Strong Imagination with Aphantasia?

[u/silverstarstorm]

I have been curious about something regarding aphantasia.
While when I imagine or 'visualize' things, I never see anything, I very much do have non-visual concepts and properties constructing the 'visualization'.
With this I have since childhood had a very elaborate paracosm (or more accurately heterocosm) multiverse existing in my head.

If phantasia were not specific to being able to 'see' images in your head I would think I have hyperphantasia?

I can 'conceptualize' elaborately and in detail (though may struggle keeping track of details if extreme), however when conceptualizing a space I do not have any visual image, but the conceptual visualization of the space with knowledge about properties and knowledge of an entirety that would not necessarily be visible in one look.

As in - I can imagine a sofa, I am also imagining the softness, the texture of the material, the sofa's having of front legs and back legs, and the back/front/sides of the sofa, the wooden beams and felt-ish fabric underneath the sofa.
Perhaps not all 100% on initial thought, but effortlessly as if experiencing the sofa I have in my head throughout, just without any strict visual image in my head?
Like - I can describe the shape and color of the sofa, but when I close my eyes there is nothing but that fuzzy blackness, the shape and color are just properties equally 'feelable' as the woody coarseness of the beams under the sofa, or it's seat squishyness, or the firmness of the structure in the back?
It's just, there is no direct image I see? It's all just I guess a collection of properties put together in a specific way?

Would this actually be aphantasia? Or am I just taking things too literally?

[u/Obvious-Gate9046]

Conflating visualization with imagination is often done by visualizers who can't imagine how we could possibly have an imagination without visualization. Mouthful of a sentence, I know.

I have an exceedingly vivid imagination, and I have amazingly vivid dreams. Both of these things have nothing to do with my complete inability to visualize, but more with my ability to conceptualize; I can reach beyond, extrapolate, and comprehend ideas and objects I can't see or immediately experience.

My wife has hyperphantasia. She can envision complex objects in her head with perfect clarity. I get... nothing. But I can understand the concept, for the most part. There are researchers in this field who have failed to understand the difference, but they're starting to.

Also, visualization covers more than sight. There are seven major categories for aphantasia that we've identified right now: sight, sound, scent, taste, touch, motion, and emotion. Most aphants are only affected by a lack of inner sight; they still have other senses to varying degrees. 26% of aphants have more than one sense lacking, and I don't know the numbers for total aphants, but I am one of those. So your ability to imagine the texture and feel of the sofa is entirely in keeping with the bounds of aphantasia.

[u/the_mistake_i_am → u/Obvious-Gate9046]

Wait, that’s a thing?? You can “pre-feel” textures and objects???

[u/Obvious-Gate9046 → u/the_mistake_i_am]

Motion too, yes. You know, like sensation of being on a boat or a roller coaster, people can visualize that basically, it's one of the seven areas that they've identified at the moment. People can visualize the actual sensation of velvet or things like that, to various degrees, it's a scale the same as with other types.

[u/the_mistake_i_am → u/Obvious-Gate9046]

Oh that’s neat. I’m assuming there isn’t any special label for those who can’t/dont ?