30 Random Things Folks Thought Were Normal But Later Realized Weren’t, As Shared Online
We all have some things about ourselves that might seem weird to others. Maybe we have peculiar eating habits, and we see or do some things differently. And these things might seem like a norm to us. But what if one day you realize that what you thought to be a regular thing is actually a pretty rare occurrence for others? Reddit user @u/ComfortableMess3145 was curious to know what were some things that people thought to be normal until they realized that they aren't.
The question that received 1.3K answers got some interesting responses. A lot of people shared that for the longest time, they didn’t know they had a certain condition such as astigmatism, ADHD, or some kind of allergy. Other users revealed that their “not normal thing” usually came from their household. The examples included being expected to always ask for every little thing instead of just taking or doing it, or being used to big family fights.
Do you have something to add to this list? Don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comments down below!
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Subconsciously adapting my speech patterns to whoever is around me. I'll start picking up their accent, words they use frequently, etc. Turns out, this is a common thing neurodiverse people, and it's more seen in women if I'm not mistaken. It could cause me issues, however. Thing is, I'm much more self conscious about this when I talk to black people, bc I'm white... And I swear I'm not trying to do a "blaccent" on purpose. It just... Kind of happens.
I did not know it was more common in neurodiverse people. I thought everyone did this to some degree, like altering body language to the person you are talking to. To be fair though, the majority of people i spend time with are neurodiverse, so my normality meter might be far off.
An awful lot of general neurodiverse symptoms are just the result of the brain grabbing some k**b and setting it all the way to the max or all the way down to zero, so...
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I think this is a stretch to say more "neurodiverse" people experience this. This is very, very common. It's possibly a result of mirror neuron activity.
When I was 10 we went to Disneyland and we start talking to some British people in line and I just started talking in a full British accent, totally normal nbd to me. My parents were mortified and my mom told me "quiet, thats rude" in Japanese. Lol I have Dyslexia and ADHD and it common to parrot people with both of those disorders. While not strictly related to these disorders it's more commonly linked to learning issues. I'm curious though, why did you put nuerodiverse in quotes since it's a real thing.
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Aaaah. Trying to hold back my inner grammer pedant with twitching fingers. Easier, it's not "more easy" it's easier.
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It's a very common sympathetic gesture in the same way that we often copy the same posture as the people we're talking to.
The most extreme I ever came across was someone who returned from their first term at college with a whole new accent and was totally unaware of it.
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One of the many realizations that lead me to seek an autism assessment. The strongest for me is picking up a Georgian (state in the US) accent when talking to friends from the area. I'm from close to the Canadian border in a mountain state so it's a very different accent. I've also done it with people from different Asian countries so I have to be very careful to consciously kick it out of my speech so I don't come across as being some jerk. I worked for a Korean immigrant couple for 2 1/2 years and it took me 6 months for my brain to quit trying to "fit in" with their speech patterns.
I think this is a behavior that everyone does to some extent. Like everyone is on some continuum. It’s a bit like how some people who are born to immigrant parents picking up local accents from going to school. And then many of us speak differently at home/work/with friends. That would outliers likely, and if one is very sensitive to how people speak one may imitate them to a greater degree than others would.
This happens to me too. Went to a Ren fest one year every day it was open.My folks said I was starting to talk with a fake accent...I didn't even realize it.
I do this too. I always thought it was related to empathy somehow, so this is interesting. It's not just accents etc for me. For example I know a couple of people who stutter and have vocal ticks (respectively) and I will pick that up after speaking to them (assuming it happens while I am) and it takes a good while for it to go away, days.
Doing this, too. When I've been around people with a specific accent, I need some time to get used to speaking my own again.
I'm kind of the same, just basically turn into a sponge when it comes to accents. I think it comes from moving frequently between 3 different countries as a kid. Picking up other people's accents is just easier than the bizarre English-Irish-American accent I ended up with.
That's what I thought. I had lived in 4 countries by the time I was five, I just assumed that my accent never solidified.
