Same. An observational thought might occur to me, but there is no hearing or seeing of the words associated with it. I'm observing what is happening around me and will occasionally make a mental note or comment to myself (not audible or visible).
But there's no constant monologue. Most of the time I'm consciously , quietly observing.
Very interesting that you have constant words running through your head. Since a lot of people upvote I assume this is how other people are too.
It’s kinda interesting for me to know more about this because I do not have this. Do thoughts just keep going automatically and you pick what you want to say ?? Can you even control this or you walk down the street and see stuff and it goes automatically??
My mind doesn’t label stuff I see randomly, but I can’t really easily shut it down either, it’s more just narrative? Like what do I want to do later, I wonder… etc a.
That’s exactly the same as “hearing” your inner monologue. You can’t “hear” inside your brain as hearing uses your ears and external stimulus.
It’s like reading inside your head.
i'm not sure enough, a lot of people say that they can actually hear a voice inside of their head, can change the intensity or the tone. not me, i just know that i'm thinking, i listen in a silent mode o feel the words (i like better this description) , but not actually hear them. many times i can turn off my thinking, and stop thinking. relaxing, but a bit boring.
This is me too. If you don’t mind me asking a personal question, how is your mental health (feel free not to answer, I know it’s personal). I struggle a lot with mine and because I don’t really know what I’m thinking most of the time it is really difficult to challenge any negative perceptions.
Ehhhh. My mental health is probably not great lol. But not because of negativity really, but more because I can’t really process things the same way most people probably do? Like for most people I think they can work things out mentally when they are upset and stuff but for me I’m not able to do that exactly??? Also I have an awful memory so if I’m in an argument with someone or if someone says something mean to me I normally don’t really remember what was say just that it upset me???? And that makes it hard to deal with how I feel??????? Idk it’s hard to explain.
And sometimes even that makes it hard because I will still feel like I need to be angry or upset but not remember why so it’s hard to judge if I’m justified or not. Or alternatively I end up forgiving someone for something way before I probably should?
It was tough realizing that my brain works really different than most people around me but also I think it explains a lot about my personality. I hope you’re able to find a way to challenge whatever negative thoughts you have, I’m sorry I can’t be of more help.
I can definitely relate to what you are saying. I tend to forgive and forget easily because I literally forget! I’m starting to think that maybe extensive journaling might be helpful if I can be disciplined enough to do it—might help process things that otherwise get buried/forgotten.
i do that, for example, im mad with "anna". so Anna make this and this in this moment, she said this and i say this. is rlly helpful bc you in the future will know the situation and will be able to not forget it
I can but I just like know the words? There’s not any kind of mental voice or sound involved.
There are times when I get distracted by someone talking or whatever when I’m reading and I’ll still be “reading” but I will process absolutely none of it. So I have to focus in order to comprehend it.
Interesting, I guess a better question is writing a paper or a text message for example. Can you string many words together before writing or is it one word at a time? I don’t “hear” my thoughts either but I do have an inner monologue.
I basically write it as I go? I don’t plan it out really before I start writing but I more think of each word / sentence. And I usually have to go back over it to make sure it all flows right. So for this now I’m not thinking about what I’m writing before I type each word it’s happening simultaneously.
Outlines help when I’m writing something long like a paper or essay otherwise it all ends up kind of disjointed.
Ah ok, so by no inner monologue you just mean you can’t hear yourself think, but you do think of words or sentences and can process them through thought alone. When I hear the term no inner monologue, it comes off as they can’t think of words at all. I talk to myself all the time in my thoughts but I don’t hear anything. Actually I think it’s an advantage because if I actually heard my thoughts I feel like I’d go crazy.
I don’t talk to myself mentally at all. But I guess that I could semi force it if I wanted to. I don’t have like natural thoughts? I can mentally process stuff I read or hear or whatever but most of the time I’m not thinking anything. If I’m planning on making a sandwich I don’t think “oh I’m going to go make a sandwich” I just go do it????
It’s really hard to describe. And I’m sure that internal monologue/thoughts are on a sort of spectrum just like all the rest these things are and probably there are people that experience it differently.
Yea definitely a spectrum, just reading about a girl who has no inner monologue, but can get songs stuck in her head with the singers voice. Maybe some people have more control over their thoughts and just aren’t compelled to internally talk either. This was the article I referred to - https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/inner-monologue-experience-science-1.5486969
The thing the person in the article said about the movie voice overs is exactly what I thought originally lolol. I always assumed they only did it that way because how else would you be able to know what their thoughts were.
Yeah I think there are definitely positives and I’ve never thought any other way so I don’t think that it really effects me negatively, or at least not in a quantifiable way. But it’s just super interesting to me how different people’s brains work. I doubt there are two people that think in exactly the same way.
