Topic: Dreams

Do you dream with aphantasia? Navigating the realm of dreams with aphantasia presents a fascinating paradox. While most individuals with aphantasia do experience dreams, their dreamscapes often differ significantly from those who can visualize while awake. Aphantasics typically report dreams that are less frequent and sensory-rich. Intriguingly, some aphantasics are able to dream in visuals, yet find themselves unable to recreate these images in their waking state. Others experience dreams as a knowledge or awareness of sensory events, but without the accompanying mental imagery. This collection of resources delves into the unique intersection of aphantasia and dreams. It features community stories, engaging discussions, and research that shed light on how aphantasia influences the dreaming process.

Since 2015, "aphantasia" has reshaped our understanding of imagination, revealing that not everyone visualizes mentally. This discovery, along with "hyperphantasia," highlights the diverse nature of human imagination.
On rare occasions in the morning, between sleep and awake, when the images from my dreams float behind my eyes, that’s when I revel in what it must be like to “see” imagery.
What if we could see images in our minds while awake, just like we do when dreaming? A dream turned revelation changed this aphantasics life forever.
Discovering I have aphantasia at 46 was a revelation. How one aphantasic's journey led to serendipitous discoveries and unconventional paths.
September 19, 2024
Many a time I've tried to visualize, but I always see black. However, there is one particular setting when I can sometimes actually see images. When I...
August 25, 2024
I recently learned about aphantasia, and I think I have it but I'm not completely sure. I can visualize vivid images, with colors, when I dream (I'...
March 2, 2024
I am brand new to learning I have this. I was stunned. But it may explain something and I wondered about others. I have vivid, colorful, active dreams occ...
August 8, 2022
I just found out I’m Aphantasia and although it finally makes sense, it is scary. I have never been able to visualize stuff in my mind and this has als...
April 22, 2022
I recently discovered that I have Aphantasia and I am doing what I assume is the typical things when someone figures this out which is re-thinking my life an...
April 14, 2022
Taking fish oil, Coffeeberry…are to things I believe made me aware of it happening. Does anyone else do this it’s unnerving?  Kathy
March 31, 2022
As someone with anaphantasia I will always dream as if I’m reading a book or following a script. It’s kind of like there is a story going on and ...
September 23, 2021
I had a strange experience the other day. I was asleep and dreaming about something – I can’t remember what, my dreams tend to have a visual elem...
September 17, 2021
I’ve always wondered what other aphantasiacs experience when they daydream. I can only describe it as listening to an audiobook where every character i...
September 14, 2021
Hello everyone, It has only been a couple of months since I found out about aphantasia, and I have nothing but questions. Since I was young there have been p...
Researcher Alexander Sulfaro answers the community’s questions about 'Why Don't We Hallucinate Our Mental Images' in this live Q&A. Hosted by Tom Ebeyer.
April 20, 2023
Have you ever wondered why mental images aren't as vivid as real images? What's the difference between imagining something and hallucinating it? Alexander Sulfaro joins Aphantasia Network to discuss this and more.
April 20, 2023