Being a 34-year-old autistic guy who faced burnout at my last job years ago, my social life has dwindled a bit even since then, where I only had a couple at most outside my immediate family. I really don’t get to talking to many people outside the internet. Now, I hope not to offend anyone in saying this, but a lot of content on youtube I’ve watched as an atheist would tend to lead me to questioning where these voices people hear in their heads come from, and if they are just somehow unaware that everyone has an internal monologue, never mind a full range if any and all voices they’ve ever heard, music, etc. Not exactly to do with phantasia but for me it was just one aspect in the way I’ve always thought, the other being extremely vivid pictures and movies all in my head as I’d daydream or even remember actual dreams for many years, never mind transporting myself to memories from my childhood or whatnot. I don’t remember exactly how many years ago it was when this happened, but learning some people just didn’t normally have voices in their heads I think was a gateway for me to learn of aphantasia as opposed to my own hyperphantasia. It just never occurred to me to ask anyone what they thought or how, and I have very particular memories as a young child where my thoughts would keep me up at night(still do now tbh) where my mother would tell me to picture myself on a calm beach with all the sensations that would being. I was able to do so with no problem and just never thought to ask about it. So learning of this and now this website sometime later, I’m hopeful that at least I can provide some perspective in exchange for others experiences as well.

Being a 34-year-old autistic guy who faced burnout at my last job years ago, my social life has dwindled a bit even since then, where I only had a couple at most outside my immediate family. I really don’t get to talking to many people outside the internet. Now, I hope not to offend anyone in saying this, but a lot of content on youtube I’ve watched as an atheist would tend to lead me to questioning where these voices people hear in their heads come from, and if they are just somehow unaware that everyone has an internal monologue, never mind a full range if any and all voices they’ve ever heard, music, etc. Not exactly to do with phantasia but for me it was just one aspect in the way I’ve always thought, the other being extremely vivid pictures and movies all in my head as I’d daydream or even remember actual dreams for many years, never mind transporting myself to memories from my childhood or whatnot. I don’t remember exactly how many years ago it was when this happened, but learning some people just didn’t normally have voices in their heads I think was a gateway for me to learn of aphantasia as opposed to my own hyperphantasia. It just never occurred to me to ask anyone what they thought or how, and I have very particular memories as a young child where my thoughts would keep me up at night(still do now tbh) where my mother would tell me to picture myself on a calm beach with all the sensations that would being. I was able to do so with no problem and just never thought to ask about it. So learning of this and now this website sometime later, I’m hopeful that at least I can provide some perspective in exchange for others experiences as well.