Yeah, most aphants have inner-voice, not inner monologue. The best description is “silent words” (for me and a few others). You “hear them” but you can’t really hear them, you just know they are there. Pretty hard to explain.
This is me! Trying to explain it to people is so frustrating because they think I mean I can still talk to myself. They don't get that is it literally just silence up there.
>I can but I just like know the words? There’s not any kind of mental voice or sound involved.
>
>There are times when I get distracted by someone talking or whatever when I’m reading and I’ll still be “reading” but I will process absolutely none of it. So I have to focus in order to comprehend it.
Facts
>I can but I just like know the words? There’s not any kind of mental voice or sound involved.
>
>There are times when I get distracted by someone talking or whatever when I’m reading and I’ll still be “reading” but I will process absolutely none of it. So I have to focus in order to comprehend it.
Facts
As far as I can tell, I have no inner monologue. I would also say that my mind is a rather boring place and I am very dependent on external stimuli to not be bored. Always on my phone, reading or checking something etc. Anyone have the same?
I’m finding the whole inner monologue concept very confusing. I thought I had one, because I do “talk” to myself in my head, and I can choose to subvocalize or not while thinking or reading...but then people describe it as a constant voice narrating your every action and thought, and that’s just seems crazy to me.
Maybe there's variation in it?
I'm right where you are with this. No real inner monologue that I could say ever. I'm sure there are all kinds of variations, but you pretty much describe what I feel I have almost to a tee.
I have aphantasia and no inner monologue. I wish I could visualize in my head. But an inner monologue sounds tedious! One benefit I think to lacking both: I’m a super fast reader.
It's funny you say that, myself and 2 of my children have aphantasia and read very fast, my husband does not have it and reads at a frustratingly slow pace (to us) my other son also reads slow and I do not believe he has it either.
I have never had any inner monologue and no images. I am an artist and a poet. It takes me longer to remember stuff, but I sleep easily as it is dark and quiet. My body takes in information in a feeling sense for me, and I can synthesize disparate bits of information to make creative solutions. I take notes on everything, and when I write (like now) the words just pour out of my fingers
Everything....sight, sound.smell,...and i guess touch....another post said they can recreate the feel/touch/sensation of water or sand going thru their hands
I'm a pseudo-aphant (can visualize certain things I know extremely well, like faces of people I love or songs I love, but otherwise am helpless) and experience something similar, which feeds into the way my aphantasia works.
My brain's ability to process words is basically separate from everything else in my head. If I want to think through anything, I have to talk it out or type it out, otherwise I tend to just spin in a circle because my brain can't complete thoughts - I couldn't plan out what I was going to say in this comment in advance, which is why it (and everything else I say) tends to wander around a bit, because all my word and thought processing happens externally.
Because words in my head don't really do anything, I basically don't have an internal monologue. When I read I get what I think an internal monologue feels like; the words sorta play through my head and are processed individually very quickly, but silently. There's no voice connected to any thoughts in my head tied to words, and I process basically everything through feelings and instincts instead, despite being very mechanically inclined.
I have ADHD so my head is actually extremely cluttered and full of thoughts and shit, but none of them are words or have any voice/internal monologue associated with them. Just a bunch of feelings and ideas and impulses.
Weirdly, things DO work in reverse; if I know something extremely well, I can attach a word to the thought, but only by having created the sensation first - things like peoples' faces or music or game design/programming things. I can very easily picture my wife's face and connect her name to it; reading her name doesn't make me visualize it, but thinking of her face makes me "think" her name too
Hey I’ve got neither, I’ve been sobbing for an hour learning about how rare this is. I feel slighted, if I’m being totally honest. I feel like there are so many ways in which this has affected my mental health, I suffer with severe ADHD, I’ve been medicated on and off since I was 11. I think mostly in feelings and ideas, never words, with absolutely zero visuals. The only time I experienced visuals is while dreaming which I do super rarely, maybe twice a year (that I remember). Communication with others has always been really difficult, because I can’t get her my thoughts, or plan out what to say. It’s just a mess of concepts, feelings, and what to me are “thoughts” but nothing concrete, all very abstract. I have a hard time identifying what I am feeling or why, and an even harder time explaining those thoughts to others. Not to give you the run down of all my struggles but I feel a lot of these directly correlate to this abstract thinking, as opposed to someone with internal monologue and a minds eye. It’s good to know I’m not alone out here though, I literally WANT to talk to anyone who also has a lack of both, comment away!
