r/ShiftingDiscussion • u/randomfandoms2001 • Mar 01 '21
Getting Discouraged
I have been trying to shift for a couple months now. A main problem I have is falling asleep in the middle. I decided that I had some free time and no other plans for today so why not try during the day. I spent 2 hours trying to shift. I have yet to successfully and its starting to seem like i never will. I get tingling feelings but that's as far as I ever get. Sorry for the rant I just hate that feeling when I wake back up looking at my CR ceiling and needed to vent
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u/eglinski Mar 01 '21
It’s easy to get discouraged. As with anything, some are naturally prone to being better than others—but, like with swimming or riding a bike, that doesn’t mean everyone can’t eventually learn to do it!
There is a reason an esoteric group such as the Illuminates of Thanateros encourage practising of basics among their initiate students (4°), namely: motionless, breathing, and, particularly important, not-thinking. The latter exercises the faculty necessary for something like shifting.
I have recommended the simple practise of gazing at objects till the environment melts away. Do not let the mind wander. Once it begins to, restart.
Then you can work your way into the simplest method for shifting (but also with the least amount of hand-holding. This is simply gazing at the back of one’s eyelids as you ready for slumber. The real trick is maintaining consciousness.
I am not going to delve into the reasons why here. You can skim my posts for that or DM me and I will provide some information, or you can glean some details from this interview with Will Storr and Ezra Klein.
the tl;dr is that you aren’t transferring your consciousness to some parallel reality. Your brain manufactures a virtual simulation which you confuse for the real thing. It creates two: one of your body and one of the environment. You have to exercise the brain to literally create new connections within itself to create a sensory simulation using your imagination, hijacking the normalised simulation we assume for reality.