I have multi-sensory aphantasia as I can only hear music or voices. I am not too sure if it is connected, but I am able to compose music in my head. This has effected my life in ways that I didn't notice until I realized I had aphantasia. I am currently back in college and I noticed a lot of my teachers would use visualization as a teaching aid. Since I am not able to do so, it feels like I have a disability and because I have hindrance in class in comparison to classmates.
Thanks for sharing, evidence so far doesn't suggest those with aphantasia are worse off regarding learning, but its early in the science here... we need to run more experience and larger experiments in schools etc. hopefully all to come soon.. ish..
I am almost certain I have multisensory aphantasia, and it definitely affects my learning but I am actually very strong academically. Instead of affecting my ability to learn, it has had a huge affect on my learning style. Memorisation is hard, so I have learnt to make associations, and the association will trigger my memory. I can’t imagine picture or sounds (or smell or touch, even pain is difficult to recall). Music and languages were very difficult, but I think my APD also affects my aural recall. Even though I played the clarinet, I would often struggle to pick out a clarinet from an oboe when listening blind. Space and direction is still present for me, even if a visual picture is not, so I learn really well by practical involvement or understanding how something works, rather than memorising a list, technique (eg from text) or picture. I only really learn something superficially from textbooks and lectures. I have to be involved for a deeper understanding. I also find it challenging to conceptualise something physically from a description. It feels so abstract and somehow doesn’t make complete sense until I then see a photo or better, a video or in real life, and can make connections between different bites of learning and experience. The upside of this cognitive style is that I can make associations very quickly which helps with problem solving, often in unique ways.
I think part of that feeling of not getting it or taking longer to get it is that we try to do it the way that is suggested and then have to go back to the natural adaptations we made to compensate.
I have multisensory aphantasia. Not only can I not visualize things, but I cannot conjure up any other senses. I only realized recently that other people don't think like I do. I thought "picture a beach" was a figure of speech until someone told me they can picture things in their mind, even rotating the things and looking at them from different angles. I have never been able to visualize anything. All I see when I close my eyes is darkness, and my thoughts are all in words like a monologue.
I have multi-sensory aphantasia. I can't imagine sounds, voices, scents, or images. I sometimes think my imagination of touch is slightly there, but I cannot even conceive of what it's like to have a brain that has all that going on. It didn't impact my life one bit until I learned how different I was at age 49. It explained so much yet felt like an enormous loss. I see also how it has been an asset in my life and career. I wish I could conjure loved ones or hear music. I have very limited childhood memory. Despite all this, I wouldn't have had a clue how different I was from the "norm" but for a fateful New York Times article a few years back. My brother and daughter both seem to have it. One new greatly amplified fear: going blind.
It seems from your article and my lived experience that I have Multisensory Aphantasia. I am over 60 and only realised/learned about three years ago that other peeps could literally see… and also from your article, taste, hear and smell, things in their imagination. Geez, how amazing! I now realise why I struggled as a landscape archiect. I knew what I wanted for a design but certainly couldnt visualise anything. I think I’ve compensated with a fine tuned sense of ‘knowing’ … when reading fiction, I get to know the characters… when cooking, I don’t go by taste but by knowing this goes with that… and understanding texture, colour and smell. Food and drinks need to be consumed to get any sense of taste. These tastes and smells are my life’s memory markers. My breathe is taken away when seeing the nuances of changes in light and colour in a landscape. It makes me sad to think this could all be seen in the mind by others. But I have been told throughout my career that I ‘think differently’. Never really understood what peeps meant but I am beginning to suspect that not having a mind full of images, noises, smells and voices means I think very clearly… often identify a solution to complex problems quickly.
I totally identify with what you have shared. Thank you. I just know things and sometimes it has been rather difficult to explain or translate to others. Now I understand why.
I have Multisensory Aphantasia. I can not get the same type of "feeling" by thinking on something, as experiencing it in the real world, no matter what senses we are talking about.
I do however have vivid dreams, that seems as real as anything I experience when I am awake. Having said that, I don't recall dreaming every night. I have no idea how often I dream. It might just be that I woke up in another state and wasn't dreaming at that particular time.