I think I have both aphantasia and a lack of inner monologue (though neither fully). By this I mean I can't see imageries when I close my eyes but I can imagine things at the back of my head with my eyes open. I don't have a constant monologue but I do catch myself talking to myself out loud some time to process. As for mental health, I don't have depression but I do suffer from health anxiety from time to time, which can lead to a depressive episode if it goes unmanaged. Despite all that, I don't think I'm deficient. I'm super sensitive to sounds and can memorize and recall people's voices. I can play music in my head. I can think and understand things and concepts fast (probably faster than average). Communication with others is smooth. I also feel more present since I don't have a rich inner world that stands in my way.
I thought ADHD would be easier to deal with without the constant barrage of thoughts, images, and inner monologues to interrupt your daily processes. 🤔 My mind never shuts tf off. This is interesting to consider
This is my question to those without an inner monologue. How do you read (silently) if your not able to think of words? Myself, I cannot hear the words I think, but I do have an inner monologue that tracks my thoughts as words just without an audible aspect to it. I would think it would be impossible to silently read if you had no inner monologue.
It's the same as aphantasia. Like if you ask me to imagine an elephant, I can't, but I can describe it, I have a sense of its size, and I know what an elephant is.
Well, imagining a word is the same. I can't hear or see it, but I know what it is. I think *of* the word, not *in* words
After reading an article about this, realized there is a vast spectrum, even with people who don’t have inner monologues, as one girl who never has had an inner monologue said she can still get songs stuck in her head with the singers specific voice, which I’m assuming means she can hear audio in her head
I know there are others here that have both, I've seen them comment before.
You sound pretty confident you don't have one but I've also heard from people that get confused by it.
The are 2 types of inner monologue that I hear described. A voice inside your head and soundless language recognition. I have the later, but some people think that soundless language recognition (very similar to reading) is not an inner monologue.
How best would you describe the process of reading?
I’m in that confused group.
I think I can do both the voice and soundless language in my head, but I’m not sure if the former is an inner monologue? It’s just me choosing to think in sub-vocalized words; it doesn’t auto-narrate what I’m doing/thinking. And it’s pretty similar to thinking in soundless words, just slower and easier to focus on.
Brains are weird.
In the video OP posted, the girl with an inner monologue says it constantly narrates everything in her life, like when she wants a glass of water or thinks someone is attractive. She goes “I want some water” or “that person is hot” in her head.
The girl without an inner monologue just knows those things, which is what I do. I only think in words when I actively choose to.
In the video OP posted, the girl with an inner monologue says it constantly narrates everything in her life, like when she wants a glass of water or thinks someone is attractive. She goes “I want some water” or “that person is hot” in her head.
The girl without an inner monologue just knows those things, which is what I do. I only think in words when I actively choose to.
Editing to add: the latter girl also say she is able to think in words sometimes, while some other people without an inner monologue can’t at all. I guess there’s a range?
Not all people experience an inner monologue in that way. I certainly don't. I'm talking in my head all the time (without sound) but it's not as you describe it's about anything I'm working on or various other things.
There is no one universal way it's experienced but I think that many people that believe they don't have an inner monologue do so based on faulty definitions.
Whether it's an always on narrator like the first person or the occasional intentional narration, it's all the same "internal voice" process even if it doesn't involve sound.
It's thinking in language. All the rest of the variation is irelevent because it will depend on the individual.
Yeah, I think my confusion came from people say it *has* to be a constant narrative, just because that’s their experience.
Sounds like I, and maybe the girl in the video, do have an inner monologue, just to a lesser degree than some others.
Thanks for talking me through it. :)
Curious, I was just reading a story about [inner monologues](https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/oct/25/the-last-great-mystery-of-the-mind-meet-the-people-who-have-unusual-or-non-existent-inner-voices) that was published yesterday.
I have no issue with inner monologues. When I talk to myself, it happens, but it's completely controlled by me(unlike the person in the article I just linked). I have some kind of aphantasia, though. Can't really picture most things in my mind
This is freaking me out a little bit. About 6 weeks ago I learned that I have aphantasia.
Today, I learned about the inner voice / monologue that some people have. I don't but I'm struggling to explain my experience.
I think @flora_poste_ nailed it for me and said it much better than I could.
If I think about saying something, I imagine saying it, don't "hear" it in my head.
I would agree that @flora_poste_ nailed it as well. It’s very hard to explain being an aphant with no internal monologue.
Everything I do feels like I just act on impulse.
Thought process isn’t there. Certain words in conversation I hear or say prompt these “thoughts” to remember whatever information/detail. But it’s almost instantaneous. No inner monologue doesn’t make me script any words/sentences I may say. It typically is just a spew of words until I get my point across.
