SYNESTHESIA – Here is the definition, symptoms, types and other details about this condition that you probably didn’t know.
Synesthesia is a perceptual phenomenon where stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to involuntary experiences in another. In simpler terms, it’s a blending or crossing of the senses that goes beyond typical sensory experiences.
SYMPTOMS
People with this condition, known as synesthetes, may experience a variety of sensory associations, such as seeing colors when they hear music, associating specific tastes with words or numbers, or perceiving certain smells when they see particular shapes or symbols.
For example, a person with grapheme-color synesthesia might see specific colors associated with individual letters or numbers. Another common type is chromesthesia, where sounds may evoke the perception of colors.
Synesthesia is a unique and subjective experience, and it can vary widely among individuals. While it’s not a disorder and is generally considered a variation of normal perception, researchers continue to study synesthesia to understand the neurological and cognitive mechanisms behind these sensory connections.
TYPES
- Grapheme-Color – In this type, letters and numbers are associated with specific colors.
- Chromesthesia – This type involves associating sounds with colors. When someone with chromesthesia hears music or other sounds, they may see vivid colors accompanying the auditory experience.
- Spatial Sequence – People with spatial sequence synesthesia visualize numerical sequences, such as days of the week, months, or numbers, in specific spatial arrangements.
- Number Form – Similar to spatial sequence synesthesia, number form synesthesia involves visualizing numbers, but in this case, they may appear as a mental map or chart.
- Ordinal Linguistic Personification – In this type, numbers, letters, or even days of the week are associated with personalities or characteristics.
- Mirror-Touch – Mirror-touch synesthesia involves feeling physical sensations or touch when seeing someone else being touched.
- Lexical-Gustatory – This type involves experiencing tastes or smells in response to hearing or reading specific words.
- Associator and Projector – Associators experience the synesthetic perception in their mind’s eye, while projectors feel as though they see the synesthetic experience in the external world around them.
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