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Back to all discussions
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Join the conversation and share your experiences with the community.

Start a Discussion
Discussion Guidelines

Please remember to:

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You're not alone

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Building awareness and understanding of aphantasia through research, education, and community support.

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  • What is Hyperphantasia?
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Internal monologue and Internal speech

1 min readByJosh Camden
I've wondered a lot about internal monologues and silent speech. It seems that a lot of the vocabulary pertaining to voices in your head are mostly synonyms. But i'm wondering if there is a difference between a System 1 monologue and a System 2 monologue. Its true, that if i think a word, that i can “hear” it in my head but thats the only type of voice in my head. From talking with others, it seems that some people have voices in their head that they don't directly control.
According to Google: System 1 monologue is fast, automatic, intuitive, and operates with little to no effort. System 2 monologue is slow, conscious, analytical, and requires intentional effort.
Based on this, i don't have a System 1 monologue. Some Aphants may be in a unique position, to have one but not the other. Someone who has both, may have difficulty telling them apart.
Please let me know what you think about the topic and if you have the Automatic, System 1 Monologue.

Internal monologue and Internal speech

1 min readByJosh Camden
I've wondered a lot about internal monologues and silent speech. It seems that a lot of the vocabulary pertaining to voices in your head are mostly synonyms. But i'm wondering if there is a difference between a System 1 monologue and a System 2 monologue. Its true, that if i think a word, that i can “hear” it in my head but thats the only type of voice in my head. From talking with others, it seems that some people have voices in their head that they don't directly control.
According to Google: System 1 monologue is fast, automatic, intuitive, and operates with little to no effort. System 2 monologue is slow, conscious, analytical, and requires intentional effort.
Based on this, i don't have a System 1 monologue. Some Aphants may be in a unique position, to have one but not the other. Someone who has both, may have difficulty telling them apart.
Please let me know what you think about the topic and if you have the Automatic, System 1 Monologue.
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Paulina Bartosiewicz•recently•edited
I have a hyperactive brain. I constantly have things happening in my head, see patterns, associations, get ideas or memories popping up. I don't know if it matters but my memories and things I imagine are quite vivid to me and almost visual - it's like looking at a white sheet of paper, seeing white paper but just knowing which part is snow, which a polar bear, which a snowman etc., knowing their 3D shapes, how it would be to touch them, attributes they have. I can realistically remember feelings in my body, emotions and movement. It's just without colours (even white and black) or words. I guess it's a type of phantasia which I have combined with thinking in concepts. There is a lot of information somehow packed in single concepts which I can process in less than a second. Many concepts and patterns go through my mind. What I see, hear or think about reminds me of other things. Words, just like images, are not a part of my system 1 thinking, so it's not a monologue at all as far as I know. I think with concepts and patterns when it's automatic thinking. My conscious and controlled thinking is both with concepts and patterns (I am good in maths and other abstract things, it feels the most natural to me) and with words. I find thinking with words annoyingly slow and less precise but I practise it a lot because when I think with concepts, I am not able to explain my thoughts to others. Inner monologues as a part of system 1 is a total abstract to me.
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Antonella Kauffman•recently•edited
I have both. I can recall past conversations and sometimes they replay in my mind even if I don't want them to. I can also rehearse a speech and edit it in my mind, rehearse a conversation or answers to interview questions. I hear music in my mind and ear worms are the worst! I have an amazing sound memory and can tell when it's slightly off. I find it annoying when I song is different than it's recording which make it difficult for me to enjoy concerts, unless I'm not that familiar with the music or the artist performs it the same on stage. It's weird.
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Neal White•recently•edited
I have both system 1 and 2. Sound is actually the only sense I can imagine. For example, I hear my thoughts as I compose this sentence. I also hear and remember songs and sounds, like the sound of a lawnmower or a door squeaking open. As for voices I can't control, here's an example: Whenever I wash my hands with a bar of soap, I remember my mom saying, "you need to pick up the soap, don't just rub your wet hands on it." The voice is hers, not "my internal voice". This is a memory of an actual event, not my imagination or a new conversation with voices in my head (which don't occur for me).
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