Synesthesia: Do you have it?

[Senefen]

Basically it's when you associate one sense with another sense. For example people who say they can see music or taste colours. Or, like me, you might perceive words and numbers as having colours.
Think a of a number, say "3" is it coloured? Think of other numbers: 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, ,6 etc Are they coloured?
If yes congratulations (?) you have synesthesia.
Wiki explains it better than I do.

How long have you known, did you just realise, what kind do you have? I'm just interested in knowing.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
>_> the shades are out but those are my colours. 1 is only weakly associated, it can also be red while 9 is most definitely dark green.
My name is Nicole, and I don't like its colour.

[the_bandersnatch]

I have it to a limited degree in that I see musical keys as colours and shades. Major keys have specific colours associated with them, usually bright colours, and minor keys are a darker shade of the same. I can usually work out roughly the key of a song by how it's colour "feels".

For example, E major is a specific yellow and Em is like a mustard yellow. Songs in E have a yellowy feel to them.

I don't get it with taste or anything else, so I don't think this counts as true synaesthesia.

[Squid Tamer]

G and F are green to me. A bit like this: G, F. All of the other letters have colors, but they're not very defined. 4 is green also.

I'm not a very strong Synestheseate (spelling?), and those are the only ones that I imagine clearly.

[CivilDefense700]

I don't know if this would be synesthesia or just brain cross firing.
Whenever I say or hear the word cube I have this sensation that I've just tasted something delicious. It's not a specific taste associated with it just a pleasant sensation. Just writing this down makes it sound even more weird.
Brain problems much?

[electronic mily]

Mine's a rather complicated bit of a sound-color dealie, mainly having to do with words and letters. Vowel sounds have colors ( A E I O U ) and consonants have varying degrees of "brightness" based on how they're voiced (M and N are dark, for example, and S and T are the brightest). So each word has a color based on the mixing of the letters that make it up. Lantern, turtle, aftermath, bowl, et cetera. Generally this has little effect on my life at all, except for making me really like some words because the color seems appropriate, or remembering people's names better if the color reminds me of them. Oh, and when I write I have a tendency to give important characters names with lots of As in them, because my brain always associates red things with importance.

On a slightly related note: does anyone else get the thing where hearing a loud unexpected noise causes you to see a flash of light? I've talked to other people who get it too, and I wondered just how common it actually is.

[Jessica]

My friend has severe synesthesia. All senses are connected, and she describes things strangely. It's kind of interesting.

[dawesbr]

A friend of mine has it, and I sort-of-have it (Only with certain words, eg days of the week/other random words)

[Esperite]

I have some form of this, mainly with school subjects. Most of them I associate with a certain color:

Science: Blue
Math: Red
Reading/English: Green
Social Studies: Yellow

As for other classes I don't really have many thoughts about their colors, but those ones I have always associated.

[Vieto]

I have some form of this, mainly with school subjects. Most of them I associate with a certain color:

Science: Blue
Math: Red
Reading/English: Green
Social Studies: Yellow

As for other classes I don't really have many thoughts about their colors, but those ones I have always associated.

Wow... I do that too. almost the same colour scheme even.

green - English, Chemistry
red - math, philosophy
blue - physics, math
orange - computers, technology

but no, I don't have Synesthesia.

[Chimerathon]

I do not have synesthesia, but to clarify, synesthesia is something that is automatic and instantaneous, so for instance if you have to think about what something "feels like", you most likely are not a true synesthate. So Senefen would actually see "1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9" as specific colors all the time, no matter what. At least, that's my understanding of it.

[Ralith The Third]

I have it quite strongly, but not so much with senses- I get it rarely with smell, but for the most part it's certain ideas. I strongly associate inflation with pens and I don't know why, for example.

['; DROP DATABASE;--]

My understanding was that it's an actual hallucination, not just a mental image.

I do mentally assign colours to sound frequencies, but I think most people do that.

[Chimerathon]

My understanding was that it's an actual hallucination, not just a mental image.

Yup, it's a hallucination. It's not an experience that's detached mentally from the sensory input. Numbers can have assigned colors, sounds can be immediately identified as a specific color, even movement can be perceived to have a specific sound.

[Walter.Horvath]

Also, none of you have synesthesia. It's like, super rare.

[lanicita]

Also, none of you have synesthesia. It's like, super rare.