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Hi I'm Autistic and so im neurodiverse. I had a friend (who is not anymore) who would adapt her speech to fit an American girl who was new. But she was Neurotypical... 🤨
Copy that ;) Got the same... It got really weird once upon a time when taking to friends who all understood English but didn't all speak it. I have my own dialect from the town I was born, so that's the voice in my head, then I was talking Dutch to one friend, English to the other and German to the next, because I can't answer or address in any other language then the language I hear. I'm Dutch of origin and when I was younger, I was working as a cashier. Was talking to an English speaking cliënt and all of a sudden another customer said that my Dutch is so perfect given the fact that I'm an American... it made me laugh, the look on her face when I told her I was actually Dutch living one town over ;)
This is really hard with my job which involves being on the phone a lot. Subconsciously start mimicking their accents etc and have to to try really hard not to! It comes across as really patronising or that you’re taking the p**s. If I watch a tv show or something where they have a parocular accent, I’ll find myself mimicking it or talking in that accent to myself whether out loud or in my head. Kind of like how a song gets stuck in your head
All the freaking time. I can't help but adopt the speech patterns of those I'm talking to!
I've always been this way. Moved to the South, picked up an accent. Lived in London, picked up the accent. Moved to Ireland, same thing. Don't even realize I'm doing it until someone points it out
Omg happens to me too except it happens in my thoughts. I'll read The Hobbit and start thinking in the style of the Hobbit for the next hour or until I read another book
Wherever I have lived I have adapted idioms of the area and when slightly drunk, begun to talk in the accent of where I am. I also, without thinking, adapt my way of speaking to the company I am in. I cannot help it.
I do this too, especially with accents. I try not to because I don't want anyone to think I am mocking them but I just pick up accents very easily and, OP is correct, it just happens.
I sometimes do this too... Like after watching a British show for 2 hours I may pick up an accent for a short time.
It may be that "everyone" does this to some degree. But I think what OP and others are saying is its more intense or frequent for them. Neurotypical folks might find themselves adapting at times, but OP is saying it's *every* time. Doing this does not make you ND. But ND folks might do it automatically to a degree that is above average paramaters.
I do this sometimes but it like I have problems with it and sometimes mispronounce words worse when it happens sometimes.
Wow I didn't realize what I did had a name for it. I always have done that. Even mimicking characters on tv an cartoons.
I am Southern but my accent gets thicker when I hear authentic strong southern accents (none of that fake Hollywood junk). I also tend to pick up English, Irish and Scottish accents. My MIL does the same thing. By the time her trip to Ireland was over everyone thought she was a native!
I do this in thought more than speach. As in my inner monologue voice changes, sometimes the original voice as well, not just accent but tone and pitch so it is a different voice entirely.
For speech it's called echolalia and for gestures it's called echopraxia.
It's called 'echolalia' for speech and 'echopraxia' for movement. Just in case you wanted to know.
I do this too! Some times I will start speaking in a British accent and I am not even British
My wife does this when she is around British people, and it drives me bananas!
I do that with movies. Walk in sounding American and come out sounding Australian or Italian, etc.
Yeah. I struggle with personality for these reasons too (NVLD) and of course social rules are never written. Good luck.
I was with a German family once. I got their accent and could not talk as I was worried they thought I was being very rude.
I do the same thing! I was in my 30's when I figured it out but get this, since I got long covid it's reallllly baaaaad.
i've done that with accents. I went on holiday to Florida for two weeks as a kid and a local couple were convinced that I was from somewhere in America but they couldn't quite place the accent. When I told them I was from the UK, they didnt believe me.
Ha. hahaha... omg... this is ... holy c**p this explains SO MUCH. I'm a Voice Actor btw...
Me as well. Can be awkward, but such is the life of the language gifted.
https://reddoorpediatric.com/blog/echolalia-the-facts-beyond-parrot-talk-scripting-and-echoing/. There is also "echopraxia," which is mimicking an observed physical trait, e.g. gait or posture.