I can do things without thinking about it (I'd say that this is 97-99% of every day). But if I really want to, or if I need to do some deliberate reasoning, then I can use an altered state, where I have an "inner voice". But I don't hear the voice as I do, when hearing myself or anyone else speak. I "hear it" but it doesn't have any describable characteristics. It is my own, because I created the monologue, but it doesn't sound like my spoken voice do...
I definitely think that Aphantasia is limiting my abilities to achieve my goals in life. I am a person that loves to learn and I am constantly studying. But for every subject, I reach a limit, a type of wall that I can't get past. This limit is usually at a level of high school. On rare occasions, have I been able to achieve higher levels. The reason as I see it, is that because have Aphantasia I can not willingly create a mental model of a concept. Without it, I can't fully understand it.
The same thing goes for let's say learning a language. I studied grammar, but it never stuck (visualization is an important part of memorization, and I can't memorize facts, no matter how much time I spend). The only reason that I have been able to learn a language, is by hearing words being used in context. That works for spoken languages, where I can watch a TV-series, a movie or being in a country where that language is spoken.
But what about "dead" languages like Latin, ancient Greek or languages that isn't spoken at all, like programming languages? Well I can tell you, that I have tried to lean how to program, for 25+ years and still haven't succeeded... We are talking thousands of hours, hundreds of books, hundreds of videos. I have been to classes in schools and online, but nothing helps. The subject is just to abstract for my brain to handle.
Though I'm participating to this study since years, it's the first time I hear about "multisensory aphantasia".
Really people can smell or touch things in their brain??? I can't do any of those things, my brain can only process "thoughts".
For what concerns "sounds", I'm not that sure what my brain does: it often happens to have a song stuck in my mind (commonly called "ear worms") that causes me to sing that song for hours if not a whole day. But this doesn't mean "I hear it" in my head, it more that I can't stop thinking about that particular melody that pops up in my brain therefore I start singing it.
As per images, I can think about an image but definitely not see it (I see pitch black when trying to visualize it), same with sounds. I can play with my flute a particular note cause "I know which sound I need to reproduce" but not at all cause I can hear that sound in my mind.
Last thing, I constantly get lost, I need a navigator also when driving on roads I already did, also more than once. No way I can remember the surroundings unless there is a very particular building or bridge or whatever that thanks to it's very special feature, remain stuck in my brain.
I'm 100% sure that if I wasn't suffering from aphantasia, I wouldn't get lost while driving as much as I do.
Thank you for sharing your experience. I agree. I don't actually hear or feel things in my mind as if it were real. I think or know things. So even though I identify as auditory and kinesthetic over visual I would say that I have multi sensory aphantasia also. When I first found out about it a few years ago my mind was blown and I got depressed. I feel like some of the issues I've had in life are due to this difference. Add ADHD-I to the list and no wonder I always felt different and alone, because I am different from most people. Finding this newsletter and research has helped me not feel alone.
Dear Andrea, you should never feel alone and especially never think that your brain lacks abilities cause it works in a different way compared to others. If there is a field in science where we still know nothing, it's neuroscience. We have no clue on how brains really work, we have autistic people who r pure genius and incredibly highly educated and clever people who r complete idiots in life. We cannot still define what "intelligence" is.
Take me for instance, I'm considered the smartest of all, I'm 52 and it's all my life that people come to me to ask me how to do or deal with things, my work consists in correcting essays before they r published many of which r written by university professors so I'm definitely considered the "smart guy". Well, I cant help my 7 years old niece with her math school assignments cause I simply cant process numbers at any level, I can't make a 2 digit division on paper without using the calculator, when I pay something with cash, I trust the cashier who gives back the balance but if they scam me, I will never notice it. Before navigators I used to call my friends, describing them the surroundings and ask them where the hell I was. When it comes to numbers and streets, I am the dumbest person on earth. I have never met such a stupid persone as I am when it comes to this two things which are things that you have to deal with on daily basis. How did this affect my life? It didn't. It's all my life that I laugh a lot over this stupid brain of mine, and I laugh together with all the people who knows me who never miss to tease me, they call me "Dr Jekyll and Mr Monkey" (cause also a monkey would be able to do what I can't). My niece once introduced me to the mother of a friend of her saying "this is my aunt, she's very clever and know everything, but she is totally stupid with numbers, you don't believe me, try ask her 7 into 8 and see what she does".