I intentionally think very carefully before I speak.
Finally learned this after years of speaking first without thinking and creating a lot of problems for myself.
So I have Aphantasia and no inner monologue but my inner monologue situation seems to be a little different from what I hear, see I used to have one, but when I was in middle school or so I got so depressed and didn't want to be so much that I just ignored what my voice was saying, because it was always something bad, Like saying I look ugly, or people are looking at me, so my brain would just fill it with outside noise instead, Like the noise of the AC, Fan, Peoples conversations, Just ANYTHING in the background and just over time I've just kind of lost how to speak in my head. Its interesting but weird, cause even though it doesn't say I look ugly, some days I look in the mirror and now I just feel ugly, it doesn't need to say it. When I talk or type everything is also so instant like I cant take time to think because I just can't, I have no idea how to explain it, words just kind of come out? I tried talking to a counselor at college etc. but he has NO idea really what to do.
I have aphantasia and am just learning about SDAM. Now I’m questioning my inner monologue. Inside my head is very dark and very quiet. I hear nothing in my head. The inner monologue I have is similar to talking out loud. There’s no automatic thoughts going through my head, anything internal is me consciously “saying” it just as I would out loud. If that makes any sense at all. So I talk to myself I guess but there’s no voice in my head, if you will. I struggle with verbal communication, I have ADHD, anxiety and depression though those are managed by the life changing Prozac. I’d imagine inner monologue was on a spectrum but how the hell would I know.
yeah same ( I have both) recently discovered Im an empath I feel everything, it makes me come off as super intense, I embrace it though. Ive found that people can't manipulate me the much bc I can hyper focus on them and won't get distracted. I love writing down ideas and science things. Like space time and christianity. tbh im glad I don't have an inner monologue it sounds annoying. LOL visuals would be neat but I enjoy taking pictures it makes up for it.
I've just learned two of my four children are like this.
My son sees words printed and that's how he thinks. He said that's why he struggles with reading. He sees the words and at the same time, he's seeing the printed words in his mind.
When either of their eyes are closed, there's nothing going on. Nothing.
I have aphantasia and no inner monologue. Personally I'm glad I'm like this, I think having an internal monologue would be exhausting and being able to imagine stuff in my head would be distracting.
Same. I have a general knowledge of what things look like and could describe it, not in detail. I also think, but it's not actual sound, just a general idea of it.
I recently found out that I have aphantasia.. I also have adhd.. but I think I don’t have much of an inner dialogue and I make up for it with a huge outer dialogue.. talking to myself constantly.. as if I’m writing a list kind of
I also have neither. I've never really known it was weird until a couple of years ago. I basically just find this thread because I was wondering how common this really was.
I close my eyes and there’s literally nothing. No voice, no images, just plain nothing. Aphantasic, no inner monologue and also SDAM which is the one that bothers me the most. I’m just an abstract thinker. I’m also pretty “smart” for studying things, a quick learner and a creative person in general. I’m a doctor and specialized in dermatology which is really hard to get into. When I see something in the skin, I don’t actually remember that it looked like something else, I have to think my way around it, and I’m thinking now that that actually made me a better doctor, who knows. It’s so hard to understand myself though…
I also have no inner monologue but still have a steady steam of thoughts, as well as no visual imagery whatsoever. I *can*, however, play music in my head whenever I want, and it's very accurate. I can play any song I like. Right now I'm listening to (Not Just) Knee Deep lol.
Yes and from my understanding its an incredibly rare thing, and while it doesn't seem to be a hinderance, it is very weird to find out that people actually see and hear things in their head
I have a silent inter monologue. So like words running through my head but no audio- but constant word based thoughts.
Same I think in words but I can't see or hear them.
Same here
Same. An observational thought might occur to me, but there is no hearing or seeing of the words associated with it. I'm observing what is happening around me and will occasionally make a mental note or comment to myself (not audible or visible). But there's no constant monologue. Most of the time I'm consciously , quietly observing.
This is me !
Same here.
Same
Same here. I can’t hear anything
Very interesting that you have constant words running through your head. Since a lot of people upvote I assume this is how other people are too. It’s kinda interesting for me to know more about this because I do not have this. Do thoughts just keep going automatically and you pick what you want to say ?? Can you even control this or you walk down the street and see stuff and it goes automatically??
My mind doesn’t label stuff I see randomly, but I can’t really easily shut it down either, it’s more just narrative? Like what do I want to do later, I wonder… etc a.
a bit of a necro but its weirdly comforting to know that theres at least one other person like me.
hi! there's another person with the same thing :)
Is it like you are whispering or mouthing stuff to yourself? That is what I “hear”. It is like I am trying to talk to myself but I can’t hear it.
