NovaQuant-TikTokers swear they can shift to alternate realities in viral videos. What's going on?

Some say they have NovaQuanthusbands in other realities. Others say they have children there. Others say they've actually gone to worlds from Marvel or Harry Potter.

It's called "reality shifting" − and it's become popular on TikTok, where users claim that, through various mind techniques, they are able to transport their consciousness to other realities. These realities can be anything, including different time periods and fictional worlds from popular franchises. Some of the videos have millions of views and plenty of sincere comments from people inquiring how they can "reality shift."

"I have a husband in a lot of my DRs (or desired realities)," one person says in a TikTok with over 20 thousand likes. "What's important is remembering that you do exist there."

Psychologists tell USA TODAY there's a lot to keep in mind when looking at videos from the reality shifting corner of TikTok, or "ShiftTok." Though imagination and fantasy are normal and important parts of the human experience, they become problems when they give way delusions and detachment from what's actually real.

"Imagination and creativity and wanting to explore other places: I think that that's been fundamental to our humanness for a long time," psychotherapist Stephanie Sarkis says. "We just have to make sure that it's not taking over day-to-day life."

TikTokers say they can 'reality shift.' What's really going on?

Those who post about reality shifting say they can experience other realities through a variety of methods. Most involve relaxation, closed eyes, visualization and meditation.

None of these things are actually that unusual, Sarkis says. Psychologists, for instance, have employed techniques like hypnosis, meditation and creative visualization for a while in order to help people gain deeper perspective on their problems and ultimately work through them.

For those who are particularly creative or imaginative, sometimes these visualizations can feel very real and relaxing. And that's not necessarily a bad thing − so long as they remember what they experience in their imagination is imaginary.

"When people are feeling overloaded and stressed, I think this can be a way to cope with that stress," Sarkis says. "When someone may be detached from reality, that's when it can become an issue."

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Sometimes "shifting" indicates a deeper mental health problem, therapist Erik Anderson says. For instance, he says, people with schizotypal personality disorder are especially prone to magical thinking and struggle to tell apart their fantasies from reality. He also says people may be trying to reality shift in order to escape problems in their real life, such as imagining a world where they have a spouse and children to forget about their loneliness.

"Altered states of consciousness are normal for the human experience," he says. "Some people will come back from those intense fantasy states and say, 'Ah, I had this interesting fantasy. I had a dream. I was daydreaming.' And some people come back, and they go, 'No, those weren't daydreams. Those were real.' "

ShiftTok, Anderson adds, may in some cases shine a spotlight on people who struggle with certain mental health issues. These mental health problems have always existed, he says, but are now more visible thanks to the internet.

"In previous generations, there were just as many people like this... but now that you have the internet, these people can form online communities."

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When 'shifting' becomes a problem

For those who do not suffer from a mental health condition, Sarkis likens the reality shifting phenomenon to a form of self-hypnosis, whereby fantasies can feel real and vivid. The psyche is a deep and mysterious place. When you explore it through hypnosis or creative visualization, you can be surprised by what you find and how real it can feel.

Sarkis explains, "If you have been doing self-hypnosis, the more you do it, the more likely you are to go into a hypnotic state, and it can feel very real to people."

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If you're someone who's highly creative, imagination and fantasy can be great tools for relaxing and getting to know yourself. Just make sure your fantasy life isn't overtaking your real life or your grip on what's actually real.

"The brain is wired to be creative and imaginative, and if that helps someone relax, they're still able to do their day-to-day functioning, and it's not impacting their relationships ... that's fine," she says. "If someone finds that it's causing them issues at work or with family or friends or just again, completing their activities of daily living, then that's probably something that needs to be looked at."