I am totally fine with the dumb part of my brain and I would never change it cause it's a great source of fun. When I need to process numbers, I ask who is near me to do it for me, if I'm alone I call somebody who does it for me. Same thing for streets, there are so many people in the world, almost all them can do what I can't, I just need a kind smile and ask them to do it for me, and they always do. I have an entire humanity that works for free for me since all my life, isn't it amazing??
I am sure that, as for me, also tour brain can do sone things in a better way compared to others, whatever those things are it's not important. And as per me, your brain is stupid on another set of things. Everybody is like this, they may not admit it, but they are. So trust me, not only you are not alone, but your brain bugs are perfectly normal cause all brains have bugs!
Thank you for your kind reply. I think it made me feel alone growing up, because it caused issues with developing friendship. I had quit a bit of mean girl issues as a kid. I also have dyscalculia (math number issues), although I am self diagnosed. I doubt the diagnosis existed when we were kids. But I grew up in Honors/Advanced Placement classes except for math and it is the reason why I am not a scientist now, so it has definitely caused me pain over my life. But I married an accountant so I don't have to deal with it. It's his specialty. Ha ha I am encouraged by your ability to laugh about it. Yay! Laughter really is the best medicine. Best wishes!
I have multi sensory aphantasia - no visual, no audio, no taste, no smell, no touch. I cling to the idea that I can’t get PTSD as the benefit of this ‘condition’ as I find it depressing overall. I can’t remember experiences unless prompted, and I don’t get any emotions from prompted memories.
I would love to participate in any future research as I also struggle to manage my anxiety and depression with the current psychological tools (e.g., CBT, ACT, etc.) as they frequently require visual and/or auditory components in your internal mind.
yeah data suggests on average or probabilistically those with aphantasia are less likely to get PTSD and if they do it will be experienced differently...
Both my father and I have aphantasia, and from what I understand we both have multi-sensory aphantasia. But interestingly we have some differences:
- I can hear my own voice in my head, but not other sounds. My dad can't even hear his own voice.
- I have terrible autobiographical memories (maybe a mild SDAM?), but my dad has very good autobiographical memory, and even remembers events from his early childhood with clarity.
i have a limited visual phantasia - my visual images (a apple, a beach, my wife, etc) are limited and fleeting - this despite my being an avid amateur photograher. perhaps this is *why* I have chosen the hobby. and i have a fairly good memory of tens of thousands of my images.
my memory for some tastes lasts for a very long time - i have not eaten a steak in decades, but i have a clear sense memory of it.
i have favorite performances of some music (i'm thinking opera and symphonies with soloists) and can identify pretty quickly (but cannot verbalize) why other performances do not meet the standard.
I have aphantasia and limited autobiographical memories. I also love photography because it helps me remember. Once I see a photo, I can recall a lot more about the event than without it.
Yes the memories are mostly semantics. For example I've visited a bunch of museums. But I can't recall all of them. But if I see a picture of one of the museums, it will likely trigger the memories associated to that museum - when I visited, things I saw there, facts about the artifacts, the layout of the museum, etc.
I don’t believe that there are people that can recall or conjure up all manner of sensations (smell, taste, feel, sound) just by thinking about it. I have never had someone describe it for me.
we have put off the brain stim + learning study for ethical reasons, not sure of any psychedelic studies on aphantasia per se, but there are a lot of clinical psychedelic studies running at the moment, and that is where some of the case studies from come from, so I'm guessing a few more will come out of those clinical studies
I can't hear touch see smell anything. I live in a very visual home which I have come to understand is a memory palace, with experiences (feelings) imbedded in objects, paintings, etc. I process all information through my body, how it feels, though I might not remember later the dates something had effect. As I get older (I am almost 77) it becomes more and more difficult as others are relying on their memory through imagery of their lives and I don't possess this ability. I also easily put things somewhere and cant remember where; then my partner says, " just go back in your head". Such a joke to me. I struggle with remembering driving directions that are new to me. Going forward is always north as when I was little that is what a map meant, going forward. Words though are everything, word and the external visual world. When I sit down with a pen and paper or a computer keyboard and start to write I then know what I think or feel. When I pick up clay my hands find the imagery. When I paint, my body knows the colors. Synthesis is very easy for me; I like to verbally brainstorm, and feel in the external world there are clues to everything I need, sort of like when you open a random book and there is the information you needed. I will never forget the day I learned that aphantasia existed when my grown son called and said, "Mom, I think I know what you have." Despite these severe limitations I have been a successful professor, and artist. My biggest fear is becoming blind.
