Synesthesia, when the senses interfere with each other

What is synesthesia?

The people that have synesthesia They report that they can see sounds, hear colors, taste certain words, see certain characters (letters and numbers) in colors, or feel a taste when touching something. Some also refer to power visualize abstract concepts, like time projected onto space. Many of these people report having more than one of these capacities and two people with synesthesia may have different experiences, although both, for example, perceive colored numbers; for one, the 4 can be green and for another red. Today, it is believed that up to 4% of the population may have some mild form of synesthesia. These effects can also occur due to the consumption of certain drugs, such as LSD, mescaline or psychedelic mushrooms.

Types of synesthesia

The main types of synesthesia are:

• Grapheme-color: the most common, letters and numbers are perceived individually with a certain tone and color
• Chromesthesia: association of sounds and colors
• Sequential-space: numerical sequences are perceived as points in space
• Audio-tactile: certain sounds induce sensations in different parts of the body
• Ordinal linguistic personification: sequences such as letters, ordinal numbers, days of the week or months are associated with genders and personalities
• Misophonia: certain sounds provoke negative feelings (fear, anger, hatred, disgust)
• Lexicon-gustatory: certain words cause a gustatory sensation

Causes of synesthesia

Around 40% of people with synesthesia have first-degree relatives with the same capacity and these people report having it since they can remember, that is, it is not an acquired but an innate trait. This year a study has been published carried out by the Max Plank Institute of Psycholinguistics together with the University of Cambridge, in which they have analyzed DNA samples from various families with several generations of people with synesthesia. The conclusions have been that, despite the fact that the DNA alterations were different depending on the families, there was a common trait to all of them, an overexpression of the genes involved in cell migration and the formation of axons, that is, the processes that allow neurons to connect properly. That is, it is likely that there is altered neuronal connectivity in these patients that makes their sensory experience differ from that of the majority. Other scientists speculate that we are all born with the ability to synesthesia, But most of us lose those cross-sensorial connections as we grow older. Likewise, it has been seen that several people on the autism spectrum may have some type of synesthesia.

Diagnosis of synesthesia

To confirm that a person has synesthesia, the essential thing is to show that their statements are coherent, that is, that they will always give the same answer when associating two sensory experiences, such as, for example, the number eight will always be the same shade of blue, and not another . Functional imaging tests have been performed on people with synesthesia, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging. These tests have shown that, for example, people who say they see colors in music have increased activation in the visual areas of the cerebral cortex in response to sounds.

How to live this disorder

People with synesthesia They state that it can be somewhat uncomfortable at times, for example, seeing words printed in a color that is not the real one, or feeling that the name of certain people gives them bad taste. Others report feeling sensory overwhelmed at times. In children and adolescents it can lead to behavioral changes, frustration, anxiety or