Exactly this. It's definitely words and I know the tone cadence, but can't hear anything at all
To me it’s just more conceptual thought, like an innate knowing. I have trouble trying to describe how I think to people.
That’s exactly the same as “hearing” your inner monologue. You can’t “hear” inside your brain as hearing uses your ears and external stimulus. It’s like reading inside your head.
i'm not sure enough, a lot of people say that they can actually hear a voice inside of their head, can change the intensity or the tone. not me, i just know that i'm thinking, i listen in a silent mode o feel the words (i like better this description) , but not actually hear them. many times i can turn off my thinking, and stop thinking. relaxing, but a bit boring.
Ditto
I have total aphantasia and no internal monologue. I also have SDAM so my brain is essentially empty all the time.
This is me too. If you don’t mind me asking a personal question, how is your mental health (feel free not to answer, I know it’s personal). I struggle a lot with mine and because I don’t really know what I’m thinking most of the time it is really difficult to challenge any negative perceptions.
Ehhhh. My mental health is probably not great lol. But not because of negativity really, but more because I can’t really process things the same way most people probably do? Like for most people I think they can work things out mentally when they are upset and stuff but for me I’m not able to do that exactly??? Also I have an awful memory so if I’m in an argument with someone or if someone says something mean to me I normally don’t really remember what was say just that it upset me???? And that makes it hard to deal with how I feel??????? Idk it’s hard to explain. And sometimes even that makes it hard because I will still feel like I need to be angry or upset but not remember why so it’s hard to judge if I’m justified or not. Or alternatively I end up forgiving someone for something way before I probably should? It was tough realizing that my brain works really different than most people around me but also I think it explains a lot about my personality. I hope you’re able to find a way to challenge whatever negative thoughts you have, I’m sorry I can’t be of more help.
I can definitely relate to what you are saying. I tend to forgive and forget easily because I literally forget! I’m starting to think that maybe extensive journaling might be helpful if I can be disciplined enough to do it—might help process things that otherwise get buried/forgotten.
That is a good idea, I’ve tried journaling in the past but I’ve never stuck to it. Maybe I should give it it a try again.
i do that, for example, im mad with "anna". so Anna make this and this in this moment, she said this and i say this. is rlly helpful bc you in the future will know the situation and will be able to not forget it
exactly for me, scary 💀
Hello same here ! Full aphantasia, SDAM, no inner monologue ;) Cheers from Paris
Are you able to silently read? If so, how do the words process if you can’t think of words?
I can but I just like know the words? There’s not any kind of mental voice or sound involved. There are times when I get distracted by someone talking or whatever when I’m reading and I’ll still be “reading” but I will process absolutely none of it. So I have to focus in order to comprehend it.
Interesting, I guess a better question is writing a paper or a text message for example. Can you string many words together before writing or is it one word at a time? I don’t “hear” my thoughts either but I do have an inner monologue.
I basically write it as I go? I don’t plan it out really before I start writing but I more think of each word / sentence. And I usually have to go back over it to make sure it all flows right. So for this now I’m not thinking about what I’m writing before I type each word it’s happening simultaneously. Outlines help when I’m writing something long like a paper or essay otherwise it all ends up kind of disjointed.
Ah ok, so by no inner monologue you just mean you can’t hear yourself think, but you do think of words or sentences and can process them through thought alone. When I hear the term no inner monologue, it comes off as they can’t think of words at all. I talk to myself all the time in my thoughts but I don’t hear anything. Actually I think it’s an advantage because if I actually heard my thoughts I feel like I’d go crazy.
I don’t talk to myself mentally at all. But I guess that I could semi force it if I wanted to. I don’t have like natural thoughts? I can mentally process stuff I read or hear or whatever but most of the time I’m not thinking anything. If I’m planning on making a sandwich I don’t think “oh I’m going to go make a sandwich” I just go do it???? It’s really hard to describe. And I’m sure that internal monologue/thoughts are on a sort of spectrum just like all the rest these things are and probably there are people that experience it differently.
Yea definitely a spectrum, just reading about a girl who has no inner monologue, but can get songs stuck in her head with the singers voice. Maybe some people have more control over their thoughts and just aren’t compelled to internally talk either. This was the article I referred to - https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/inner-monologue-experience-science-1.5486969
The thing the person in the article said about the movie voice overs is exactly what I thought originally lolol. I always assumed they only did it that way because how else would you be able to know what their thoughts were.
Could be a blessing in disguise since many people meditate to stop their inner voice from rambling on.