Am definitely multisensory aphantasia. Although I've known for a long time that I am aphantasia, it never occurred to me that other people can "conjure" up information through other senses. While I have always felt comfortable with aphantasia, it floored me to realize that other people can access tastes, smells, tactile, and even sounds.
I am flooded with self-talk 24/7; memories are created from stories created with self-talk. I have accumulated a lifetime list of "rules" that I automatically use to identify everything without having to mentally review the rules for most things. Example- cats have four legs, usually upright ears, long tails, will purr and meow, and more. But while my cat's rule is that she has bi-colored eyes, I would have to check her to know which eye is blue and which is green.
I love music and can make mental music, but cannot pull up an actual memory from a performance. Music rules for me are like muscle memory, where I can sing music in my head based on those rules of a given composition, but it's almost identical to singing out loud- there will be no trumpets, harps, kettle drums, tenors, or other specific sounds. Taste memory is non-existent for me, except I know the rules for basic tastes like sweet, spicy, etc so that I can remember what I like and why. I never realized that other people can pull up an actual taste or smell. I am a good cook, good musician, and I love art. But I cannot pull up any mental images of any of them.
Oddly, I have no way to mentally hear performed or recorded music from memory, but I can hear my voice singing the music, at least the parts I can remember. I have to actively learn music usually by singing along with it- pop music, symphonic music, opera, whatever. Once I've learned it I can sing whatever I remember in my head - no chords, no specific instruments, just my own internal singing. That's rather sad since my own singing is nowhere near the full music, plus I can only sing as much as I remember.
When I read or mentally review conversations, I only hear my inner voice repeating it.
I have multi sensory aphantasia. Everything I think is words without pictures and without a voice. Although I get earworms sometimes. I found out about visual aphantasia only about 3 years ago and I am 67. I don't think there has been a terribly negative impact, I just developed study methods that suited me automatically. Although my lack of spatial/navigationall skills is a daily practical problem, but now I have a reason for that. It affected what I enjoyed reading,eg I like good characters but not scenic descriptions, and what I could do artistically but we all have different talents anyway. What's had much more of a negative effect is SDAM which explains so much about me and followed on from my discovery of Aphantasia. I've taken part a University study involving Aphantasia.
I get earworms when I listen to music with headphones. The weird part is that the song that sticks any given day wasn't the last song I heard while working out. When I played my play list in order, I knew the first beats or words of the next song before it played.
If you ask me song titles or even fist lines of most songs, I have no idea what they are. And if someone asks me what I'm listening to, I rarely know the song title. My inner voice sings on key, but my real voice is almost always off key.
I definitely identify as having multi-sensory aphantasia. Up until a random read of an article a few years ago, I had no idea that others could actually 'see' things in their minds. I always figured that 'visualising' was just a turn of phrase, because why would I think my brain worked differently than others? If I close my eyes, it is all black and I cannot conjure up any memories or thoughts of scents, sound, touch, or taste other than what my (very active) internal monologue can verbalise. Earworms are me singing (badly) in my own head, and I cannot plan a room layout without a gridded plan and little cut out pieces of paper to represent furniture. As I've continued to read up on and learn about aphantasia, I have discovered friends and family with various levels of the same, as well as come to strongly suspect I also have SDAM as I know things have happened, but cannot remember details and have no sensory information included at all.
I have multisensory aphasia. I don't feel that it has impacted my life as l was unaware until.recently. However it does explain why l could never be a wine expert nor a chef, nor able to effectively hear a song in my head. I have not give tactile senses much thought but now realize that l can't recreate touch experiences in my mind. None of this bothers me. It just is.
I have multi-sensory aphantasia as I can only hear music or voices. I am not too sure if it is connected, but I am able to compose music in my head. This has effected my life in ways that I didn't notice until I realized I had aphantasia. I am currently back in college and I noticed a lot of my teachers would use visualization as a teaching aid. Since I am not able to do so, it feels like I have a disability and because I have hindrance in class in comparison to classmates.
