Lack of mental imagery

[Elizabeth]

Hello all,

I have dyspraxia and also have an almost complete lack of "mental pictures". I cannot see anything clearly in "my mind's eye", even my husband or late mother's face. I do not have the ability to "see" anything when I am reading a book, which I gather other people can do.

Please can you tell me if any of you also have this difficulty, as I feel it may be connected with my dyspraxia (an inability to use left and right brain together coherently?)

Many thanks, Elizabeth

[nickye]

Hi Elizabeth
I'm really interested to see your post, because I find it hard to picture things in my mind, and if someone asks me to describe a room even after I've just come out of it, I can't. But I can remember lots of conversations I've had years ago. When I was doing a childcare college course they said about different ways of learning - visual, auditory and kinaesthetic (not sure if the right spelling - means practical, doing way of learning). I came out as much more auditory, which apparently is more unusual.

I love reading and I get strong feelings about characters, but I always tend to "picture" things and places i already know, can't really conjure up something new, and it isn't clear as a picture.

It's been fascinating to come on this forum, because a lot of things I've always thought were unique to me are shared by other people, so I feel a lot better since joining!

It's weird because I'm often worried when I haven't seen someone for ages that I won't recognise them. Yet I always remember people's names, birthday, etc for years! I suppose we just all learn in different ways.

[Moot]

I kind of get that too. When I am reading I don't necessarily picture the whole situation in my mind; only perhaps a few bits. Remembering faces on command like that can make it harder to picture too. It's interesting that I could/can draw certain characters from memory but at the same time have difficulty picturing and remembering things.

[Roxy86]

I have always felt I have a strong photographic memory, even remembering exact conversations by closing my eyes and imagining the room I was in at the time but sometimes? I go into the fridge for example, look at the cooking time on something, go to put the oven on and think; 'what did that say?' even though I saw it there in black and white, just seconds ago!! lol!

I s'pose what I describe here has more to do with long term and short term memory, and lack of concentration. When someone asks me for a product on the shelf behind me I'll say 'Yes, of course' and understand EXACTLY what they have just asked for but I turn around, open the door and... the information has escaped me, completely gone!
At which point, I have to embarrass myself by then asking the customer again! lol!