Comments on: I (still) don’t see anything when I close my eyes

By: Patrick

Patrick — Sun, 13 May 2012 04:23:10 +0000

Very glad I found this site. Now I can point to it and say “See, I’m not making this up!”

I saw a few people have mentioned that some other types of memory can be stronger to pick up the slack from not being able to visualize. For me, my memory is almost completely “factual”. Like everyone else here, I only see black when asked to visualize something, but I still just “know” what something should look like. This is also similar for other types of memory, such as taste, feel, smell, emotions. I can describe various things in terms of these senses, but can not mentally experience them abstractly. Strangely, the only exception to this is sound.

My question for the group is that out of the 1% or .001% that can’t visualize, are these other types of “sensory memory” also lacking, or is a case of a further .001% of the .001%?

By: Reyna

Reyna — Tue, 08 May 2012 01:16:58 +0000

You descibed me to a tee! only thing is I CANT see things in my dreams, also I have a hard time spelling. Grr

By: Janis

Janis — Tue, 01 May 2012 19:19:57 +0000

One more thing I LOVE photography I wonder if that is because I need to take photos to see my memories?

By: Janis

Janis — Tue, 01 May 2012 19:14:19 +0000

Finally, I found others similar to me! I can not visualize but I have a knowing or feeling of what things look like. I use to think I was a freak when someone would say visualize in your head and I was lost. If you ask me to describe my house I can do it down to the smallest detail but I do not see an image in my head, it is a knowing. My memory is very good and I have a very developed sense of smell and hearing. I will smell something and it will trigger memories but never a visualization. I rarely remember my dreams except nightmares.

When I was very young my teacher would read a book and she thought I was a genius when I read it back but she soon discovered I memorized the whole book as she read it to the class. I did very well in school. When I was in college as long as I heard a lecture once I did not have to study for exams and I rarely took notes. In fact I would usually confuse myself if I did study.

I have terrible spatial skills. I will duck if you throw a ball at me because 9 times out of 10 it will hit me. I can not pick the right size container for left-over to save my life, it is always too big or too small. The test of puzzles that are flattened images I am average at. I just did one online and here are my results “You are not too good at visualizing objects in your mind’s eye and aren’t too adept at mentally rotating figures.” LOL!!

I can not play scrabble, wheel of fortune or crossword puzzles because I can not see words in the mixed up letters or missing letters. I am not dyslexic as far as I know. I love reading! I usually have several books and magazines going at once.

I can not draw to save my life unless I am drawing an object right in front of me.

I have been called a “big idea” person, I can come up with ideas that are fresh, new and artistic but they are ideas …if that makes sense.

I have meditated for 20 years and love “just sitting,” but I hate guided meditations.

By: Tveit

Tveit — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:16:44 +0000

hm…I seem to also lack ability with visual imagination.

By: Stuart

Stuart — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 18:28:10 +0000

I can’t visualise. i mean anything, faces, colours anything, I close my eyes and just blank, I can’t picture what my wife or children look like.
I was diagnosed as being Dyslexic at university, I don’t know why I made the assumption that Dyslexia and not having the ability to visualise where very much linked.
I recently started reading books like “The Gift Of Dyslexia” and also I have spoken to many dyslexic people, and apart from one or two they all have the ability to visualise!!
This post is incredible for me, it’s given me a huge amount to think about, I don’t know if I feel like more of a freak or less!
I draw and make experimental music and find that because I have no ability to visualise and I don’t remember stuff short term I can reread books, particularly illustrated books like it’s the first time of reading them.
I weirdly only have to watch a film once to be able to recall and talk about shots and angles scene by scene, but I don’t visualise them I just recall technically what happens.