Thanks for sharing, evidence so far doesn't suggest those with aphantasia are worse off regarding learning, but its early in the science here... we need to run more experience and larger experiments in schools etc. hopefully all to come soon.. ish..
I am almost certain I have multisensory aphantasia, and it definitely affects my learning but I am actually very strong academically. Instead of affecting my ability to learn, it has had a huge affect on my learning style. Memorisation is hard, so I have learnt to make associations, and the association will trigger my memory. I can’t imagine picture or sounds (or smell or touch, even pain is difficult to recall). Music and languages were very difficult, but I think my APD also affects my aural recall. Even though I played the clarinet, I would often struggle to pick out a clarinet from an oboe when listening blind. Space and direction is still present for me, even if a visual picture is not, so I learn really well by practical involvement or understanding how something works, rather than memorising a list, technique (eg from text) or picture. I only really learn something superficially from textbooks and lectures. I have to be involved for a deeper understanding. I also find it challenging to conceptualise something physically from a description. It feels so abstract and somehow doesn’t make complete sense until I then see a photo or better, a video or in real life, and can make connections between different bites of learning and experience. The upside of this cognitive style is that I can make associations very quickly which helps with problem solving, often in unique ways.
I think part of that feeling of not getting it or taking longer to get it is that we try to do it the way that is suggested and then have to go back to the natural adaptations we made to compensate.
I have multisensory aphantasia. Not only can I not visualize things, but I cannot conjure up any other senses. I only realized recently that other people don't think like I do. I thought "picture a beach" was a figure of speech until someone told me they can picture things in their mind, even rotating the things and looking at them from different angles. I have never been able to visualize anything. All I see when I close my eyes is darkness, and my thoughts are all in words like a monologue.
I have multi-sensory aphantasia. I can't imagine sounds, voices, scents, or images. I sometimes think my imagination of touch is slightly there, but I cannot even conceive of what it's like to have a brain that has all that going on. It didn't impact my life one bit until I learned how different I was at age 49. It explained so much yet felt like an enormous loss. I see also how it has been an asset in my life and career. I wish I could conjure loved ones or hear music. I have very limited childhood memory. Despite all this, I wouldn't have had a clue how different I was from the "norm" but for a fateful New York Times article a few years back. My brother and daughter both seem to have it. One new greatly amplified fear: going blind.
Thanks for sharing
It seems from your article and my lived experience that I have Multisensory Aphantasia. I am over 60 and only realised/learned about three years ago that other peeps could literally see… and also from your article, taste, hear and smell, things in their imagination. Geez, how amazing! I now realise why I struggled as a landscape archiect. I knew what I wanted for a design but certainly couldnt visualise anything. I think I’ve compensated with a fine tuned sense of ‘knowing’ … when reading fiction, I get to know the characters… when cooking, I don’t go by taste but by knowing this goes with that… and understanding texture, colour and smell. Food and drinks need to be consumed to get any sense of taste. These tastes and smells are my life’s memory markers. My breathe is taken away when seeing the nuances of changes in light and colour in a landscape. It makes me sad to think this could all be seen in the mind by others. But I have been told throughout my career that I ‘think differently’. Never really understood what peeps meant but I am beginning to suspect that not having a mind full of images, noises, smells and voices means I think very clearly… often identify a solution to complex problems quickly.
thanks for sharing, yeah diversity of thought is very important for so many things! very valuable
I totally identify with what you have shared. Thank you. I just know things and sometimes it has been rather difficult to explain or translate to others. Now I understand why.
I have Multisensory Aphantasia. I can not get the same type of "feeling" by thinking on something, as experiencing it in the real world, no matter what senses we are talking about.
I do however have vivid dreams, that seems as real as anything I experience when I am awake. Having said that, I don't recall dreaming every night. I have no idea how often I dream. It might just be that I woke up in another state and wasn't dreaming at that particular time.
I can do things without thinking about it (I'd say that this is 97-99% of every day). But if I really want to, or if I need to do some deliberate reasoning, then I can use an altered state, where I have an "inner voice". But I don't hear the voice as I do, when hearing myself or anyone else speak. I "hear it" but it doesn't have any describable characteristics. It is my own, because I created the monologue, but it doesn't sound like my spoken voice do...
