Katia Perreira

Me too! I never realized I was masking, because that would is fairly new. But I would take the test and be an entomologist but read the description and be like, no I’m an INFJ. I’m glad I’m not the only one.

I recently learned that many people who are dyslexic can actually visualize in 3D. They can visualize objects in 3D and move them around in their mindseye and see it from different angles. That’s why letters are confusing because their mind can see them from any direction. This is fascinating to me because, as someone who cannot visualize at all, it means most people cannot visualize to that extent. Most people visualize in 2D. I have asked a few dyslexic people about this, and 2/3 confirmed they could, the third has aphantasia and cannot visualize… So perhaps your friend is dyslexic or has hypophantasia? Perhaps your visualization is closer to normal? Apparently this whole thing is a spectrum and everyone is different. I’m wondering if there is a “normal” or “average”, or simply a median on the spectrum of visualization.

For a long time I didn’t think I would get into audiobooks, but I’ve given it a try, and it really depends on the author. If it’s to descriptive, I can’t do it. There are some books I really have to read, and even reading overt descriptive writing is hard. Think mark twain or one of those authors who explains scenery and tries to get you into the scene— cannot. Describe what people are wearing, please no. I don’t know what it is about podcasts, but I cannot. Or radio talk shows. Apart of me wonders if it’s because I cannot visualize the speakers in anyway. Do visualizers have the habit of visualizing what the speakers look like and how they are emoting? Maybe I just don’t like them? Who knows.

I wouldn’t say I’m great at faces, or bad. Probably average. But I do remember things I pay specific attention to. I can’t visualize it, but I can often remember it better than people who do visualize. I think because their ability to visualize can distort their memory, where as my memory is just that, a file in a database or something. Perhaps your process with facial recognition is similar. I’m assuming you can’t visualize their faces, but their face is probably stored in your brain and because it’s not distorted by visualizing them, you have a keener recognition of them.

I heard dreams come from the occipital lobe (visualizing from the frontal). So maybe the headaches and lucid dreams are connected with something going on with your occipitals? Hope this helps.

Yes! I do this too. Like Susan, my mom raised us on art. Paints, colored pencils, large amounts of paper. I use references on some things that I want to look a particular was bc I cannot even in my brain, and most of the time my art just emerges of itself. I remember my mom looking at a vase of flowers I drew with pastel and asking me where I got the idea from, and I didn’t know how to answer her, it just came as I put color on the paper, I didn’t even start with the idea of drawing flowers at all, I just wanted to create. For things I do actually want to draw in a particular way, I’ll usually use a reference. Sometime I will spend so much time on one subject, I’ll be able to draw it without a reference. Like a palm tree. I can make a pretty stellar palm tree without a reference photo now, but not because I can visualize it. I think it’s rather a kinestetic memory of how it is formed, along with the emerging process of adjusting what I see on the paper. But that only really works with certain subjects like trees and flowers which in their very nature are kind of fluid. I’ve spent so much time on human anatomy, but still can’t get it without a reference.

That is an interesting hypothesis. I know my mom read books to us when I was really young, and I never could visualize them.

I’m not an expert in any form, but hyperphantasia is when people can hyper-visualize with extreme detail. Perhaps your mind jumps between the two? Really interesting to someone who doesn’t experience it, but sounds frustrating to you who does experience it.

So interesting! Thank you for sharing!

I am writing because I hope you find a way to recover your ability to visualize memories, happy memories! New memories! And if you do gain them back along with the bad, I hope you have the healing and strength and support to overcome. I think our brain does amazing things to protect us. I have never been able to visualize, but I have actually been wondering how awef it must be for someone who had it and then loses it, like any of the 5 senses. Because I’ve always had it, I literally don’t know what I’m missing. But I feel for you, and I wanted to share that with you. Thank you for sharing and best of luck on your journey!

I think the inherent problem with the whole spectrum is that we cannot actually know how other people experience. I never had to take a quiz to know I had aphansia. I’ve known it my whole life. I would never say I struggled with it, or anything like that, but I have some core memories of trying to explain that I can’t imagine, and being brushed off. I didn’t know people could imagine things with their mind. Aphantasia gave me a word to explain my experience, and the word gave me space to talk about it. But for someone who can visualize, it’s baffling to imagine people who can’t, but it’s equally baffling to people who can’t visualize to “imagine” people who can. I think senses like hearing, tasting, seeing, we can, through technology, experience what it’s like to lose these senses, but we can’t share the minds eye experience one way or the other. I have often wondered if it was a semantics things. If we are just explaining the same phenomena from different angles, using different words to say the same things. But when I talk to people who can visualize, I can tell you that I have never had the same experience on any level. But it is a spectrum so if people take a test that reveals to them they have some form of aphantasia and they are surprised, then I think you will get some of what you say “people visualizing without realizing they are visualizing.” But there do exists people who simply cannot.

I think the great thing about journaling is that it is an innately personal thing, so you can literally write anything you like. To get into the habit you could start with writing at least one sentence a day. And if you’re feeling stuck you could write about your day, how you feel, even “This is a sentence.” But I think as you sit down, pick up the pencil, computer, marker, or whatever, you’ll find yourself writing more and building a habit.

As one with aphantasia, I found listening was challenge because I couldn’t visualize what was beging said, but visuals really helped. For example, when listening to a lecture, I would take notes, and my notes would include both words and pictures. Because I couldn’t visualize the pictures really helped with processing aspects of the lessons. And I still do this as an adult. In fact the guy who invented the Firefox browser reportedly has aphantasia, although before they coined the term. He was able to be very successful because he learned to draw out his ideas on papers and a white board. But visualization is honestly only one element of learning, and if you research/google learning styles, you will get loads of information on how different students learn and study advice for each of the different styles. I hope this helps you help your daughters with their education.