voice in your head talking to you.
Shifting is not a magic, it is a science. You will not pass the physical limitations or create mass that you do not have.