This actually arises to varying degrees as a result of the Chameleon Effect in order to foster empathy with other people, so it is actually incredibly normal :) - we subconsciously mimic the accents, tones of voice, gestures etc of other people, which is why if someone moves to another country, studies abroad or talks to a friend with a totally different accent, their accent will adjust over time as well. The effect is also significantly enhanced if you like the person or place, and reduced if you dislike the person or miss your home for example :)
I am the same. It came in handy as my family lived in Brazil and Honduras for a while. Very helpful in learning languages.
I am not sure if I do this, I don't think I do but I have noticed people do this when they are talking to me.
This is perfectly normal and is known in linguistics as "accommodation".
I am neuro diverce and did this all the time, finding the right way to talk to people and fitting in But it never works for me, yess, it comforts the other person, for mostly they will nnot nitice this. But i stopt, I don't have to fit, but i still try to treat people comforting and nice, only different, so it won't axauast me . All those jea4s i did coooy and please, it never gave me a freind. But i do know a lot of people in a pleasant way, but only for about 5 minutes at a time, than it starts to tire me
Me too. I never knew this was a thing. I just thought I weirdly started picking up accents lol.
this is very normal, especially the part with accents. if your accent is not very strong ( for the lack of a better word) you have a tendency to slip into the accent of the other person. At dormitory I lived with many ppl from the east of our country. they have a specific almost italian-like accent. till this day i speak with the eastern accent when i get drunk. my language is very similar to Czech. if a Slovak speaks with a Czech person we have a tendency to slip to Czech although there is no need. we would understand each other either way. the part with using the same phrases: i am not sure how quick that normally happens but from long term perspective you start using the same words like your friends, partner, colleagues, etc. it may be strange to some ppl but maybe you are more sensitive towards languages and/or music than them. you would learn a new language easier tgan them
My best friend called me two faced because I started doing that with a cute guy we were talking to. It wasn't the last time it happened either.
Oh good grief - that's me. I spent 10 years in the UK and Europe, and every time I was speaking to someone, I was using their accent by the time I was done with the conversation. So weird!
As a black person, let me educate y'all. There is no "blaccent". If there was such a thing, every black person would sound exactly the same. There are accents that people can have depending on where they come from, but don't write it off as a black or white only thing. It's like people telling me I sound so educated or white or whatever. No I freaking don't! I sound like me, I just happen to be black. Sorry to rant, but these terms need to die on every side of the color scheme. Thank you.
LIkewise... got called on it by a German exchange student in college...
I used to spend the 6 weeks holidays at my nan's, and would come back with the strongest Wiltshire accent! Took weeks to get rid of it...
I'm ASD and have had this same problem my whole life. It embarrasses me so much, I didn't know it happened to other people.
I did this, especially around neurodivergent people, and I thought I was just subconsciously mocking them for the longest time!
It’s not uncommon to pick up the speech patterns and inflections of those around whom we spend a lot of time. I experience the same and I’ve also been told that I sound British when I get anxious even though I have never been to England. Perhaps that has to do with watching a lot of British media growing up?
I want to visit Ireland. I’m going to have to really watch myself when I’m talking. I won’t even take a day before off I go with the accent. I don’t want anyone to think I’m making fun of them or trying to be stupid tourist trying to sound like a native of Ireland. But, yes, I do pick up other accents easily.
Same. I'm from Michigan, live in Texas, and can sound like a native New Yorker or Georgian. Heck, I can pull a very convincing Scottish, Irish, Russian and Australian, as well
I worked call center phone lines. Oh the accents I would pick up. On the bonus I understood what folks with heavier accents were actually saying. Yet, for some reason the more tired I would get throughout the day I would go into a west Texas accent as a normal accent. Still doing the other accents. Double trouble.
As a black person I do this as a defense mechanism, I want to limit the threat that people see me as.
Omg... I'm the same!!! Most of the, it's unconscious and automatic. I didn't know it was THAT abnormal!?
