"yeah, "weird experience" and "view"-ing dreams is matching my (also aphantasia & SDAM) experience, most times don't remember the dreams. Below is what I wrote down trying to explain the last time: 'Like a story, where you're part of ("living" it, often in sequences of connected short "scenes", world is this gray/shadowy flexible backdrop, sometimes being more than one character), but also another part a mix of author/storyteller (but mostly without (conscious) control, and without a "voice", more like supplying but also experiencing(?) the words/content of what is spoken between characters. There are no faces, but a strong feeling, who is/represents who as persons, etc.' Also, "living" is maybe the wrong word. More a weird mix of 3rd person (viewing/hearing what happens) with a 1st person (identifying/thinking as your character(s)) twist?"

"Omg, I feel like I could’ve written this!"

"hi! i came across this article by chance, and it really resonated with me. i don't have "full" aphantasia, and i am not sure i have "full" SDAM if it applies, but a lot of the struggles you detailed are things i related to. especially when you said that your "memories" or "recollections" of things felt like they were constructed from other people's stories, and that they weren't really yours—i feel this way about my whole childhood, even though i can "imagine" the memory to a point where it feels right. as much as i can within my limitations, anyway. it's all always a bit blurry, some things more than others, worse the less i remember it. and trying to imagine things like an apple is always hard for me, lol."

"My wife says that my aphantasia/SDAM explains a lot about me. I've developed the ability to "fake" empathy, but that was really a response to people saying I was "cold." I don't hold on to mementos and don't experience nostalgia like most people. When I first learned about other SDAM folks' experiences they resonated strongly with me. It's comforting just knowing that there are other people like me."

"Maybe we need to look at SDAM as being on a spectrum as well. I also have a fantastic memory, when it comes to numbers / certain facts / video game trivia. As far as personal recollection goes, I seem to not be able to recall most decade-old or prior memories without getting specific cues from others - and even then I would only be able to recall the facts, not the emotions or any imagery."

"Not quite, my friend. I have aphantasia and I definitely have SDAM, but I have an internal dialogue and I can hear songs in my head, but only when I want to. Actually, it's relaxing because I talk to myself constantly. From the simplest things to deep technological concepts or philosophical considerations."

"Just this morning I saw a YouTube short discussing aphantasia. Never heard of the term beforehand but was slightly awestruck because it described something as a neurological condition which I thought to be completely normal. I think it’s been like this for me all my life but looking at the SDAM symptom description in addition to what I just learned, I couldn’t be entirely sure, since my childhood and most of my twenties are more or less a blur - I am in my thirties now. Thank you for the well executed write up and attention grabbing title!"

"I learned I had Aphantasia a few years ago, by accident, as most probably do. I thought it explained everything until I started noticing SDAM being mentioned a lot in the same breath as Aphantasia. So I googled it today and found this! Indeed, SDAM adds another, deeper layer and I found myself nodding with every challenge you revealed. There is nothing here that does not describe my own experience - most especially how friendships and grieving (+guilt) work. I have found memoir useful in exploring my past experiences if I write in first person AND present tense. Yes, I often have to synthesize details, feelings, senses. Sometimes it feels like making my past into fiction, but it is helpful for me. Sadly, I have had many bad experiences in life and they stick better in my memory than the good ones - reminiscing with people can be unpleasant because of this. Perhaps, though, this is what keeps me living in the present. One thing I have observed is that I remember people , places, events, and things better if there are photos. This freezes a moment in time and gives me the ability to re-view it over time and synthesize it into my memory. Aphantasia further complicates memory in that all my memories are translated into data and stored that way. I have really good facial recall - I never forget a face - but they are stored as data, not images, so it gets weird. BUT if I have a picture of someone - or even if I once had or saw a picture of someone, that data sticks in my storage better than in-person, live data, so I often think of people as they appeared in the photo, not as they now appear. I'm sorry if that was oddly explained - I just meant to say that perhaps taking a lot of photographs may be helpful IF you want to better remember things - even though you, like me, have a blind mind's eye. I can often look at a photo I took and remember at least what I was thinking at the time, sometimes even what music was playing - if not what I felt - but it helps me guess a little. :)"

"I only found out about anaphasia a short while ago when one of my sons was talking about it (one has it, two don't). I had the same kind of reaction as most mention. I am still processing how it has affected my life and that of those around me. It certainly makes sense of a lot of the things I 'can't do' that many can. Navigating for example, I see a sign whilst approaching a roundabout which shows me which way to go, but once I pass it I am clueless again - drives my husband nuts. And now you have given me SDAM to process too. I have felt such guilt when people recall the intricate details of their childrens formative years. Maybe its time to let that go."

"wow! I'm blown up. I can relate entirely with what you are describing. I'm a total aphant (discovered one year ago), I am hyper-sensitive, and thought I've had some sort of amnesia all my life. Now I can connect thoses things together, being aphant and SDAM. I've been working as an independent for many years now, live alone, I have left my home country. I've been struggling a loooot to keep my work on trail, to connect with others, to make friends as I do forget and repeat the same mistake or remember like now after 2 years: wow, i'm hyper-sensitive! I am wondering if there are aphant (&SDAM) community that meet online to share, and connect? please reach to me if, I'd be very supportive to me I guess. [email protected] Thank you so much Maarten for the article."

