I discovered it when I was…23? My whole life I figured people were saying “picture this…” figuratively and it didn’t even occur to me that it could be otherwise because it was self-evidently impossible to me to “see” something until I learned the word “aphantasia” and that the inability to visualize is not considered the norm/not universal.
It takes actually knowing that people actually see images to know that you cannot do that.
Counting sheep never made true sense to me. How is keeping a tally of “imaginary” sheep jumping over an “imaginary” fence supposed to help me fall asleep?
Makes sense when you realize people do it to stop their brains from randomly sending themselves other imaginary that’s going to keep them up. It’s like choosing to turn on the TV to something you could fall asleep to is my understanding.
For you and @Sludgeyy@lemmy.world , do you find it affect your memory/recall at all? Especially for reading something, do you need to read aloud? You dont need to answer by the way, I have my suspicions that someone I know might have it but they aren’t aware.
From my understanding people can play a “movie” of something like their last birthday party. See who was there, what they were wearing, etc.
Unless I make note of something I’m not going to remember it. I can “subconsciously” make a note of something and recall it but I cannot re
But other than a list of facts I have about my last birthday party, I cannot recall or experience it again.
As for reading. There’s no difference between me reading a biology textbook or a romance novel. I read, soak up knowledge, critically think, and remember.
I have to subvocalize to read. I’m curious on why you assumed we had to read outloud. I don’t know how other aphants read.
Edit: Wait, subvocalize is different than inner speech is what I just read. I have to have my inner voice speak the word.
I would say I generally have an excellent memory with better recall for what is read vs what is said. Not that helps you, but I’m a merely anecdotal case.
Maybe more than recall ask them when they read fiction if they pictures the characters orbjust kind of glaze over during prolong descriptive sections. Do they complain about movie casting? I never picture characters so even if I think a performance is bad, I’m never mad that the actor doesn’t look like how I imagined them.
I have full visual in auditorial aphantasia. No visualization, no inner monologue and no ability to recall. Sounds in my head.
All of my thoughts are basically conceptual connections between ideas. Sort of like everything is a gut feeling? Like if I know something I just know it. I really don’t have a better way to explain this.
It makes it incredibly easy to just do things that I know how to do. Nothing gets in the way and that’s incredibly reliable recall.
The moment I have to explain to anyone else I am completely at a loss. I very rarely can give any reference directions or any meaningful help short of just saying do the thing.
Like you want me to do a 35–step process exactly repeatedly without any error. I can do that. Not a problem.
You need me to walk someone through a three-step process and one of those steps involves something they do automatically like beat their heart. Yeah no I’m not even getting past the first step. Good luck.
Not OP but also have aphantasia.
I discovered it when I was…23? My whole life I figured people were saying “picture this…” figuratively and it didn’t even occur to me that it could be otherwise because it was self-evidently impossible to me to “see” something until I learned the word “aphantasia” and that the inability to visualize is not considered the norm/not universal.
Yeah took me 36 years.
It takes actually knowing that people actually see images to know that you cannot do that.
Counting sheep never made true sense to me. How is keeping a tally of “imaginary” sheep jumping over an “imaginary” fence supposed to help me fall asleep?
Makes sense when you realize people do it to stop their brains from randomly sending themselves other imaginary that’s going to keep them up. It’s like choosing to turn on the TV to something you could fall asleep to is my understanding.
Yeah, with that one in particular I thhough everybody was just beating a dead horse with the same joke on “counting sleep.”
For you and @Sludgeyy@lemmy.world , do you find it affect your memory/recall at all? Especially for reading something, do you need to read aloud? You dont need to answer by the way, I have my suspicions that someone I know might have it but they aren’t aware.
Memory or recall of facts. No.
Memory or recall of life experiences. Yes.
From my understanding people can play a “movie” of something like their last birthday party. See who was there, what they were wearing, etc.
Unless I make note of something I’m not going to remember it. I can “subconsciously” make a note of something and recall it but I cannot re
But other than a list of facts I have about my last birthday party, I cannot recall or experience it again.
As for reading. There’s no difference between me reading a biology textbook or a romance novel. I read, soak up knowledge, critically think, and remember.
I have to subvocalize to read. I’m curious on why you assumed we had to read outloud. I don’t know how other aphants read.
Edit: Wait, subvocalize is different than inner speech is what I just read. I have to have my inner voice speak the word.
I would say I generally have an excellent memory with better recall for what is read vs what is said. Not that helps you, but I’m a merely anecdotal case.
Maybe more than recall ask them when they read fiction if they pictures the characters orbjust kind of glaze over during prolong descriptive sections. Do they complain about movie casting? I never picture characters so even if I think a performance is bad, I’m never mad that the actor doesn’t look like how I imagined them.
I’ll never forget trying to read Redwall as a child and trying to remember what character was what animal. I had to write down a cheat sheet.
I have full visual in auditorial aphantasia. No visualization, no inner monologue and no ability to recall. Sounds in my head.
All of my thoughts are basically conceptual connections between ideas. Sort of like everything is a gut feeling? Like if I know something I just know it. I really don’t have a better way to explain this.
It makes it incredibly easy to just do things that I know how to do. Nothing gets in the way and that’s incredibly reliable recall.
The moment I have to explain to anyone else I am completely at a loss. I very rarely can give any reference directions or any meaningful help short of just saying do the thing.
Like you want me to do a 35–step process exactly repeatedly without any error. I can do that. Not a problem.
You need me to walk someone through a three-step process and one of those steps involves something they do automatically like beat their heart. Yeah no I’m not even getting past the first step. Good luck.
How do you read?
I have aphantasia and I have to subvocalize each word that I want to read.
Edit: Wait, subvocalize is different than inner speech is what I just read. I have to have my inner voice speak the word.