Anybody else here have Synesthesia?

[TJ's Rodent Ranch]

So, interesting thing, today I found out that I have synesthesia. 
It's widely known, but its name isn't, so I'll explain it (you'll probably recognize it). Synesthesia is when someone hears colors, or sees music, even sometimes smells through pictures. However, there are several different kinds. Some people only have a connection between sight and music, and it has nothing to do with smell, but they can hear colors, and see music. As far as I understand, that's the most common. For some people, though, they might have a connection between sight and music but they can't really see music, and can only hear colors. The rarest of the three (Sight, Sound, Smell) is smelling pictures. Another form of overall Synesthesia is projectile instead of normal Synesthesia (thankfully nothing to do with vomiting) the projectile form is when someone doesn't just sense it or see it in a sort of 'behind the eyes' way, but sees it as if someone physically put a piece of paper in their face when they see music, or as if someone actually plays a note in their ear when they hear color. That's very rare, and thankfully, I don't have that (imagine the chaos, lol). 
The form of Synesthesia that I have is all three senses, but my sight to sound/sound to sight is a bit weaker than sight to smell/smell to sight.
I know one other person who also has Synesthesia (he's my conductor, so we're surrounded a lot by music, making it easy to discover this, lol) and before I found that out about him, it was very interesting to see how similarly we thought. 

Anyway, I was thinking about the fact that thinking alike really was true with us, and I wondered if anyone on here also had Synesthesia and might be able to share some of their own experiences with it.

[Markpd]

I've read about this from time to time for some years now in New Scientist, fascinating stuff!
The most recent article I recall reading was that apparently it helps in remembering new things.

[Catastrophic]

I don’t know if this counts, but when I think about numbers, letters, words, places, and music, I kind of see the colours in my head like 130 is bright purple, and Germany is green, and the word carpet is grey and so on.

[Markpd]

In my very inexperienced view, sounds like it!

[TJ's Rodent Ranch]

Yes, by what I've seen that's a form of it.
I've always wondered kind of the workings behind it, besides just there being extra connections in the brain.
And it's interesting because the word carpet also looks brown to me (although Germany looks orange) but of course it's different for everyone so it's hard to chalk up an exact answer.

[betty]

I want to say 'cool' here - but is it actually cool - or is it so everyday to you that you didn't even think other people weren't seeing/hearing the same?

[TJ's Rodent Ranch]

How I originally found out was regarding my conductor that I mentioned above. He mentioned Synesthesia, and explained exactly what it is.
For me, that's how I perceive things everyday, and honestly I thought that's how everyone perceived things. It was cool when I found out, but it didn't really change anything for me, it kind of just gave me a label for something that I already had.

I guess it would be as if someone was blind but didn't know that it was any different than anyone else, and then they found out that they were blind. It wouldn't affect them at all, it would just give them something to call it.

[betty]

Exactly that - that was why I was asking - because I recently heard people saying that they can't hear a voice to their own thoughts. Like there is no sound in their heads for what they are thinking.

I still find it a bit strange to think of how they read books in their head?


Also, I was asking as there is the chance that perhaps you would have discussed a color for something outloud before and just got a confused look off someone else and maybe didn't register it properly because, of course, for you that would seem like THEY were the one that was different. All very interesting to run the concepts through your head: the process of others understanding of our inside things without either party known there is anything to even ask about.

[TJ's Rodent Ranch]

Topics like this are an interesting one, because it's rather strange to think that we all perceive the world- the most basic facets of the world, even, such as sight or sound so differently. We can describe them all we want and think that we understand them, but we will never truly be able to perceive how another person sees the world.
Rather fascinating, and something I've thrown around a lot before. It makes me wonder how anyone figured out what a 'normal' (I guess as much as someone can) brain is like, when everyone sees so differently and may not even know that they're seeing differently.

It's interesting that you say that, because I have tried to describe the fact that I don't hear a voice for my thoughts. I don't claim to say it's the same thing, but when I think of something, come up with an idea, read, etc, I don't hear a voice other than just... I don't know how to describe it. Imagine how if you only spoke English and went to Japan. Until you learned Japanese, you would think in English and translate what you did know of Japanese to Enlish over in your head. Now just imagine that you don't speak any language, and translate English over in your head to just information, and no language.
I wonder if these two things could be connected? Either way, I often read aloud to myself (basically just sounding out the words without actually making sound) because it allows me to imagine the characters actually saying the things they do. When I sound out the words, I often can imagine my own voice filling in those gaps, which I suppose is what it would be like to hear a voice for your thoughts?

By the way, I've been much less active on here for the past week, especially in the main areas beyond the photo contest/games board/chit chat. My month has been insane both physically and emotionally. Thankfully, it's mellowing out now so I hope to be able to be more active soon!

[betty]

Weirdly, when I mouth out the words, I can't hear my voice head as well as usual.

Also, when I am hearing myself read in my head, I noticed that I don't have the intonation or character/accents that I would do if I were reading aloud. I can put them on - but it seems a huge effort - much more of an effort than doing the accents out loud.

So, if you WERE thinking of how to conjugate 'we have' in spanish or 'I can' in french - how do you go through the options if you can't hear the options in your head? I usually sing through the options to get to the right one.