I have the same thing, I once had a kid who recently moved from Britain get mad at me for doing a british accent while talking to him
I am neurodiverse.. and I did that when I was in the UK.. I would start talking with a english accent
My husband does this. I can tell which of his friends he's on the phone with by the language he uses. He has no idea!
Being "neurodiverse" (idk why that term makes my brain itch), I can understand. I don't specifically mimic speech patterns, but growing up, if I liked the sound of a word, regardless of the language, I would use it in place of its corresponding Enlish word. I speak 4 languages, so for a while my communication was a bit of a mixed bag. People seemed to accept my "mostly English" as one of my many quirks. I've overcome that, but still sometimes have to mimic emotional responses to different situations. My family & friends sometimes have to remind me to make my face match my feelings.
So I struggle with the same issue at times. However something you said concerns me. "Much more self conscious when talking to black people". Why is that. Why are you more concerned about offending black people than any other group? Would you have the same reservations when talking to a southerner or an Asian?
yeah... i'm Swedish, live in Sweden, watch a movie where people have a Scottish accent and it can take me a few days to get rid of it, lol :P can be quite fun sometimes but GEEEEZZZ!!! lmao
I think it is pretty normal. I literally had a conversation with a group of people 2 days ago and the all said they do it.
I've been doing this for as long as I can remember. Even when I was in my teens.
I've done this my whole life didn't realize it wasn't normal. I just thought I was good at blending in LOL
Me too! Which is funny when I watch/listen to something with an accent for a long time, and then I get 'stuck'.
My sister used to do this to the point that I could tell who had been on shift with her by what accent she had when we spoke on the phone.
I do this also! I'm always worried I'll offend someone but it just happens. Also happens from TV
Same. I'll get other people's accents in my head. I'll even tend to want to copy their expression and facial features. This happens moreso when I see someone with distinct facial features.
Oh man, me too. I spent a month in the States about a DECADE ago and people still occasionally ask me if I'm American. Before that it was "are you British?"
I have astigmatism so I see light in streaks. For the longest time I thought that was how everyone saw it.
Not everyone struggles to concentrate on a task or have the mental energy to take care of things. Apparently I have ADD. I found out two years ago life didn’t have to be a daily struggle when I started taking a medication for a sleep problem and one of its off label uses is to treat ADD.
I was actually told repeatedly as a kid I had ADHD but they always told me it was my fault and treated it as if the issue was voluntary. So I grew up believing I was just a lazy day dreamer who gets overly stressed by having too many tasks. I’ve lived my life thinking everyone else was better than me because they can get things done. Nope, I’ve just need meds my entire life. Now I wonder how different my childhood would have been if I had been treated back then.
I need to get tested for this once and for all. My school failed me hard for this. They said that I'm "too smart to have a learning disability." How messed up is that? Not only are they implying that people with learning disabilities are dumb, but it's also like they wanted me to just tell them that I'm lazy even though I worked my a*s off and told them as much. Twenty years later and it still makes my blood boil.
having a good relationship with your own parents. wasn’t until i made good friends that i realised how lucky my relationship is with my parents bc so many of my friends did not like family life.
Having to hide when you’re parents are fighting, I only found out this was not normal when I went to a friends house and their parents had a argument that I expected to turn into a screaming fit just like it does with my parents. I got up expecting to have to hide with my friend before they started full on fighting. I was then informed by his concerned parents that it’s not normal to have to do that.
I lived my life like that also. I had a friend who told his parents to stop yelling. I thought, omg heads are going to roll, but they didn't. His parents stopped and apologized to him. I was floored.
Hearing music play even when you aren’t listening to anything. And no I’m not talking about when you have a song stuck in your head and it’s just your thoughts singing the lyrics, I mean actually hearing music when nothing is there.
I use to think my house was haunted by a ghost that loved to play music. Later on as I got older I thought it just happens to everyone. Until I read about “Musical Hallucinations” online and found out how rare it actually is.
