I'd be curious if you've done any further searching on the internet.I'm guessing it'd be possible to discover aphantasics in psychedelic-related groups/forums/discussion boards. Make a post on one of them and see if anyone replies. It's not the same as controlled research with reliable resources, but it's likely you'd get lot of helpful anecdotes.I've found some aphantasics in a personality type group so I wouldn't be surprised if you could find some in other groups. I was able to start a small discussion about visual imagination too.You might have to include a link/explanation that provides a reference for the uninitiated to understand what aphantasia is if you think a lot of members may not know what it was.I'd be curious to know what you find, especially if you report back on here!
I love it! Yea, after I got results from my poll I don't think personality correlates with the ability to visualize that much anymore. Part of the reason I was wondering is because some types are very logic and fact based. Or even the types that focus on concepts and theories. Some people focus on logic a lot more than emotions too. I thought these traits would be common for people with aphantasia. But maybe not! Thanks for the comment!
Is there a buffer time to decide? Say you're figuring out where in the room to put a couch and what direction it should face, do you need to pause for a bit or does the answer just come? Do you have to ask yourself "where would I put the couch?," or say "hmmmm in your head?
Huh, reading about you gives me a better idea on how to describe my abilities. You articulate your experience well. Audio for me is best described as "vague" kind of like how "vague" is an option on the VVIQ test. It's enough to resemble a song but does not sound like the song. I also can get songs stuck in my head and sing them out for stress relief, however the last few years, I haven't listened to music as often so I rarely do it nowadays. I do utter sounds for stress relief, to distract myself from a thought, or in attempt to "banish" a thought. If I was up to practice, I could use a muscial instrument I'm familiar with to replicate a tone I'm imagining. If I'm not familiar with making that tone on an instrument, I can figure out if what is playing on the instrument is close or not.
Is it possible for you to sing from memory? Or say somebody says a phrase like "You're beautiful," "Never say never," or a phrase from a song you are familiar with, do you recognize that there's a song you know with that phrase and can sing it out if you want? When I ask, it's about when people say it, but also I'm curious about if you read a phrase and would be also connect with the song. When I hear or think about the phrase "ain't nobody got time for that," I think of a sound clip and how people might use it as part of a meme.
Priming: I've tried to train my self to focus on studying by using a specific fidget toy only for studying. I would set everything up, then fidget, then study. This technique has been ok, but I don't feel like use it anymore. I only started it for a bit because I was hyped. It worked for a while but I've stopped. I may try it again though.Precision: I've used it like you. It has been extremely helpful, but just requires maintenance that I forget to do sometimes.Process and Practice: This has not worked perfectly well for me, but sometimes it helps me knock a bunch of to do items off. And it helps me make sure I get my workouts in.Mindset: For workouts, every time I finish one, I feel good I am one step closer to my goals. I usually write down that I finished a workout and what I did. Since I do that, I acknowledge my accomplisment.
Whoa this is a very different experience from me. English was my worst subject growing up, in middle school I spent hours struggling to even write a C paper. Horrified of participating in debates and not a fan of presentations. I'm relatively chill about presentations now though. Was also bad at history. Great at math and most science classes.
In case you're still with him, here's my response.Note I also come from a different perspective on love and relationships. For now I stick to casual dating.But I can tell you there have been times I have been very attached to only one woman and extremely content with only seeing her. To the point I felt lazy about trying to "get" others.I can want to see a woman next week.I can want to see her over and over and hope it continues.I can think "Oh, it'd be nice to do x"If my preference were such, I'd probably think that about marriage/kids/becoming a grandpa.Remember I am only one aphrantasic and we vary in experiences. I'm not him, don't think like him, nor have the same views/beliefs.Part of me also wonders if he has had sald similar things as I have. If he has and it hasn't reassured you...I'm not sure what to think.Also when he said he feels like something is missing I wonder if that says something about your guys relationship (but part of me thinks you made a typo there somewhere).I hope my answer helps a tiny bit. Hope you guys reach a better understanding of each other and are content with each other!
I watched a youtube video 3 days ago based on a reddit thread called something like "What medical condition do you have that you thought was normal?"I second I heard aphantasia I thought "what the heck that sounds like me!"I read about it and discovered that most people have a SUPERPOWER called visualization. That visualization wasn't just play pretend type of thing. I have been completely fascinated and have talked to a several people about this. So far I have not discovered any family members as having it. The last two days I have been beaming at the discovery of what visualization actually is and I can't imagine what it is like!Btw I am in my late 20s.
I just found out about aphantasia 2 days ago. Visual: None. Maybe maybe maybe I can imagine a vague shape of something but this might actually be my physical imagination instead (see below) Auditory: Comparing myself to other's descriptions, I think I don't have it to the level of detail that non-aphants have. However I can remember a tone and replicate it with my voice, have songs stuck in my head ALL the time, start singing songs immediately after people say distinct phrases associated with those songs in casual conversation. Through practice I also learned to tune a cello by ear, it's just the fine tuning I have trouble with. I'm good at tuning guitars the way I want. Gustatory: Just learned 30 minutes ago that I don't have this, BUT similar to Luc below who talked about about a tennis backhand and its affect on heart rate, my mouth/throat/tongue react to me trying to imagine a random sweetness/sour taste/bittermelon. It affects which areas relax/tense, curl, or move. If I imagine them with intensity, I actually move my tongue/mouth/throat in reaction. Olfactory: Nothing but my guess is I'll get some reactions like gustatory if I try. Tactile/Motor/Physical: I can imagine being in a different body position and my orientation to objects. I can learn by the combination of moving my arms, gesturing, and associating different spaces in the air to parts of something, e.g. the four chambers of the heart and its bloodflow directions. I can kind if imagine texture. I can apply motor learning to dance classes if I want. Emotional: Certain things people say can trigger emotions. Also I can repeat memories over and over and imagine how I felt about something. [Edited to remove personal story here.] Also for the most part I recognize faces fine.
I know this thread is old but it is super interesting. I have physical imagination, exactly as motor imagery that Jennifer has described. I also have auditory imagination but I think the ability may be below average if not simply different. It has not affected my musical ability and I seem to be to imagine and replicate sounds better than some others (of course for comparisons there are people better than me too.). I remember explaining how I could memorize a tone to approximately how it sounds and my classmate said she could not. Also I was not aware of this ability until I wondered if it was possible to memorize a sound like a fact. It required repetition but I got it. And my whole life I've had moments where songs are stuck in my head. I recall song all the time when people mention memorable phrases from the songs (I think this is normal for most people) I think I can vaguely imagine the feeling of certain textures too. Most interestingly, I cannot imagine taste HOWEVER, I can get the physical reaction (by imagination or in reality) by trying to recall a taste. Like for bittermelon, my tongue will pull back a bit and a feel a movement in my throat area behind my chin. For sour I will pucker my lips when I imagine it. For sweet an area of my tongue will relax and parts of the sides will curl up. I didn't notice all these things until I tried them just now to test if I had olfactory imagination. And if you ask me if I tasted sour, sweet, or bitter, I'd tell you no, I only got the body reaction. I sense my saliva and dry throat and that's the closest I have to any taste at this moment.