I definitely think that Aphantasia is limiting my abilities to achieve my goals in life. I am a person that loves to learn and I am constantly studying. But for every subject, I reach a limit, a type of wall that I can't get past. This limit is usually at a level of high school. On rare occasions, have I been able to achieve higher levels. The reason as I see it, is that because have Aphantasia I can not willingly create a mental model of a concept. Without it, I can't fully understand it.
The same thing goes for let's say learning a language. I studied grammar, but it never stuck (visualization is an important part of memorization, and I can't memorize facts, no matter how much time I spend). The only reason that I have been able to learn a language, is by hearing words being used in context. That works for spoken languages, where I can watch a TV-series, a movie or being in a country where that language is spoken.
But what about "dead" languages like Latin, ancient Greek or languages that isn't spoken at all, like programming languages? Well I can tell you, that I have tried to lean how to program, for 25+ years and still haven't succeeded... We are talking thousands of hours, hundreds of books, hundreds of videos. I have been to classes in schools and online, but nothing helps. The subject is just to abstract for my brain to handle.
Though I'm participating to this study since years, it's the first time I hear about "multisensory aphantasia".
Really people can smell or touch things in their brain??? I can't do any of those things, my brain can only process "thoughts".
For what concerns "sounds", I'm not that sure what my brain does: it often happens to have a song stuck in my mind (commonly called "ear worms") that causes me to sing that song for hours if not a whole day. But this doesn't mean "I hear it" in my head, it more that I can't stop thinking about that particular melody that pops up in my brain therefore I start singing it.
As per images, I can think about an image but definitely not see it (I see pitch black when trying to visualize it), same with sounds. I can play with my flute a particular note cause "I know which sound I need to reproduce" but not at all cause I can hear that sound in my mind.
Last thing, I constantly get lost, I need a navigator also when driving on roads I already did, also more than once. No way I can remember the surroundings unless there is a very particular building or bridge or whatever that thanks to it's very special feature, remain stuck in my brain.
I'm 100% sure that if I wasn't suffering from aphantasia, I wouldn't get lost while driving as much as I do.
Thank you for sharing your experience. I agree. I don't actually hear or feel things in my mind as if it were real. I think or know things. So even though I identify as auditory and kinesthetic over visual I would say that I have multi sensory aphantasia also. When I first found out about it a few years ago my mind was blown and I got depressed. I feel like some of the issues I've had in life are due to this difference. Add ADHD-I to the list and no wonder I always felt different and alone, because I am different from most people. Finding this newsletter and research has helped me not feel alone.
Dear Andrea, you should never feel alone and especially never think that your brain lacks abilities cause it works in a different way compared to others. If there is a field in science where we still know nothing, it's neuroscience. We have no clue on how brains really work, we have autistic people who r pure genius and incredibly highly educated and clever people who r complete idiots in life. We cannot still define what "intelligence" is.
Take me for instance, I'm considered the smartest of all, I'm 52 and it's all my life that people come to me to ask me how to do or deal with things, my work consists in correcting essays before they r published many of which r written by university professors so I'm definitely considered the "smart guy". Well, I cant help my 7 years old niece with her math school assignments cause I simply cant process numbers at any level, I can't make a 2 digit division on paper without using the calculator, when I pay something with cash, I trust the cashier who gives back the balance but if they scam me, I will never notice it. Before navigators I used to call my friends, describing them the surroundings and ask them where the hell I was. When it comes to numbers and streets, I am the dumbest person on earth. I have never met such a stupid persone as I am when it comes to this two things which are things that you have to deal with on daily basis. How did this affect my life? It didn't. It's all my life that I laugh a lot over this stupid brain of mine, and I laugh together with all the people who knows me who never miss to tease me, they call me "Dr Jekyll and Mr Monkey" (cause also a monkey would be able to do what I can't). My niece once introduced me to the mother of a friend of her saying "this is my aunt, she's very clever and know everything, but she is totally stupid with numbers, you don't believe me, try ask her 7 into 8 and see what she does".
I am totally fine with the dumb part of my brain and I would never change it cause it's a great source of fun. When I need to process numbers, I ask who is near me to do it for me, if I'm alone I call somebody who does it for me. Same thing for streets, there are so many people in the world, almost all them can do what I can't, I just need a kind smile and ask them to do it for me, and they always do. I have an entire humanity that works for free for me since all my life, isn't it amazing??