It is estimated that synesthesia could possibly be as prevalent as 1 in 23 persons across its range of variants.

[Zorlin]

I don't know if this would be synesthesia or just brain cross firing.
Whenever I say or hear the word cube I have this sensation that I've just tasted something delicious. It's not a specific taste associated with it just a pleasant sensation. Just writing this down makes it sound even more weird.
Brain problems much?

Geometry is quite often tangled with taste - there are people who would describe cake as being "pointy" for example.

My sister's ex-boyfriend (who I'm still good friends with) has this, but I'm not sure to what extent. He perceives sounds as bursts of light and colour but can still "hear" them, so to speak.

[Walter.Horvath]

I must be thinking of something more intense (for lack of a better word), then. It was something similar that affects like 10 people currently...

[lanicita]

I must be thinking of something more intense (for lack of a better word), then. It was something similar that affects like 10 people currently...

Savantism, maybe?

[Senefen]

I don't know if this would be synesthesia or just brain cross firing.
Whenever I say or hear the word cube I have this sensation that I've just tasted something delicious. It's not a specific taste associated with it just a pleasant sensation. Just writing this down makes it sound even more weird.
Brain problems much?

Yep, you have it. That one's kind cool. Cube, cube, cube, cube. It'd suck if there was a common word that left a bad taste though.

G and F are green to me. A bit like this: G, F. All of the other letters have colors, but they're not very defined. 4 is green also.

I'm not a very strong Synestheseate (spelling?), and those are the only ones that I imagine clearly.

F is most defiently a dark red to me, I'll give you G though.

While we're at it
Science
Math
Reading/English
Social Studies <-this one is quite weak though

[Cold]

I can smell some sounds, but only some. I will smell a loud buzzing noise for example as something like citrus. Very soft sounds(like winds) I sense as something sweet like syrup. I could get some more, but I can't remember anything right now and there isn't any sound.

A note: Most sound makes my nose itch. Not even kidding here.

[J the Ninja]

Yep, I have it. I have colors for all the days of the week, months of the year, and numbers, at least -0-9. Past that, it is mainly repeats (ex, 13 and 3, 30 are pretty much the same color.)

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

January February March April May June July August September October November December


You can sort of see a connection to the seasons with the months. (Yes, April is supposed to be two colors. January is a snowish-white color, mouse over it if you can't see it)

[kcr]

My understanding was that it's an actual hallucination, not just a mental image.

I do mentally assign colours to sound frequencies, but I think most people do that.

There is the type where you actually see it (I've forgotten the exact name) and then there's associative synesthesia. You don't actually hallucinate, but, for example, you KNOW that the letter A is red. It's a quality of the letter as real as its shape or the way its pronounced.

[TheNextCaesar]

I wish I had it. As far as I know, the only way for me to get it without it being genetic would be through an overdose of hallucinogenics, which I don't feel like doing.

[Mr Jack]

I don't really have it, but when my friend tells me about what colours the days of the week are, I understand what he means.

[Manial]

I don't know if this would be synesthesia or just brain cross firing.
Whenever I say or hear the word cube I have this sensation that I've just tasted something delicious. It's not a specific taste associated with it just a pleasant sensation. Just writing this down makes it sound even more weird.
Brain problems much?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aGDCE6Nrz0

[DrStalker]

I often hear music and instictively visualise it as patterns of light in a 3D space. The various visualisation plugins for audio players like winamp are a poor reflection of what I see; I gave up using such visualisations because they were never right, and always felt like they were getting things wrong and lagging behind the music.

It doesn't happen for all music, but I tend to prefer tracks where it does... something where there are "layers" to the sounds, and varying patterns. I've never actually checked to see if that counts as synesthesia, so I'm just going to pretend it does because it sounds like a fun thing to have


And an amusing synesthesia anecdote: I used to know a girl who saw numbers as colours; always the same colour for the same number. Her mother also did the same thing... but they'd argue over what colour specific numbers were because they each had a different colour -> number mapping.

[electronic mily]

There is the type where you actually see it (I've forgotten the exact name) and then there's associative synesthesia. You don't actually hallucinate, but, for example, you KNOW that the letter A is red. It's a quality of the letter as real as its shape or the way its pronounced.