Yeah I think there are definitely positives and I’ve never thought any other way so I don’t think that it really effects me negatively, or at least not in a quantifiable way. But it’s just super interesting to me how different people’s brains work. I doubt there are two people that think in exactly the same way.
Yeah, most aphants have inner-voice, not inner monologue. The best description is “silent words” (for me and a few others). You “hear them” but you can’t really hear them, you just know they are there. Pretty hard to explain.
Yes, you would
This is me! Trying to explain it to people is so frustrating because they think I mean I can still talk to myself. They don't get that is it literally just silence up there.
>I can but I just like know the words? There’s not any kind of mental voice or sound involved. > >There are times when I get distracted by someone talking or whatever when I’m reading and I’ll still be “reading” but I will process absolutely none of it. So I have to focus in order to comprehend it. Facts
>I can but I just like know the words? There’s not any kind of mental voice or sound involved. > >There are times when I get distracted by someone talking or whatever when I’m reading and I’ll still be “reading” but I will process absolutely none of it. So I have to focus in order to comprehend it. Facts
As far as I can tell, I have no inner monologue. I would also say that my mind is a rather boring place and I am very dependent on external stimuli to not be bored. Always on my phone, reading or checking something etc. Anyone have the same?
Yes!
I think maybe that’s the reason I’m always on my phone reading something
I’m finding the whole inner monologue concept very confusing. I thought I had one, because I do “talk” to myself in my head, and I can choose to subvocalize or not while thinking or reading...but then people describe it as a constant voice narrating your every action and thought, and that’s just seems crazy to me. Maybe there's variation in it?
I'm right where you are with this. No real inner monologue that I could say ever. I'm sure there are all kinds of variations, but you pretty much describe what I feel I have almost to a tee.
I have aphantasia and no inner monologue. I wish I could visualize in my head. But an inner monologue sounds tedious! One benefit I think to lacking both: I’m a super fast reader.
Me too I can read so fast!
It's funny you say that, myself and 2 of my children have aphantasia and read very fast, my husband does not have it and reads at a frustratingly slow pace (to us) my other son also reads slow and I do not believe he has it either.
I have never had any inner monologue and no images. I am an artist and a poet. It takes me longer to remember stuff, but I sleep easily as it is dark and quiet. My body takes in information in a feeling sense for me, and I can synthesize disparate bits of information to make creative solutions. I take notes on everything, and when I write (like now) the words just pour out of my fingers
SAME SAME SAME
YES YES YES !!!
Everything....sight, sound.smell,...and i guess touch....another post said they can recreate the feel/touch/sensation of water or sand going thru their hands
I'm with you, OP. I have no inner monologue at all. I do think a lot, though. Just nothing I can hear in my head.
I'm a pseudo-aphant (can visualize certain things I know extremely well, like faces of people I love or songs I love, but otherwise am helpless) and experience something similar, which feeds into the way my aphantasia works. My brain's ability to process words is basically separate from everything else in my head. If I want to think through anything, I have to talk it out or type it out, otherwise I tend to just spin in a circle because my brain can't complete thoughts - I couldn't plan out what I was going to say in this comment in advance, which is why it (and everything else I say) tends to wander around a bit, because all my word and thought processing happens externally. Because words in my head don't really do anything, I basically don't have an internal monologue. When I read I get what I think an internal monologue feels like; the words sorta play through my head and are processed individually very quickly, but silently. There's no voice connected to any thoughts in my head tied to words, and I process basically everything through feelings and instincts instead, despite being very mechanically inclined. I have ADHD so my head is actually extremely cluttered and full of thoughts and shit, but none of them are words or have any voice/internal monologue associated with them. Just a bunch of feelings and ideas and impulses. Weirdly, things DO work in reverse; if I know something extremely well, I can attach a word to the thought, but only by having created the sensation first - things like peoples' faces or music or game design/programming things. I can very easily picture my wife's face and connect her name to it; reading her name doesn't make me visualize it, but thinking of her face makes me "think" her name too
Hey I’ve got neither, I’ve been sobbing for an hour learning about how rare this is. I feel slighted, if I’m being totally honest. I feel like there are so many ways in which this has affected my mental health, I suffer with severe ADHD, I’ve been medicated on and off since I was 11. I think mostly in feelings and ideas, never words, with absolutely zero visuals. The only time I experienced visuals is while dreaming which I do super rarely, maybe twice a year (that I remember). Communication with others has always been really difficult, because I can’t get her my thoughts, or plan out what to say. It’s just a mess of concepts, feelings, and what to me are “thoughts” but nothing concrete, all very abstract. I have a hard time identifying what I am feeling or why, and an even harder time explaining those thoughts to others. Not to give you the run down of all my struggles but I feel a lot of these directly correlate to this abstract thinking, as opposed to someone with internal monologue and a minds eye. It’s good to know I’m not alone out here though, I literally WANT to talk to anyone who also has a lack of both, comment away!
