There are a lot of theories about how synesthesia occurs in
the brain. They’re usually divided up into two different categories
- Result of Normal Brain Function
- There’s nothing wrong or structurally unusual with a synethete’s brain, it just works a bit differently.
- Result of Abnormal Brain Function
- A synethete’s brain has some structurally wrong with it which results in crossed perceptions
The theory that has interested me the most falls into the
first category. It’s comes from the process known as neonatal pruning. When a baby is born, their brain is full of
extra connections and firing synapses. As the brain matures, these extra
connections are “pruned”.
Researcher Daphne Maurer suggested that everyone is born synesthetic, but during the process of neonatal pruning, the synapses that join
the senses are disconnected. For people with synesthesia, some of the
connections were skipped over during the process.
This theory also explains the phenomena of people that
report synesthetic perceptions as a child but they disappeared when they
reached puberty. A child’s brain does not reach maturity until around
12-years-old.
Personally, this explanation is also my favorite. The main
reason is that it’s better than being told that my synesthesia is actually a mental disorder that needs to be cured. I find that hard to believe since I love
having synesthesia and as I have mentioned before, it is not a health risk.
Pretty neat! I like that explanation a lot better as well; quite a bit more optimistic!
ReplyDeleteI've also heard that a lot of musicians have synesthesia, and that it actually helps them out and makes them that much more passionate. I think the whole concept is really awesome.
ReplyDelete