And no it’s not fun.
wait that isn’t normal? i thought everyone had that. another thing to add to the list of “things i might have to get tested for”
The ability to make a roaring noise in my ears by tensing a muscle.
I can do this, and I can also do a really high pitched beep. (EDIT: I forgot, I can also click.) (Edit 2: I do the beep by... tensing up my jaw/chin? I don't know how it works.)
Picturing things in your head. I have a friend with aphantasia and she was flabbergasted when she realized people could visualize things in their brain.
I always thought when you try to talk to someone about something they do that bugs you or is just something that you feel the need to bring up because it effects you, that its normal for the person to get upset when you bring it up, and for them to disagree with you, resulting in yelling and fighting. I always thought this until I was talking with my friend about something they do that really pisses me off, and they just sat there, and thanked me for bringing it to there attention, and was completely chill about it, no yelling or argumenting. It was a weird feeling because I just kept waiting for the disagreeing and yelling to happen, and when it didn't I felt like something was missing? lol.
I always thought the after effect for eating fresh cherries was a scratchy throat, with this weird tight feeling. Mild though but it would last about 30 minutes.
After eating 2 cherries earlier this year I ended up having a severe allergic reaction and discovered that cherries aren't meant to do that and I've just been allergic to them this whole time. 😅
Pineapple, kiwi, cantaloupe, walnuts, pecans, bananas-they all do that to me but cherries are OK luckily,
I was joking around with my friends in 8th grade History and we were trying to see how many pencils we could stick into my friend's afro (with his consent) and right as I was trying to lift my arm and put the pencil in his hair one of them cracked a joke that sent us into a fit of laughter. My arms went limp and when my friends started coaxing me to put it in I told them I couldn't.
They were noticably confused, so when I regained my composure I explained that everytime I laugh, my muscles go limp and I am not be able to move them. It ranges from droopy head and weak knees, to full body collapse.
Because of the term "roll over laughing" and portrayals of people in media falling over in laughter I thought this happened to everyone, and they were just better at controlling it. My friends all agreed that it in fact did not happen to them, and that I should get it checked with a doctor.
1 year later I was diagnosed Type 1 Narcolepsy: a sleep disorder characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness, and Cataplexy. Cataplexy happens when a trigger, such as strong emotions like laughter or fear, trigger a sudden loss of muscle tone, making it difficult to move, stand, or even breathe.
I was lucky to be diagnosed as early and quick as I was, since the condition is widely unknown outside of the context of Narcolepsy patients and specialists. The symptoms of Narcolepsy are so common, in both puberty where it starts to present more heavily, and other diagnoses such and depression and anxiety. Its estimated that around 1 in 2,000 people have this disorder, and the lucky few that actually get diagnosed usually only do so later in life after 5-10+ years of multiple tests and misdiagnoses.
The takeaway from this is that if you think that other people "deal with it better" or "suck it up" or "control it better" chances are that's not normal, and you should speak up about it.
Having to deliberately learn all your social skills. I assumed other people just got more practice, because I didn't have many friends growing up. Years of work did help me a lot, but I only recently realized most people learn these things without thinking much about it.
I'ts like the difference between glancing at a sentence and immediately getting its meaning, vs. figuring out each word letter by letter.
Apparently most people can't reach their entire back with their hands. I never knew backscratchers had an actual purpose.
I can do this too. Apparently I'm a bit more flexible than most other folks. I can turn my feet around almost all the way backwards,put my feet behind my head and contort in a few odd ways. I thought everyone could do this.
Not being able to watch Movies/Shows without Close Captions or subtitles. Also never understanding what they are sayin on the radio. Turns out, I have an Auditory Processing Disorder. If I don't see peoples lips moving my brain doesn't recognize they are words more than half the time
Sensory Processing Disorder (avoider) here. If two people talk to me at the same time (classical scenario: I'm on the phone but my toddler demands my attention) the voices overlap and become nonsensical noise. Drives. Me. Crazy.