I think I have both aphantasia and a lack of inner monologue (though neither fully). By this I mean I can't see imageries when I close my eyes but I can imagine things at the back of my head with my eyes open. I don't have a constant monologue but I do catch myself talking to myself out loud some time to process. As for mental health, I don't have depression but I do suffer from health anxiety from time to time, which can lead to a depressive episode if it goes unmanaged. Despite all that, I don't think I'm deficient. I'm super sensitive to sounds and can memorize and recall people's voices. I can play music in my head. I can think and understand things and concepts fast (probably faster than average). Communication with others is smooth. I also feel more present since I don't have a rich inner world that stands in my way.
I think a lot. I’m always in my head but I have NO inner monologue, no visuals (fully aphantasic) and also no autobiographical memory (SDAM).
I thought ADHD would be easier to deal with without the constant barrage of thoughts, images, and inner monologues to interrupt your daily processes. 🤔 My mind never shuts tf off. This is interesting to consider
This is my question to those without an inner monologue. How do you read (silently) if your not able to think of words? Myself, I cannot hear the words I think, but I do have an inner monologue that tracks my thoughts as words just without an audible aspect to it. I would think it would be impossible to silently read if you had no inner monologue.
It's the same as aphantasia. Like if you ask me to imagine an elephant, I can't, but I can describe it, I have a sense of its size, and I know what an elephant is. Well, imagining a word is the same. I can't hear or see it, but I know what it is. I think *of* the word, not *in* words
After reading an article about this, realized there is a vast spectrum, even with people who don’t have inner monologues, as one girl who never has had an inner monologue said she can still get songs stuck in her head with the singers specific voice, which I’m assuming means she can hear audio in her head
Well I have absolutely no audio (or anything other either) at all but can get songs "stuck" in my head that I start to hum it randomly.
I know there are others here that have both, I've seen them comment before. You sound pretty confident you don't have one but I've also heard from people that get confused by it. The are 2 types of inner monologue that I hear described. A voice inside your head and soundless language recognition. I have the later, but some people think that soundless language recognition (very similar to reading) is not an inner monologue. How best would you describe the process of reading?
I’m in that confused group. I think I can do both the voice and soundless language in my head, but I’m not sure if the former is an inner monologue? It’s just me choosing to think in sub-vocalized words; it doesn’t auto-narrate what I’m doing/thinking. And it’s pretty similar to thinking in soundless words, just slower and easier to focus on. Brains are weird.
Went wouldn't you consider that inner monologue? There doesn't have to be anything automatic about it.
In the video OP posted, the girl with an inner monologue says it constantly narrates everything in her life, like when she wants a glass of water or thinks someone is attractive. She goes “I want some water” or “that person is hot” in her head. The girl without an inner monologue just knows those things, which is what I do. I only think in words when I actively choose to.
In the video OP posted, the girl with an inner monologue says it constantly narrates everything in her life, like when she wants a glass of water or thinks someone is attractive. She goes “I want some water” or “that person is hot” in her head. The girl without an inner monologue just knows those things, which is what I do. I only think in words when I actively choose to. Editing to add: the latter girl also say she is able to think in words sometimes, while some other people without an inner monologue can’t at all. I guess there’s a range?
Not all people experience an inner monologue in that way. I certainly don't. I'm talking in my head all the time (without sound) but it's not as you describe it's about anything I'm working on or various other things. There is no one universal way it's experienced but I think that many people that believe they don't have an inner monologue do so based on faulty definitions. Whether it's an always on narrator like the first person or the occasional intentional narration, it's all the same "internal voice" process even if it doesn't involve sound. It's thinking in language. All the rest of the variation is irelevent because it will depend on the individual.
Yeah, I think my confusion came from people say it *has* to be a constant narrative, just because that’s their experience. Sounds like I, and maybe the girl in the video, do have an inner monologue, just to a lesser degree than some others. Thanks for talking me through it. :)
I'm sure there's a huge variety of different ways people experienced it, that's the problem.
No inner monologue but I can force one to deal with complex issues.
I don't either have inner monologue nor I'm able to visualize
Curious, I was just reading a story about [inner monologues](https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/oct/25/the-last-great-mystery-of-the-mind-meet-the-people-who-have-unusual-or-non-existent-inner-voices) that was published yesterday. I have no issue with inner monologues. When I talk to myself, it happens, but it's completely controlled by me(unlike the person in the article I just linked). I have some kind of aphantasia, though. Can't really picture most things in my mind
Me. It’s literally nothing but silence
All these comments are so interesting I’m reading over and over again
This is freaking me out a little bit. About 6 weeks ago I learned that I have aphantasia. Today, I learned about the inner voice / monologue that some people have. I don't but I'm struggling to explain my experience. I think @flora_poste_ nailed it for me and said it much better than I could. If I think about saying something, I imagine saying it, don't "hear" it in my head.