I am sure that, as for me, also tour brain can do sone things in a better way compared to others, whatever those things are it's not important. And as per me, your brain is stupid on another set of things. Everybody is like this, they may not admit it, but they are. So trust me, not only you are not alone, but your brain bugs are perfectly normal cause all brains have bugs!
Thank you for your kind reply. I think it made me feel alone growing up, because it caused issues with developing friendship. I had quit a bit of mean girl issues as a kid. I also have dyscalculia (math number issues), although I am self diagnosed. I doubt the diagnosis existed when we were kids. But I grew up in Honors/Advanced Placement classes except for math and it is the reason why I am not a scientist now, so it has definitely caused me pain over my life. But I married an accountant so I don't have to deal with it. It's his specialty. Ha ha I am encouraged by your ability to laugh about it. Yay! Laughter really is the best medicine. Best wishes!
I have multi sensory aphantasia - no visual, no audio, no taste, no smell, no touch. I cling to the idea that I can’t get PTSD as the benefit of this ‘condition’ as I find it depressing overall. I can’t remember experiences unless prompted, and I don’t get any emotions from prompted memories.
I would love to participate in any future research as I also struggle to manage my anxiety and depression with the current psychological tools (e.g., CBT, ACT, etc.) as they frequently require visual and/or auditory components in your internal mind.
yeah data suggests on average or probabilistically those with aphantasia are less likely to get PTSD and if they do it will be experienced differently...
I have PTSD. Negative emotion-based memories are processed and encoded in a different way. I don't have visual flashbacks but emotional flashbacks.
Both my father and I have aphantasia, and from what I understand we both have multi-sensory aphantasia. But interestingly we have some differences:
- I can hear my own voice in my head, but not other sounds. My dad can't even hear his own voice.
- I have terrible autobiographical memories (maybe a mild SDAM?), but my dad has very good autobiographical memory, and even remembers events from his early childhood with clarity.
very interesting differences, thanks for sharing
i have a limited visual phantasia - my visual images (a apple, a beach, my wife, etc) are limited and fleeting - this despite my being an avid amateur photograher. perhaps this is *why* I have chosen the hobby. and i have a fairly good memory of tens of thousands of my images.
my memory for some tastes lasts for a very long time - i have not eaten a steak in decades, but i have a clear sense memory of it.
i have favorite performances of some music (i'm thinking opera and symphonies with soloists) and can identify pretty quickly (but cannot verbalize) why other performances do not meet the standard.
I have aphantasia and limited autobiographical memories. I also love photography because it helps me remember. Once I see a photo, I can recall a lot more about the event than without it.
in what format? semantics? the concepts but without the sensory details?
Yes the memories are mostly semantics. For example I've visited a bunch of museums. But I can't recall all of them. But if I see a picture of one of the museums, it will likely trigger the memories associated to that museum - when I visited, things I saw there, facts about the artifacts, the layout of the museum, etc.
Yes, so true. Photos become very precious, particularly of my children. It is like the past comes into focus when I look at old photos of them.
I don’t believe that there are people that can recall or conjure up all manner of sensations (smell, taste, feel, sound) just by thinking about it. I have never had someone describe it for me.
yeah there a plenty of people like this Ken, some even swear to me they can replay things just like watching a movie
Is there any research ongoing into potential ways to give aphants the ability to see mental imagery?
Is there any study on psychedelics, brain stimulation or cbt?
we have put off the brain stim + learning study for ethical reasons, not sure of any psychedelic studies on aphantasia per se, but there are a lot of clinical psychedelic studies running at the moment, and that is where some of the case studies from come from, so I'm guessing a few more will come out of those clinical studies
I can't hear touch see smell anything. I live in a very visual home which I have come to understand is a memory palace, with experiences (feelings) imbedded in objects, paintings, etc. I process all information through my body, how it feels, though I might not remember later the dates something had effect. As I get older (I am almost 77) it becomes more and more difficult as others are relying on their memory through imagery of their lives and I don't possess this ability. I also easily put things somewhere and cant remember where; then my partner says, " just go back in your head". Such a joke to me. I struggle with remembering driving directions that are new to me. Going forward is always north as when I was little that is what a map meant, going forward. Words though are everything, word and the external visual world. When I sit down with a pen and paper or a computer keyboard and start to write I then know what I think or feel. When I pick up clay my hands find the imagery. When I paint, my body knows the colors. Synthesis is very easy for me; I like to verbally brainstorm, and feel in the external world there are clues to everything I need, sort of like when you open a random book and there is the information you needed. I will never forget the day I learned that aphantasia existed when my grown son called and said, "Mom, I think I know what you have." Despite these severe limitations I have been a successful professor, and artist. My biggest fear is becoming blind.
