I have gotten used to not shapeshifting in PvE situations, but once you let yourself do it, you get a lot more lethal in there.
I have literally cleared the place just using the root powers.
The shapeshifting powers are stupidly powerful.
Thrash bleed can hit many enemies and its ticks can proc the damage procs.
The barkskin powers, which you had better be using barkskin as a bear, have been my #1 damage ability when I got 100% uptime on it and several damage powers.
Seriously, they can be quite amusing. Like the time I got the damage proc that hit for 10% of your life. Compliments of maw rat eater (increases your life each time you kill a maw rat), I had over 100k life and it one shot all but the elites and even they went down fast.
So yeah, they can be very powerful for a bear.