I see letters as colors...and the sounds associated with them. I can also feel where in my brain they seem to reside.
Certain sounds have weird tastes, usually something very distinct, like vinegar, or grapefruit, or that phony orang-y taste used to flavor candies.
I thought everyone had synaesthesia to some degree until I saw a special on PBS, and then I brought it up to my friends. They thought it was cool, as they knew more about it than I did, and kept asking me questions.
Metta, Jaye
I "see" colors in my mind's eye when listening to music and geometric shapes as well. I sometimes I have images of "moving through the universe", depending on the music. It's hard to explain.
Hmm... Sounds like when I form my own visualizers in my head when I listen to music and ignore the lyrics (The lyrics tell me stories, which I like to relate to my own characters) For example, the beginning of Evanescence's song Like you, I imagine a white space, with tall black structures at the sides with short propellers on them, and they slowly and slightly move from side to side. It's a little bit creepy, but I like it.
To me, letters have colors as well as personalities. Only when they are alone though. When part of a word the whole thing turns into a symbol. I'll try to describe the way I see the alphabet (this is the first time I've done so, so it's going to be weird):
A - Blue in color, responsible, strong leader (because it's first).
B - Red in color, friendly.
C - Yellow in color, doesn't like being in third place, sometimes irritable.
D - Brown in color, secretive, male.
E - Yellow in color, friendly, caring, knowledgable.
F - Greenish-brown in color, loyal, likes military-type stuff.
G - Green in color, a "tropical" letter (like it lives in a jungle).
H - Green in color, another "tropical" letter.
I - Green in color, another "tropical" letter.
J - Orange in color, responsible.
K - Purple in color, friendly.
L - Green in color, friendly.
M - Orange in color, female, motherly (because of "Mother")
N - Reddish in color, female child of M.
O - Black in color, male child of M.
P - Blue-green in color, youngest child of M, quiet.
Q - Red in color, adult, friends with M.
R - Blue in color, male, likes trains.
S - Red in color, an adult female friend of M.
T - Yellow, male, likes industrial stuff.
U - Purple-gray in color, male, "average guy".
V - Purple, female, artistic.
W - Yellow-orange in color, male, business-oriented.
X - Red in color, mysterious.
Y - Yellow in color, smart, "nerdy".
Z - Orange in color, a child, adventurous.
When I'm listening to music, different sounds have different colors.
that page hurts my head i cant look it all rushes </3
but i managed to read it.
i already know i have atleast a mild form of that "disorder' :>
its why im good at naming things.
Synaesthesia is a fascinating phenomenon. I most definitely do not have it.
Sometimes I think maybe the number 3 is kind of greenish, for example, but as I understand it synaesthesia is much more stable (i.e. the associations never change) and intense than that. By intense I mean, if for example you had the kind where you taste words, you would taste the words so strongly that the flavour would make you gag, or your mouth water, or your stomach to expect the food it thinks is in your mouth... depending of course on what you tasted. Furthermore, almost every word would have an association.
I think it would be neat to have, although it might get annoying sometimes. What if seeing your own name made you taste ear wax? What if the sound of your sweetheart's voice made you see a horrible colour that you hated, or smell a fart?
To me, letters have colors as well as personalities.
That is interesting Natalie. Are you familiar with Daniel Tammet? Numbers for him are represented by different shapes with colour, texture and motion. They also have sort of personalites that he responds to emotionally. Each number up to 10,000
There are video clips of him explaining this on youtube.
Yeah, I watched some National Geographic documentary on him last year (I think it was called like "Super Brains: Savants" or something). They had Tammet make shapes out of colored clay representing certain numbers, and then when they tested him again like a month later, he made the exact same shapes (proving he wasn't just making it up). My favorite quote from him is "289 is an ugly number".
Also, on all these shows about him they keep portraying him as a "normal guy" who happens to be a savant as well, but he does in fact has Asperger's. They mentioned it like once, but then you never hear anything more about it.
I thought it was interesting that one of the researchers testing Daniel Tammet has synaesthesia himself. Just not the same way.
Very cool illustrations. Thanks for sharing them
tones have emotions for me.
so i can repeat the same song over and over to explore one feeling i get that is attached to one tone.
even melodies as a whole do that aswell.
but usually i feel its "perfect" when the tones are "correct".
hard to explain.
A couple weeks ago I had Costochondritis (inflammation of the cartilage in the ribs), and I could only describe the pain as being "salty". I often think of aching pain as being sweet and sharp pain as being sour, but that was the first time I had salty pain.
does synaesthesia count when i close my eyes for a long time, I see colours come out of nowhere?
No I think that happens to everyone. Especially if you press on your eyes when they are closed - I've heard that stimulates the light-sensing cells in the back of the eye and causes the person to "see" colors.