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Aphantasia: When You Are Blind in Your Mind
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Aphantasia: Image Not Found
Aphantasia is a phenomenon in which an individual cannot conjure an image of a face or thing in their minds. There is no inner ‘mind’s eye’ in these people and the mental imagery is essentially blank. People with Aphantasia can explain the object using words, but the mental image isn’t experienced.
Signs of Aphantasia include unable to vividly picture someone in one’s mind. It is estimated that about 1% to 3% of the population might be having Aphantasia.
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Discovery of Aphantasia
Aphantasia was first described in the early 1800s by Francis Galton in a paper on mental imagery. It was not until 2015 that the phenomenon was further studied and the term was coined.
One of the major studies was with a patient who had undergone a minor surgery in 2005 and later could no longer generate visual images within the ‘mind’s eye’. The details of the study were published in 2010, which led to many others coming up with similar symptoms.
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Binocular Rivalry
This was a technique used by the researchers to help test the image forming inside the brain of the individuals.
The experiment led to the finding that a recent viewing of an image had no correlation with the imagining of the image.
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Possible Explanations of Aphantasia
MRI scans in patients show that while recognizing faces show no change, the person finds it hard to ‘imagine’ or conjure imagery, due to a significant reduction in activation patterns across the posterior networks in the brain. Patients, therefore, relied on a different cognitive strategy.
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Memory And Aphantasia
People with Aphantasia are only able to remember things by using words and lists of facts.
Research suggests that this phenomenon has a negative impact on their memory, like being able to remember the details of a particular day, but still not being able to visualize it. This also has an unexpected advantage of them not being disturbed by negative life events getting flashbacked in their minds.
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Dreams and Aphantasia
Strangely enough, people with aphantasia can dream normally, being able to see the visuals. It is the intentional ‘imagining’ that is affected and not the dream state.
Dreams are a subconscious mind event, controlled by the brainstem, while visualization requires the conscious mind to process the image.
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Life With Aphantasia
Not being able to imagine people and places can be bothersome and upsetting for the people with Aphantasia. Many people from all walks of life experience this, and it does not seem to impact their success in life.
This is a normal variation of human experience and is not something that can be treated. However, tools like photography, illustrations, visual aids and design software can be used to fill this gap in the mind.
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Repression can best be defined as the psychological defense mechanism that involves pushing undesired thoughts into the unconscious in order to not think about them anymore.
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The objective of hiding our undesired thoughts in our unconsciousness is to feel less anxious.
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The Beginnings of Psychology
Psychology was not separate from philosophy until the late 1800s.
- During the 17th century, philosopher Rene Descartes introduced the idea of dualism - that the mind and body were two entities that interact to complete the human experience.
- While early philosophers relied on methods such as observation and logic, today's psychologists use scientific methodologies to draw conclusions about human thought and behavior.
- Physiological research on the brain and behavior also contributes to psychology.
Psychology as a Separate Discipline
- During the mid-1800s, a German physiologist Wilhelm Wundt outlined many of the major connections between the science of physiology and the study of human thought and behavior.
- He viewed psychology as the study of human consciousness and tried to apply experimental methods to study internal mental processes.
- His processes are known as introspection and seen as unreliable and unscientific today, but it helped to set the stage for future experimental methods.
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Our Internal Biological Clock
- If we want to get more out of each day, we might need to consider synchronizing with our own internal body clock, working according to our peak periods of creativity, energy...
Our Natural Internal Thermostat
Our mental alertness, mood, stress, hunger levels, heart mechanism, and immunity are controlled by the various rhythms synced to the thermostat-like biological clock in our body.
Circadian rhythms control our eating habits, body temperature, digestion, hormone levels, resulting in a huge impact on our overall health. Any interruption in our circadian rhythm can lead to many health conditions known as lifestyle diseases.
The Best Time For Our Activities
- Sleeping: Our age determines our body’s sleep cycle, with teens leading more sleep than adults. Afternoon naps are great for your health.
- Eating: The time we eat might help us control our metabolism and prevent gastronomical problems, and altering your eating schedule resets your biological clock.
- Exercising: Regular exercise is a must, and physical strength is at its peak from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm.
- Thinking: Our minds usually work best in the morning, making it the best time to tackle heavy activities. Concentration dips in the daytime when we feel sluggish, but new studies find that creativity is enhanced in a tired brain.