That most people aren't constantly aware of their heart beating, and dont get numb legs just from walking a few metres uphill, and don't lie in bed at night wondering whether they'll die in their sleep because their heart does funky things when they lay down.
Turns out I have a heart condition lol. I feel so at peace now that I'm on medication for it
I thought it was normal for every friend group to have one person that everyone picked on for no reason. I don't mean light roasting, I mean legitimately bullying them and putting them down. My brother's friend group had one, with my brother being a primary instigator. I was the punching bag in my middle school friend group. It took until the end of high school/the beginning of college for me to actually be treated like a person and realize that friends aren't supposed to make you feel like s**t about yourself.
I feel this. I was constantly shunned and yelled at growing up untill recently when I made actual friends who treated me nicely
I’ve played violin since I was 3 years old. So, I learned the letter names of each string and the finger numbers. And, whenever I heard a song, I always thought of a letter or number with each note. To me, it was plainly obvious what each letter and number was, and my brain even expanded the letter/number system to work with cello and the entire piano range.
Turns out, not every violinist has this, let alone absolute pitch (frequency in Western countries: 1 in 10 000). When I was 20, I discovered it was synesthesia, a harmless linking of senses/concepts in the brain.
That seemed to check out since people’s faces often have smells/tastes associated with them. Mine tastes like white sugar out of the packet. My brother’s is hard boiled egg. And whenever someone mentions a particular date on a particular year, I envision a giant number line.
Also, letters have emotions. E is happy, but lowercase e is even happier. Capital N is happy but lower case n is sad. And the months of the year go in a giant counter-clockwise circle, with my birthday in October being at the bottom. 2 is sad. 3 is happy.
Having a whole complex of rooms in your head and about 16 people in there chilling and having convos with them
It’s all positive, they’re kinda my way of getting things out and processing thoughts and emotions
I do all sorts in my subconscious mind palace and it’s very entertaining but everyone else finds it kinda wierd.
I hate to reveal this secret but when I am under stress, to relax myself I make up all sorts of cringe stories in my mind but I dont write them down. But ik I will never get the most number of upvotes so my comment will be the last one in order so no one will know my secret hehe 😁
When I’m on my period, I can numb my lower half of my body so I can’t feel cramps. After talking to my friend I realized she couldn’t do it and I was just confused as I have been doing it for years.
Not everyone hears their own thoughts audibly. I only learned that last year after describing to my husband that when I’m thinking I literally hear my thoughts as if they’re being spoken outside of my body.
I routinely talk to myself. When you're alone for 54 years with not one at all in life talking to yourself is almost inevitable. No family, friends, work associates, no social media contacts... no one. well I've been talking to myself ever since I could talk. And yes, I answer myself as well. Its fun.
Being able to give myself goosebumps on command.
I only realised last year (I’m in my 30s) when watching Taskmaster and one of the tasks was “Give yourself goosebumps, fastest wins”, and I wondered why they didn’t all just induce them like I do.
Turns out it’s a rare ability that only 1 in 1500 people have.
That's easy, listen to a song from Eluveitie, that works everytime lol ( for those of you not in to folk metal, try " 2SFH " ( 2 steps from hell ) its Impossible to hear their músic and not getting goosebumps )
"Man, I am having so much trouble finding out which colors to use for these letters!"
"Just... use the colors from your head."
"The what?"
"That's what I did! The head colors? Y'know?"
"N..o."
Anyways I have color-grapheme synesthesia and somehow, no one thought much of me saying that the days and months and letters and numbers all had colors.
Normal is just the running average of weird.
I like this. We’re all weird, “normal” is just whatever weird thing most of us are doing.
Ringing in the ears. I dont have a conscious memory of not having it. When i was about 5 years old I asked my grandma " what song does your head play?"
I've had tinnitus my entire life. Most of the time I just wilfully ignore it.
