Multisensory Aphantasia
Multisensory aphantasia is characterized by the absence of mental imagery across two or more sensory modalities (visual, auditory, gustatory, olfactory, tactile, or motor). Affecting approximately 25% of those with visual aphantasia, this broader form reflects a more comprehensive 'sensory-free imagination.' Like single-sensory forms, multisensory aphantasia can be congenital or acquired. Understanding this variation provides valuable insights into how the brain processes and integrates different types of sensory information and memory. On this page, you'll find aphantasia research, personal stories, and community discussions about multisensory aphantasia.
Thinking in Pictures Isn’t All That: We Are All Beautifully Unique
What was your reaction when you first discovered others were thinking in pictures while you weren't? This jarring revelation led designer Shane Williams on a 25-year journey exploring cognitive differences. His research shows that studying and embracing how differently we all think opens up new worlds of patience, understanding, and acceptance.
What Living Without Mental Imagery Has Taught Me
I live without mental imagery—no pictures, no imagined sounds. But my world is rich in emotion, intuition, and presence. I parent, create, and heal by tuning into what I feel, not what I see. It’s a different way of experiencing life—and it’s deeply meaningful in its own quiet, grounded way.
I’m an Author With Aphantasia: You, Too, Have the Power to Do Anything You Set Your Mind To
For years, I thought something was wrong with me. While others “pictured” scenes in their minds, I saw nothing. I couldn’t visualize characters or settings, and it left me feeling disconnected—until I learned I had aphantasia.
The Shape of Things Unseen: Conversation with Dr. Adam Zeman On The New Science of Imagination
What if everything you thought you knew about creativity was wrong? The scientist who discovered aphantasia unveils the "new science of imagination" and explains why visualization might not be essential to human creativity.
Expanding Aphantasia Definition: Researchers Propose New Boundaries
Researchers expand aphantasia definition beyond "inability to visualize." This broader framework impacts how we understand and identify with the condition.
Definition: Aphantasia
Zeman, A., Monzel, M., Pearson, J., Scholz, C. O., & Simner, J. (2025). Definition: aphantasia. Cortex, 182, 212–213. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2024.07.019
Invisible Rehearsal: How Aphantasia Affects Motor Simulation and Rehabilitation
Understanding how our brain performs motor simulations is crucial for enhancing motor skills, whether it be in sports performance, motor rehabilitation, or simple everyday movements. But what happens when a person cannot simulate these movements?
Writing Fantasy Without a Mind's Eye
Aphantasia, living without a mind's eye, doesn't hinder creativity. Despite my inability to visualize, I wrote and published a fantasy novel, proving creativity thrives in unique ways.
Aphantasia and Hyperphantasia: What We Know After a Decade of Research
Since 2015, "aphantasia" has reshaped our understanding of imagination, revealing that not everyone visualizes mentally. This discovery, along with "hyperphantasia," highlights the diverse nature of human imagination.
The Memory Paradox: How Aphantasia Reveals Hidden Pathways in the Brain's Recall System
How a researcher's brain imaging study of people who can't form mental images led to surprising discoveries about memory accuracy, neural noise, and the multiple pathways our minds use to access the past.
Memories Without Imagery—Remembering Outside the Lines
People with aphantasia may struggle with memory recall. This may be because our memories are image-free. But, just because we can't see our memories, does that mean we don't have them? The ability to visualize is not a prerequisite for remembering rich experiences.
How Our Invisible Differences Can Enrich a Marriage
Whether you’re an aphant or a visualizer, marriage, or any loving partnership, is about commitment. Among other things, commitment means respecting each other’s differences and working through them lovingly.
How Aphantasia Can Make You Seem Insensitive
We’re not — aphants don’t see the world the way most people do. Our brains work differently.
I Have Aphantasia: My Brain Is Different, and That’s Totally Fine
Many people dread the “what’s the most interesting thing about you” icebreaker question—but not me. I always have the perfect answer, "I have Aphantasia."
Breaking the Connectivity Code: How The Aphantasia Brain Access Visual Information Without the Mind's Eye
How a brain researcher's journey from engineering to neuroscience uncovered the hidden networks that allow people with aphantasia to navigate a visual world without mental imagery—and what this reveals about the nature of consciousness itself.
Can Aphantasics Use Imagery to Heal or Improve Performance?
From guided imagery to imagined athletic practices, are aphantasics disadvantaged because they lack a mind’s eye?
Discovering I Have Aphantasia
A clinical therapist with total aphantasia, mental illness, autism, and other neurodiversities shares her perspectives and strategies.
Is Aphantasia Hereditary? - A Personal Exploration
I have aphantasia. Do my siblings have it? What about my parents? Is aphantasia hereditary?
Highly sensitive Person with Aphantasia
Can those with aphantasia also identify as highly sensitive people? Share your experiences with sensory processing sensitivity!
I have aphantasia, but somehow can picture dynamics and movement...
Can you perceive movement and dynamics without visuals? Share your experiences of non-visual imagination!