"yeah, "weird experience" and "view"-ing dreams is matching my (also aphantasia & SDAM) experience, most times don't remember the dreams. Below is what I wrote down trying to explain the last time: 'Like a story, where you're part of ("living" it, often in sequences of connected short "scenes", world is this gray/shadowy flexible backdrop, sometimes being more than one character), but also another part a mix of author/storyteller (but mostly without (conscious) control, and without a "voice", more like supplying but also experiencing(?) the words/content of what is spoken between characters. There are no faces, but a strong feeling, who is/represents who as persons, etc.' Also, "living" is maybe the wrong word. More a weird mix of 3rd person (viewing/hearing what happens) with a 1st person (identifying/thinking as your character(s)) twist?"

"Omg, I feel like I could’ve written this!"

"hi! i came across this article by chance, and it really resonated with me. i don't have "full" aphantasia, and i am not sure i have "full" SDAM if it applies, but a lot of the struggles you detailed are things i related to. especially when you said that your "memories" or "recollections" of things felt like they were constructed from other people's stories, and that they weren't really yours—i feel this way about my whole childhood, even though i can "imagine" the memory to a point where it feels right. as much as i can within my limitations, anyway. it's all always a bit blurry, some things more than others, worse the less i remember it. and trying to imagine things like an apple is always hard for me, lol."

"My wife says that my aphantasia/SDAM explains a lot about me. I've developed the ability to "fake" empathy, but that was really a response to people saying I was "cold." I don't hold on to mementos and don't experience nostalgia like most people. When I first learned about other SDAM folks' experiences they resonated strongly with me. It's comforting just knowing that there are other people like me."

"Maybe we need to look at SDAM as being on a spectrum as well. I also have a fantastic memory, when it comes to numbers / certain facts / video game trivia. As far as personal recollection goes, I seem to not be able to recall most decade-old or prior memories without getting specific cues from others - and even then I would only be able to recall the facts, not the emotions or any imagery."

"Not quite, my friend. I have aphantasia and I definitely have SDAM, but I have an internal dialogue and I can hear songs in my head, but only when I want to. Actually, it's relaxing because I talk to myself constantly. From the simplest things to deep technological concepts or philosophical considerations."

"Just this morning I saw a YouTube short discussing aphantasia. Never heard of the term beforehand but was slightly awestruck because it described something as a neurological condition which I thought to be completely normal. I think it’s been like this for me all my life but looking at the SDAM symptom description in addition to what I just learned, I couldn’t be entirely sure, since my childhood and most of my twenties are more or less a blur - I am in my thirties now. Thank you for the well executed write up and attention grabbing title!"

"I learned I had Aphantasia a few years ago, by accident, as most probably do. I thought it explained everything until I started noticing SDAM being mentioned a lot in the same breath as Aphantasia. So I googled it today and found this! Indeed, SDAM adds another, deeper layer and I found myself nodding with every challenge you revealed. There is nothing here that does not describe my own experience - most especially how friendships and grieving (+guilt) work. I have found memoir useful in exploring my past experiences if I write in first person AND present tense. Yes, I often have to synthesize details, feelings, senses. Sometimes it feels like making my past into fiction, but it is helpful for me. Sadly, I have had many bad experiences in life and they stick better in my memory than the good ones - reminiscing with people can be unpleasant because of this. Perhaps, though, this is what keeps me living in the present. One thing I have observed is that I remember people , places, events, and things better if there are photos. This freezes a moment in time and gives me the ability to re-view it over time and synthesize it into my memory. Aphantasia further complicates memory in that all my memories are translated into data and stored that way. I have really good facial recall - I never forget a face - but they are stored as data, not images, so it gets weird. BUT if I have a picture of someone - or even if I once had or saw a picture of someone, that data sticks in my storage better than in-person, live data, so I often think of people as they appeared in the photo, not as they now appear. I'm sorry if that was oddly explained - I just meant to say that perhaps taking a lot of photographs may be helpful IF you want to better remember things - even though you, like me, have a blind mind's eye. I can often look at a photo I took and remember at least what I was thinking at the time, sometimes even what music was playing - if not what I felt - but it helps me guess a little. :)"

"I only found out about anaphasia a short while ago when one of my sons was talking about it (one has it, two don't). I had the same kind of reaction as most mention. I am still processing how it has affected my life and that of those around me. It certainly makes sense of a lot of the things I 'can't do' that many can. Navigating for example, I see a sign whilst approaching a roundabout which shows me which way to go, but once I pass it I am clueless again - drives my husband nuts. And now you have given me SDAM to process too. I have felt such guilt when people recall the intricate details of their childrens formative years. Maybe its time to let that go."

"wow! I'm blown up. I can relate entirely with what you are describing. I'm a total aphant (discovered one year ago), I am hyper-sensitive, and thought I've had some sort of amnesia all my life. Now I can connect thoses things together, being aphant and SDAM. I've been working as an independent for many years now, live alone, I have left my home country. I've been struggling a loooot to keep my work on trail, to connect with others, to make friends as I do forget and repeat the same mistake or remember like now after 2 years: wow, i'm hyper-sensitive! I am wondering if there are aphant (&SDAM) community that meet online to share, and connect? please reach to me if, I'd be very supportive to me I guess. [email protected] Thank you so much Maarten for the article."