Yes, to clarify mine, the actual written letters really have nothing to do with it. Sounds only, and as far as I know I don't actually hallucinate anything, except for the sound-flash thing I mentioned. Though the other kind is pretty nifty because it actually happens before you understand what you're looking at - like the lovely 5-2 test here - which I think is pretty cool.

[_Big_Mac_]

On a slightly related note: does anyone else get the thing where hearing a loud unexpected noise causes you to see a flash of light? I've talked to other people who get it too, and I wondered just how common it actually is.

I've heard that it's quite common, yes. I don't have this though.

[Dromtry]

None of this is anything like what I have.

Whenever I hear music, my fingers fing along with the music as if they were pressing the keys on a sax. And it's not just when I hear a sax, I can single out any instrument and go along with it.

If I lay my hands flat on a table and have someone hold them down, when I listen to music I become tone deaf.

[H.E.L.e.N.]

I made this years ago and it's really imperfect, because it's hard to match up mental-colors with colors-on-a-screen.

Spoiler:

Letters/numbers/days of the week, months far less strongly, some associations with subject matter like people were mentioning (philosophy as an academic discipline is black because logic). Most words take on the colors of their first letter unless they have a good reason not to; I resented the turn of the century for a long time because 1998/1999 was a nice black-background with orangey-red tones, and the 2000s had waaaaaay too much white and yellow, as concepts they felt shallow.

[Esperite]

I guess what I do isn't considered synesthesia then. But I still think it's cool =).
Interesting poster H.E.L.e.N.

['; DROP DATABASE;--]

On a slightly related note: does anyone else get the thing where hearing a loud unexpected noise causes you to see a flash of light? I've talked to other people who get it too, and I wondered just how common it actually is.

I've heard that it's quite common, yes. I don't have this though.

I get this only if I have my eyes closed and am concentrating deeply or falling asleep.

I often hear music and instictively visualise it as patterns of light in a 3D space. The various visualisation plugins for audio players like winamp are a poor reflection of what I see; I gave up using such visualisations because they were never right, and always felt like they were getting things wrong and lagging behind the music.

It doesn't happen for all music, but I tend to prefer tracks where it does... something where there are "layers" to the sounds, and varying patterns. I've never actually checked to see if that counts as synesthesia, so I'm just going to pretend it does because it sounds like a fun thing to have


And an amusing synesthesia anecdote: I used to know a girl who saw numbers as colours; always the same colour for the same number. Her mother also did the same thing... but they'd argue over what colour specific numbers were because they each had a different colour -> number mapping.

This, only with a certain type of sound. I have no idea what you'd call it (shows up often in techno, and is awesome), but I could cut out a sample if anyone cared.

[MadParrot]

heh, Not really, but wikipeadia says I do So it must be true, lol.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synesthesia#Number_form_synesthesia
Not the colours/sound sort, rather just having numbers in a pattern relative to each other. Particularly 12 and 21, I'm not hugely mathematical, I have trouble adding up scrabble scores, so don't know where it comes from.
1..10 go in a nice line.
11 is above 1 and 12 is above that. (the strongest part)
13..20 continue along in a line
21..100 are written on their side in a big 9x10 square
Lots more vauge squares and columns up to the billions.
And -273 is all by itself in the lower right.

Sort of like associating songs with locations you hear them (not really synethesia, ). e.g. intersections, public loos, various isles of a shop I worked in, friends places, backyard closeline. I have a song for a toilet in tasmania :\ Doesn't everybody?

[JBJ]

On a slightly related note: does anyone else get the thing where hearing a loud unexpected noise causes you to see a flash of light? I've talked to other people who get it too, and I wondered just how common it actually is.

I've heard that it's quite common, yes. I don't have this though.

I get this only if I have my eyes closed and am concentrating deeply or falling asleep.

This happens to me quite frequently. It seems to be pretty common. It's often referred to as Exploding Head Syndrome. (Coolest syndrome name EVER!)

[electronic mily]

This happens to me quite frequently. It seems to be pretty common. It's often referred to as Exploding Head Syndrome. (Coolest syndrome name EVER!)

While that sounds pretty interesting (not to mention Coolest Name Ever), it doesn't seem to be quite what I was thinking of. I'm thinking more of a visible flash in response to an actual sound, not one that actually originated inside my head. Slamming doors, for instance, manifesting as a flash as if the lights have been suddenly turned up high. It does tend to happen to me more at night, though possibly this is just more visible because it's not light already.

