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So I have aphantasia, and I first realized when talking to someone about mental images and memories. They have photorealistic pictures in their mind, or even vi

So I have aphantasia, and I first realized when talking to someone about mental images and memories. They have photorealistic pictures in their mind, or even video scenes like a movie. At my best I have something like an expressionist painting with words and concepts arranged spatially on blobs of color representing the object. More typically, just blackness. Here is another description of it, and a test in the first part: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewsGmhAjjjI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewsGmhAjjjI

mirimir 8y ago
I still suspect semantic confusion. I mean, how does driving work, when you see what you imagine? Edit: And now that I think of it, I have had some accidents where I reacted to what I expected the other driver to do. But they did something else. One in particular I remember. The car ahead of me had a turn signal flashing. I thought that it was the right one. Or at least, that's what I remembered. So I passed on the left. And hit the other car, because it had turned left. And I recall thinking that I actually saw the car turn right. I'm glad that doesn't happen more often :)
- cybersol 8y ago
  I think mentally imagining while driving is probably dangerous for everyone, normal and aphantasiac. It's a question I otherwise can't answer, since I just see mostly blackness. Though I liked nnnn's answer about a second monitor, separate from his visual input stream.
  - mirimir 8y ago
    If that's a literally accurate description, then I am indeed aphantasic. Because I don't actually "see" anything. I can describe it as if I were seeing it. I know what d orbitals look like, and benzene rings, and rotating hypercubes and hyperspheres. But there's no experience of a "second monitor, separate from his visual input stream". It does remind me of blindsight. That is, people who complain of blindess, but obviously do react to visual input.
    - deleted 8y ago
      [deleted]
  - nnnnnnnnnnnnn 8y ago
    I'm a woman. I'm glad you like my answer though

mirimir 8y ago

I still suspect semantic confusion. I mean, how does driving work, when you see what you imagine? Edit: And now that I think of it, I have had some accidents where I reacted to what I expected the other driver to do. But they did something else. One in particular I remember. The car ahead of me had a turn signal flashing. I thought that it was the right one. Or at least, that's what I remembered. So I passed on the left. And hit the other car, because it had turned left. And I recall thinking that I actually saw the car turn right. I'm glad that doesn't happen more often :)

cybersol 8y ago
I think mentally imagining while driving is probably dangerous for everyone, normal and aphantasiac. It's a question I otherwise can't answer, since I just see mostly blackness. Though I liked nnnn's answer about a second monitor, separate from his visual input stream.
- mirimir 8y ago
  If that's a literally accurate description, then I am indeed aphantasic. Because I don't actually "see" anything. I can describe it as if I were seeing it. I know what d orbitals look like, and benzene rings, and rotating hypercubes and hyperspheres. But there's no experience of a "second monitor, separate from his visual input stream". It does remind me of blindsight. That is, people who complain of blindess, but obviously do react to visual input.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
- nnnnnnnnnnnnn 8y ago
  I'm a woman. I'm glad you like my answer though