I have a few medications I need to take for my mental health, some I need to take at night some in the morning. I've gotten into the habit of rather than reading the label for which ones I need, I will shake the bottle and know which ones to take based off of the sounds the pills make when they rattle.
Let me say I was shocked when I was informed this is not normal.
Thats definitely what t I do, I can just hear my pharmaceutical savior, xanax, as a beautiful music in the mornings. Panic attacks SUCK for 30 minutes and without a benzodiazapine I get attacks a couple of times a day. They're particularly insidious because you have to stop what you're doing and give your entire life (existence) to the attack. Work or home. You don't have a choice. I call anxiety and panic "cancer of the mind". Panic attacks are horrendous and completely debilitating. Not fun. Hearing that rattle in the morning is like all of the beautiful music or nature thrown into a couple of seconds of shaking.
Visual snow. My whole life, my field of vision has always been covered by shifting multicolored dots of light. Similar to light snow on an old TV transmission, hence the name. I see it all of the time, I never don't see it, though it is worse in the dark, or if staring at the sky. In the dark or when I close my eyes, it is all I see. I thought everyone had this until my early 20s.
for YEARS i thought everyone got sick at the feeling of certain textures, kinda like seeing big bugs and stuff, like the same feeling that gives you, later learned i have a psychiatrist and therapist trying to figure out if i have adhd, or if im on the autism spectrum
Two OREO limit. That was always the serving size in our house growing up. My first binge in college was a whole sleeve of OREOs.
I wish I could do that. Although I often say it as a joke, for me, it's pretty much true that whatever is in the wrapper is one serving.
Lice. Growing up I had lice almost every summer, I thought everyone got lice growing up. I thought lice was just a summer bug that we kids got! When I got with my ex and talked to him about my childhood and how we always got lice, he was SHOOK. It was apparently not normal for children to get lice on a regular basis.
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I have a CONSTANT inner monologue. It means I can't stop thinking. Yes, I've tried listening to ~calming music~ but it doesn't help. No, it doesn't mean I describe things in third-person. I just CAN'T. STOP. THINKING. Help?
This happens to me too. I didn't know that people could stop thinking!! What?!?
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I dream full length mostly movies with complete dialogue, scenes, and other characters. Sometimes they start right before I fall asleep so I consciously know they are beginning. Seconds before. If you wake me up in the middle of the night I can tell you everything going on and who said what. In the morning I only remember bits and pieces. They are shows I have never seen before anywhere. Sometimes they repeat themselves. There was one inside a dark mansion with lots of hallways upstairs that repeated for months. I walked quickly trying to get out but never finding a way. Another that repeated was a soldier standing at the foot of my bed as if he was guarding me. He wore a WWll uniform. So strange.
Had that occur Wirth some dream about an dystopian anime with an antro-wolf, basically escaping a slave trade, one scene Involved a high class train (fully furnished with velvet seat cushions, wood tables, upholstery the works) one scene involved the wolf being forced to serve nude, leading the wolf stabbing one pug guard in the eye with a shrimp fork. The intro to that "series" was all bright and cheerful. Had its own theme song, the wolf character lounge across title. It was seriously messed up, and bloody as hell. But definitely went a full 360, going from suspense to action in 3 seconds
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I’ve never known how complete strangers can start clapping in synch with each other when music comes on. A television ad came on one day for a Bruno Mars album. There were people in monkey suits moving in time to each other, I commented how much practice it must have taken to synch up their movements so perfectly. My wife said “they are in time to the music”. I had no idea. To me there is no connection between dancing and music. Sometimes called Beat Deafness, I found out I have Amusia, which is sort of like a musical equivalent of dyslexia
Sneezing at the sun! It was only a few years ago (I’m 51) that I found most people don’t sneeze at the sun
Autosomal Dominant Compelling Helioopthalmic Outburst (ACHOO) Syndrome
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I can relate to about 40 of these things. I thought these were normal things.
It's good you found out, isn't it? Some of these problems can be fixed with meds.
