(It can also happen on being touched unexpectedly or feeling pain)
(This
phenomenon is not synesthesia)
These
phosphene patterns can also sometimes be generated by a blow to the head
(“seeing stars”), a sharp pain or even, for some people, being unexpectedly
touched by someone.
This is what Sean Day says about this subject in his book Synesthetes (2016/2021):
"There
are indications that people in general – that is, regardless of whether they
are congenital synesthetes or not – have hypnagogic synesthetic experiences at
least two or three times per year. Such experiences are usually ‘sound à visual’; most commonly, a
loud noise, such as a door slamming, produces a synesthetic visual flash. There
are other possibilities for hypnagogic synesthetic experiences, though, such as
a touch to the body making you think someone is calling your name. Research is currently underway on this topic1."
1 See, for example, Sagiv & Ben-Tal (forthcoming).
There are also people who are especially sensitive to what is called the “sound-induced flash illusion”, which has been the subject of scientific experiments: on watching a single flash of light and hearing two beeps, they see two consecutive flashes.
Here is
some information on the sound-induced flash illusion and a test to see whether
it happens to you.
More information on entoptic phenomena (visual effects originating within the eye itself) and other related topics:
Hypnagogia (sleep hallucinations: hypnagogic hallucinations occur in the profoundly relaxed state of transition from wakefulness to sleep, while hypnopompic hallucinations happen at the moment of waking).
Two kinds of visions, synesthesia and hypnagogia: a comparison. An article by artist Carol Steen comparing synesthetic and entoptic/hypnagogic visions.
Go to the page on auditory-visual synesthesia
This page last updated: 3 November 2024
In my case, the eye flash following a loud or sudden sound is often immediately followed by a sharp alkaline feeling on my tongue, as if I just licked a weak 9V battery. This would seem to discount the ocular contraction as the sensory source.
ReplyDeleteMe too! I also get that tongue feeling if I have near-miss occasions, like avoiding being hit while driving or rolling an ankle while running on a trail!
DeleteI wake up from the flash of light whenever my air-conditioner decides to make some sudden noise, and it's annoying.
ReplyDeleteI get these whenever my eyes are closed, regardless of whether I'm falling asleep or not, and they look nothing like the phosphenes from pressing my finger on the eyelid, nor anything like "seeing stars". It's evenly spread out across the entire vision field, and most often looks like TV static. Sometimes it's geometric patterns like a checkerboard or (rarely) more elaborate patterns. I also get the same when one of my muscles suddenly twitches.
ReplyDeleteThis is almost exactly what I experience, although I see geometric patterns fairly often, but I've always tried to describe it to people as tv static. If my eyes are open when I hear an unexpected sound my ear will move.
DeleteI hypothesise that its a sonar response occuring in the brain. A loud nouse or bang creates a visual effect that is similar. Bats would probably be startled by a loud noise in a similar fashion, both hearing and seeing it.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking something similar
DeleteI also felt this for once in every 2 weeks and every experience, I started having palpitations...
ReplyDeleteFor me its definately in the brain not the eye and its like a starburst firework going off but much faster and with many minute colours absolutely beautiful makes me feel good after.
ReplyDeleteits in the pineal gland. detecting vibration. your pineal gland can see all frequencies of vibration. which one can learn to do with years of deep meditation. the sound is so sudden and sharp we only notice it when we are about to fall asleep as that is a similar state as deep meditation.
ReplyDeleteThis is true. Look up Vibra Vision.
DeleteI'm laying with my son to get him to sleep and this happens most often during this time for me. I'm not falling asleep. Every sound I hear, that's slightly loud and sudden can be seen by a flash of light. The lights are in different areas of my vision depending on where it came from and they're always different shapes. It feels primal. I imagined myself laying with him on a forest floor, protecting him, listening for danger, watching the lights for signs of danger.
ReplyDeleteI have experienced this since childhood. It does not look the same as the phosphene effect I can see when I press on my eyes. It happens to me anytime I am in a dark environment which is usually only when my eyes are closed, but not always when I am sleepy or sleeping. Sudden noises will trigger a full field bright flash of light, as if someone flipped a light switch on in a dark room.
ReplyDeleteThis exactly!! It is not something "I see" or can replicate by pressing on my eyelid, rather a bright light within my mind triggered by sudden noise, weather i am falling asleep or not.
DeleteI continue to experience flashes of black and white chevron and static patterns depending on a surprising or loud noise or even my name called when I’m not expecting it. It covers my whole vision and occurs immediately when the sound goes off. The weirdest thing I’ve experienced at it’s happening increasingly
ReplyDeleteYes me too! I get exactly this, when I’m about to fall asleep and get surprised by a loud noise (my dog barking, a door or somethings) I see black and white covering my whole vision. It’s quite unpleasant.
DeleteKnew I couldn’t be the only person experiencing this! I have seen this stuff as far as I can remember. Sudden sounds flash and patterns when my eyes are closed. Sometimes very bright patterns. I’ve tried talking to people about it over my lifetime, but most people just look at me like I’m crazy. Finding this page is so very cool. I always wondered if I heard the exact same sound if I would see the exact same pattern?
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you found the page helpful! No, I think it would be unlikely that you would see the exact same pattern corresponding to the same sound each time, I think it would be random, or perhaps there would only be a limited amount of shapes, positions and colours of the flashes you can see in that situation, in which case they might coincide, but just by chance. Maybe you could experiment and or kind of "test" it, if you have this happen to you fairly consistently?
Delete