People are just realising they suffer from Aphantasia which only 3% of people in the world have

People are only just realising that they suffer from a condition called aphantasia.

Never heard of it?

You're not alone; it turns out that only a fraction of the world's population suffer from it. But what is it?

Well, if I said the word 'clown' to you, for example, the chances are you'd immediately picture some terrifying image of a man with a red nose and colourful hair, right?

Sorry if you're scared of these ghoulish jesters - a separate condition called coulrophobia - for those of you that care, but needs must.

Now, if you're unable to conjure such an image from the dark recesses of your imagination, then you, my little friend, have something called aphantasia.

In its basic form, it is the inability to create images from words in your head.

According to Aphantasia.com: "Does an image of a horse come to mind? What color is the horse? What’s it doing?

"For most, a lifelike image of a horse appears in their mind’s eye. For others, creating a dim, vague, or incomplete picture takes time and effort. Some can picture a horse with exceptional clarity.

"People with aphantasia can’t create a mental image. Not of familiar objects, people, or places. Not for thoughts, memories, or images of the future. We lack this 'picture-it' system completely."

So rare is it that experts believe it only affects between one and five percent of the population.

In a video shared to her social media page, fitness instructor Courtney Hubbard explained that her boyfriend had just told her about the phenomenon and that she couldn't get her head around it.

She said: "He's told me that he's one of them people who can't visualise it in their own head, as in he can't imagine himself on a beach, he can't visualise an apple on the floor in front of him if he shuts his eyes.

"Can somebody confirm this, because it's blown my mind and I don't believe him."

In another video shared on TikTok, a woman showed a chart - numbered one to six - that depicts how clearly people might see the image of an apple in their mind, with it becoming increasingly more faint.

And there were plenty of others who admitted to having the condition but only just realising it.

"I apparently have aphantasia but I still kind of feel like people who are 1s are lying," wrote one user.

"You guys just have video on demand in your head?"

Another commented: "I'm a number 6... it's pitch black."

"So you're telling me people can close their eyes and see things, like, literally see things?" asked someone else.

Yes, we can.

Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Images

Topics: Health, Science, TikTok, Viral, Weird

Dominic Smithers

Dominic Smithers is LADbible's Editorial Lead. After graduating from the University of Leeds with a degree in French and History, he went on to write for the Manchester Evening News, the Accrington Observer and the Macclesfield Express. So as you can imagine, he’s spent many a night wondering just how useful that second language has been. But c'est la vie.

@SmithersDom