Sandre du Plessis

Hi Kathy, I don't suffer from anxiety, but I'm aphantasic, and don't like driving to places I'm unfamiliar with, exactly for the reason that I can't 'picture' the route. Even places that I have been to, unless I drive there often, I get a little stressed about the route. I do find that once I'm on my way, I manage to navigate based on my memory. I would say verbal memorisation might help - something like first turn left, carry on for 3 blocks, turn right, etc. And of course just using a map app while driving, especially for places I don't often go to, that gives me the reassurance that I'm following the right route. I also allow myself more time the first time I'm going somewhere, and if I can, drive there beforehand to become familiar with the route. And for me one of the biggies is following the same route there and back - that helps embed it more. If I'm not familiar with the area, it just adds to my confusion if someone tries to direct me a different way back.

I also used to think when people talked about visualising things, it was a figure of speech. In my teens my cousin and I were talking about a boy I liked, and she tried to coax me into visualising his face. It's not something I talk about obsessively, but there are a few people in my life who know I can't visualise and I do like to try and understand what it must be like for them. Equally they find it hard to imagine what my experience must be like. I believe some people can also hear sounds in their heads, and maybe even taste and smell? I don't have any of that. I do remember dreaming visually though, but I'm not sure if I hear sounds in dreams.

I dream visually and in colour, even though I'm aphantasic when I'm awake.