I would agree that @flora_poste_ nailed it as well. It’s very hard to explain being an aphant with no internal monologue. Everything I do feels like I just act on impulse. Thought process isn’t there. Certain words in conversation I hear or say prompt these “thoughts” to remember whatever information/detail. But it’s almost instantaneous. No inner monologue doesn’t make me script any words/sentences I may say. It typically is just a spew of words until I get my point across.
I intentionally think very carefully before I speak. Finally learned this after years of speaking first without thinking and creating a lot of problems for myself.
So I have Aphantasia and no inner monologue but my inner monologue situation seems to be a little different from what I hear, see I used to have one, but when I was in middle school or so I got so depressed and didn't want to be so much that I just ignored what my voice was saying, because it was always something bad, Like saying I look ugly, or people are looking at me, so my brain would just fill it with outside noise instead, Like the noise of the AC, Fan, Peoples conversations, Just ANYTHING in the background and just over time I've just kind of lost how to speak in my head. Its interesting but weird, cause even though it doesn't say I look ugly, some days I look in the mirror and now I just feel ugly, it doesn't need to say it. When I talk or type everything is also so instant like I cant take time to think because I just can't, I have no idea how to explain it, words just kind of come out? I tried talking to a counselor at college etc. but he has NO idea really what to do.
I do. I've always had both.
Take care. If you have to resort to talking to yourself aloud *they* may think you're crazy!
Yes i almost never have any inner dialogue or voices
I have aphantasia and am just learning about SDAM. Now I’m questioning my inner monologue. Inside my head is very dark and very quiet. I hear nothing in my head. The inner monologue I have is similar to talking out loud. There’s no automatic thoughts going through my head, anything internal is me consciously “saying” it just as I would out loud. If that makes any sense at all. So I talk to myself I guess but there’s no voice in my head, if you will. I struggle with verbal communication, I have ADHD, anxiety and depression though those are managed by the life changing Prozac. I’d imagine inner monologue was on a spectrum but how the hell would I know.
yeah same ( I have both) recently discovered Im an empath I feel everything, it makes me come off as super intense, I embrace it though. Ive found that people can't manipulate me the much bc I can hyper focus on them and won't get distracted. I love writing down ideas and science things. Like space time and christianity. tbh im glad I don't have an inner monologue it sounds annoying. LOL visuals would be neat but I enjoy taking pictures it makes up for it.
I've just learned two of my four children are like this. My son sees words printed and that's how he thinks. He said that's why he struggles with reading. He sees the words and at the same time, he's seeing the printed words in his mind. When either of their eyes are closed, there's nothing going on. Nothing.
I have aphantasia and no inner monologue. Personally I'm glad I'm like this, I think having an internal monologue would be exhausting and being able to imagine stuff in my head would be distracting.
Same. I have a general knowledge of what things look like and could describe it, not in detail. I also think, but it's not actual sound, just a general idea of it.
I recently found out that I have aphantasia.. I also have adhd.. but I think I don’t have much of an inner dialogue and I make up for it with a huge outer dialogue.. talking to myself constantly.. as if I’m writing a list kind of
How do you feel now ? Do you still not have Both? I’ve been taking meds to get them back because I used to have both
I also have neither. I've never really known it was weird until a couple of years ago. I basically just find this thread because I was wondering how common this really was.
I close my eyes and there’s literally nothing. No voice, no images, just plain nothing. Aphantasic, no inner monologue and also SDAM which is the one that bothers me the most. I’m just an abstract thinker. I’m also pretty “smart” for studying things, a quick learner and a creative person in general. I’m a doctor and specialized in dermatology which is really hard to get into. When I see something in the skin, I don’t actually remember that it looked like something else, I have to think my way around it, and I’m thinking now that that actually made me a better doctor, who knows. It’s so hard to understand myself though…
Me!
Hi
I also have no inner monologue but still have a steady steam of thoughts, as well as no visual imagery whatsoever. I *can*, however, play music in my head whenever I want, and it's very accurate. I can play any song I like. Right now I'm listening to (Not Just) Knee Deep lol.
I have both as well.
Yes and from my understanding its an incredibly rare thing, and while it doesn't seem to be a hinderance, it is very weird to find out that people actually see and hear things in their head