By: Shane

Shane — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 21:40:53 +0000

It is nice to see people coming here to tell their story. I don’t ask people if they can visualise as I do feel something is wrong with me, like I have a flaw. I do have a deep yearning to visualise, however everything I have tried so far has not been able to break through. I believe that I dream in colour but it is difficult to remember the imagery of the dream. I can remember fragments of the emotion or feeling, and fragments of the goings on in a dream. I want to break through. It must be possible. I have started trying the after image technique. I stand about 5 metres away from a car, in bright sunlight. Quickly open then close eyes, like taking a picture. The after image remains of the car for a second or two. It gives me hope that I can see something with eyes closed, but probably blind hope, as I expect that it is only visual residual simulation and not from the place in the brain that manifests inner vision pictures. But, it is novelty to see something with eyes closed.

By: Kris

Kris — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 22:11:40 +0000

Just currently I got very interested to Lucid Dreaming, though as for today I already fully gave up on the thought of having a Lucid Dream.
It is said that EVERYONE dreams, if that’s so then I cannot even remember 1% of my dreams. Everything is just pitch black, just like my imagination. I do have a few dreams in the morning if I fall asleep again after having slept for 7 hours or so. I can control these dreams but they are very vague, almost as close to being pitch black and they are from 3rd person.

Today me and my girlfriend were listening to Binaural beats that are supposed to be for meditating and relaxing etc. My girlfriend can daydream easily and also fall asleep within 3 minutes. I can listen to the whole clip of 1 hour while eyes closed and trying to relax but all I see is pitch black, nothing changes for me, I cannot even imagine a simple geometrical square. As for her, she was surprised when I told her that. She told me all she does is just close her eyes, listen to the Binaural beats and she starts to daydream within seconds and she can see everything very very clearly. She also remembers like 90% of her dreams and her imagination is just amazing.

I can draw from a picture – http://slashafkris.deviantart.com/art/Riki-289222028
I drew this from another fan art, I have done such things since young age. But when I have to draw from my head, the best I can do is probably a poorly drawn stickman.

I read that lot of you cannot visualize someone’s face. Same goes for me. I mean I can bring up the face for approximately 0.5 seconds but it’s as vague as can be and often not the image I wanted and it’s not possible to go into any detail at all. It’s just a tiny blurred vague picture for a split second.

To add, I don’t really have problems with numbers, maps, locations or other things like that. I rarely get lost. I somehow can think of the route in my head but I cannot imagine/visualize it. Seems like I just logically think of what it should be and then just follow it. I don’t know any other explanation to it.

To be honest, I thought it was normal for everyone to see pitch black when closing eyes. After finding out today, especially that my girlfriend and my friend can imagine things so clear and well, it just made me a little bit sad because I really want to experience that, apparently I think that affect lucidity as well so I have to give up on that too. I am only 20 so hopefully there is a way to overcome this issue or there’s a solution to train to see the images in your head.

I am really glad though that I am not the only one.

By: Mikki

Mikki — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 19:21:02 +0000

I don’t see anything either. I was just curious if you dream in color? I don’t. I also can’t really see faces very clearly most of the time when I’m asleep. I know who they are supposed to be but I can’t actually see them, if that makes sense.

I only recently found out other people COULD pictures things. I always thought it was weird when people said things like picture a beach in your mind. I thought ‘picture’ was a strange word. How could you possibly picture in your mind?! That’s silly! and then I found out I was the one that is completely backwards. My dad is the same way though so I assumed it was a genetic thing.

I’d be interested to learn more about how our brains differ from those who can clearly picture things but I have found very little scientific research on the subject. If anyone is looking for a test subject, I’m available

By: Shane

Shane — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 10:46:22 +0000

Hi, I read all the blog entries on this page. I too just see black when I close my eyes.
If I think about my house and the layout, I can sort of walk around the house in my mind, but I really don’t see anything, just black. But I sort of feel the existence of the parts of the house, like I know that the things inside the house are there, and can sense the layout, even though I can’t see a Damn thing.
Curiously enough, someone in a previous post mentioned the mumps, and I did have mumps when very young. I can’t recall if I have ever seen images in my mind. I dream sometimes, and I think I see in my dreams, but the visual recall is no good when awake. I would love to visualise images clearly and vividly in my mind. I sometimes get my left and right mixed up, like I will say right but go left.