[animeHrmIne]

This happens to me quite frequently. It seems to be pretty common. It's often referred to as Exploding Head Syndrome. (Coolest syndrome name EVER!)

Whoa, I have the most awesome syndrome in the world! Still annoying that happens all the time, but whatever. It has a cool name!

Seriously, though, it kinda sucks. It's one thing to constantly hear something that sounds like the mosquito ring tone, but when you couple that with the rushing, plus the waves, plus the thunder, and have it happen almost daily, it really sucks.

ETA: I've always thought synaesthesia was interesting, but I don't have it at all, except for movement and sound, which dosen't really count. You're supposed to feel the music moving in different directions, it's part of how it's made.

[fyrenwater]

Music sometimes brings up smells for me. Metal and alt. rock smell like slightly burnt coffee. Pop songs rarely smell like strawberry Jolly Ranchers. Trance occasionally smells like Old Spice. Not sure which specific scent, though. Basically it smells like the Old Spice deodorant scent my trance-loving friend uses. Oh God, and SexyBack smells like Axe/Lynx. I'm glad it only pops up when I hear the song in high quality and not from people singing or cellphone ringtones.

Besides the trance, there's no connection between anything else. It appears to be specific snippets of the music that trigger the smell. It's faint, like a scent blowing in from the window, then disappears just as softly.

On a related note, I find metal really good for all-nighters, both for the stimulating music and the coffee smell. XD

[DrStalker]

This happens to me quite frequently. It seems to be pretty common. It's often referred to as Exploding Head Syndrome. (Coolest syndrome name EVER!)

I've never really thought about it before but occasionly (every few months) while drifitng off to sleep I'll suddenly startle and jerk awake. I'm sure there is a sound associated with this, but it's less like an actual sound and more like I drempt a really loud sound... sort of. It's rather hard to focus on why I awoke, just that something sudden and unexpected woke me.

I didn't realise that not only is this a recognized syndrome, but it has an awesome name to go with it!

[SecondTalon]

ETA: I've always thought synaesthesia was interesting, but I don't have it at all, except for movement and sound, which dosen't really count. You're supposed to feel the music moving in different directions, it's part of how it's made.

Er... what? Like, stereo or...am I missing something again?


So, anyone else feel like they have the opposite, more or less? That somehow your senses are working at half capacity, at best? Just me? Alright...

[JBJ]

This happens to me quite frequently. It seems to be pretty common. It's often referred to as Exploding Head Syndrome. (Coolest syndrome name EVER!)

While that sounds pretty interesting (not to mention Coolest Name Ever), it doesn't seem to be quite what I was thinking of. I'm thinking more of a visible flash in response to an actual sound, not one that actually originated inside my head. Slamming doors, for instance, manifesting as a flash as if the lights have been suddenly turned up high. It does tend to happen to me more at night, though possibly this is just more visible because it's not light already.

I think that what you're describing is mentioned in the article as a "visual sleep start."

I'm pretty sure the two are related. I have experienced both. The visual sleep start often happens in a very relaxed state bordering on sleep, and happens quite frequently. It's usually triggered by a sudden noise, such as a door closing, the house settling, or a cat running full steam into a wall. I'll hear the noise itself accompanied by a visual flash. Usually fuzzy-static like, sometimes lines, sometimes concentric circles. Mine are mostly purple or white. The color or pattern depends on the type and intensity of the sound. A low thud causes one pattern, a sharp crack produces another, and so on. In addition to hearing the trigger sound, there's also an internal sound like a sharp static whip-crack. This visual sleep start happens to me all the time.

The exploding head syndrome is different in that there's no external stimulus. The sound is similar to the sharp static whip-crack, but is prolonged. But usually not more than a second or two. The visual flash is almost always expanding concentric circles or expanding bubble shapes. I get these when I am very fatigued and they come in waves. Usually two or three in quick succession at the start, then they dwindle off in pairs and singles after a while. I rarely get them while sleeping. I think maybe 4 or 5 times total in my life. These stand out because for me they tend to last a lot longer than a second or two if I get them while sleeping. These feel like they last 20, 30 seconds or more. There's also a tightness in my chest, and also a feeling of anxiety. The fatigue induced ones don't cause this, but the sound and feeling is exactly the same.