Hyperfixed Third Eye Blind
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Aug 28, 2025 Dive into the intriguing world of aphantasia, where visualization is a no-show! Explore a personal journey revealing the emotional and cognitive impacts on relationships and memories. Advanced fMRI techniques shed light on brain activity, revealing the surprising capabilities of those who can't visualize. Discover the spectrum of mental imagery, comparing vivid imaginations to the blank canvas of aphantasia. Heartfelt anecdotes highlight how auditory memories create lasting connections, proving that absence can still hold profound meaning.
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Imagery Is Perception Run Backwards
- Visualizing runs perception in reverse: memory drives the visual system backward to create imagery.
- Aphantasia likely reflects a failure of top-down control that can't drive the visual cortex into imagery.
Patient Lost Imagery After Heart Procedure
- Adam Zeman described a patient who lost imagery after a coronary angioplasty and then couldn't visualize faces or scenes.
- The patient's visual perception and face-recognition areas remained normal but failed to activate during imagination.
No Imagery, Yet Functional Performance
- Despite lacking imagery, the patient solved imagery tasks using alternative strategies and performed normally.
- This suggests aphantasia is a different cognitive style, not a functional deficit.