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Mind
Do you have a problem visualizing an image in your mind? You may have something called “aphantasia” and it affects about 2% of the population. It breaks down pretty easily in Greek — “a” means “without”, and “phantasia” means “fantasy” or ‘imagination.”
Still don’t know what I mean?
Picture something simple like a red star.
Do you actually see it in your mind? Use the chart below. Which one do you see?
You do right? Well, some people, like my wife don’t. They just see the blackness of their mind. And it can cause some problems when trying mental exercises which require visualization.
One day, I had mentioned the Headspace meditation app to my wife. Meditation had helped me so I wanted her to try it and she eventually agreed. A lot of the meditation exercises require visualizing objects in your mind. There are many parts that tell you to visualize clouds or red balloons floating. She seemed puzzled and stopped after a few minutes.
“When they ask you to visualize red balloons, can you actually see them?”