Am definitely multisensory aphantasia. Although I've known for a long time that I am aphantasia, it never occurred to me that other people can "conjure" up information through other senses. While I have always felt comfortable with aphantasia, it floored me to realize that other people can access tastes, smells, tactile, and even sounds.
I am flooded with self-talk 24/7; memories are created from stories created with self-talk. I have accumulated a lifetime list of "rules" that I automatically use to identify everything without having to mentally review the rules for most things. Example- cats have four legs, usually upright ears, long tails, will purr and meow, and more. But while my cat's rule is that she has bi-colored eyes, I would have to check her to know which eye is blue and which is green.
I love music and can make mental music, but cannot pull up an actual memory from a performance. Music rules for me are like muscle memory, where I can sing music in my head based on those rules of a given composition, but it's almost identical to singing out loud- there will be no trumpets, harps, kettle drums, tenors, or other specific sounds. Taste memory is non-existent for me, except I know the rules for basic tastes like sweet, spicy, etc so that I can remember what I like and why. I never realized that other people can pull up an actual taste or smell. I am a good cook, good musician, and I love art. But I cannot pull up any mental images of any of them.
sounds like you have auditory imagery right, if you can make mental music?
Oddly, I have no way to mentally hear performed or recorded music from memory, but I can hear my voice singing the music, at least the parts I can remember. I have to actively learn music usually by singing along with it- pop music, symphonic music, opera, whatever. Once I've learned it I can sing whatever I remember in my head - no chords, no specific instruments, just my own internal singing. That's rather sad since my own singing is nowhere near the full music, plus I can only sing as much as I remember.
When I read or mentally review conversations, I only hear my inner voice repeating it.
I have multi sensory aphantasia. Everything I think is words without pictures and without a voice. Although I get earworms sometimes. I found out about visual aphantasia only about 3 years ago and I am 67. I don't think there has been a terribly negative impact, I just developed study methods that suited me automatically. Although my lack of spatial/navigationall skills is a daily practical problem, but now I have a reason for that. It affected what I enjoyed reading,eg I like good characters but not scenic descriptions, and what I could do artistically but we all have different talents anyway. What's had much more of a negative effect is SDAM which explains so much about me and followed on from my discovery of Aphantasia. I've taken part a University study involving Aphantasia.
thanks for supporting the science! very interesting you still get earworms sometimes.
I get earworms when I listen to music with headphones. The weird part is that the song that sticks any given day wasn't the last song I heard while working out. When I played my play list in order, I knew the first beats or words of the next song before it played.
If you ask me song titles or even fist lines of most songs, I have no idea what they are. And if someone asks me what I'm listening to, I rarely know the song title. My inner voice sings on key, but my real voice is almost always off key.
I definitely identify as having multi-sensory aphantasia. Up until a random read of an article a few years ago, I had no idea that others could actually 'see' things in their minds. I always figured that 'visualising' was just a turn of phrase, because why would I think my brain worked differently than others? If I close my eyes, it is all black and I cannot conjure up any memories or thoughts of scents, sound, touch, or taste other than what my (very active) internal monologue can verbalise. Earworms are me singing (badly) in my own head, and I cannot plan a room layout without a gridded plan and little cut out pieces of paper to represent furniture. As I've continued to read up on and learn about aphantasia, I have discovered friends and family with various levels of the same, as well as come to strongly suspect I also have SDAM as I know things have happened, but cannot remember details and have no sensory information included at all.
I have multisensory aphasia. I don't feel that it has impacted my life as l was unaware until.recently. However it does explain why l could never be a wine expert nor a chef, nor able to effectively hear a song in my head. I have not give tactile senses much thought but now realize that l can't recreate touch experiences in my mind. None of this bothers me. It just is.
thanks for sharing!