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When I was a child, I thought all people could use their toes like fingers because my sister and I could do that. Then I found out that the neighbor kids could not do this. Actually, I still have this ability.
Yeah, that comes in real "handy" when you're pregnant and can't bend down. I can pick up a button or sth. with my toes and "hand" it to my hand.
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I have a serious question to ask. I brought it up to my brother and he completely dismissed it. I get triggered by noises. Chewing, teeth grinding, tapping, snaps, and pen clicks. It’s gotten really bad lately. I have no idea what it is or how to bring it up to my parents.
It could be misophonia. Your triggers sound like pretty common ones: https://misophoniainstitute.org/misophonia-triggers/
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For the longest time, I just assumed that people got headaches all the time. It wasn't until I started getting constant vertigo and a visual aura that I was diagnosed with chronic migraine. Luckily the meds they prescribed work 95% of the time, but I wish my parents would have taken me to the doctor about it when I was little, instead of telling me that I "was reading to much" or playing too many video games.
You are lucky meds work. I've been a migraine sufferer since I was 13 years old, (that's 30 years of pain now) I get the so called "suicide" migraines and they are triggered by hormones, being a woman that's impossible to avoid, birth control and hormone therapy makes them worse. Nothing stops it once it has started. They have gotten worse these past few years. Can't wait for menopause to see if they improve because the only time I got zero migraines was during my pregnancy (I have a 16 month old)
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I recently found out that many of the foods I thought I didn't like were in fact because my mum has no truc with expiry dates, food storage or cooking instructions. I've always thought I hated butter, it just isn't that nice when it's gone off. Sausages should not have a thick coating of burned while frozen inside. Making Indian food shouldn't start with burning some spices until the acrid smoke burns your lungs. Thankfully she usually gave us sandwiches and cooked only for my dad (also seems weird now) but no idea how the man hasn't died of food poisoning.
i have double jointed shoulders, thought that was completely normal until about 11 when we had to stretch before my practice. Also i can absolutely not stand the sound of corduroy getting scratched, not a mild dislike, it makes me feel physically uncomfy
I can actually feel strong emotions in colors... like anger, joy, feeling overwhelmed it crowded... But the most fantastic colors I see when I have a really great orga*m, that's like fireworks ;)
I found out while I was in the Navy I could hear better than almost anyone. At 1500 yards, I can hear and understand two people having a conversation. As well, I learned I was an absolute GOD when it came to analyzing other ships courses and speed when ownship was coming into or exiting port. I had only to look at a ship for tens of seconds and could relay its course, speed and closest point of approach, although I had trouble with time. I also do not need a clock or watch. I can go days without seeing a timepiece and know the time to within 15 minutes. But the real kicker: I dream everyday stuff in real time. I have dreams that seem to be taken out of other people’s lives. I have dreamt I was a businessman, an attorney in a rather mundane property dispute, or even a used car salesman. I have never had these kinds of jobs. Also, the locale affects me. If the weather is cold in the dream, I wake up cold. Likewise if I am in the desert at high noon in the dream, I wake sweating. Crazy!!
When I read a book, I don't see words. I see a movie - a virtual reality where I go around, looking over the persons shoulders. It was a big surprise when I realised not everyone experience reading like that.
Me, too. Sometimes I read a book and I swear I'd just seen a movie. What's weird is that I can't picture things in my head. If someone tells me to picture an ice cream cone in my head I don't see it. I describe it with words but never actually see it.
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I used to think everyone had these little movies they made up in their head and spent hours in. Some stories I’ve spent years on. Turns out that isn’t normal
Not abnormal, either. I do, too. It helped à lot when I was an insomniac kid with anxiety. There are
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i always thought i just got startled way way to easy. and i thought when you got startled you threw things from it and stuff like that. nope, i have an incredibly rare disorder called the jumping frenchman of maine. it’s stupid.
I need to know if someone else has this. When I sit on the toilet for too long I stop feeling my legs then they start "tingling" when I try to walk. But then I don't want to move because it's like a "being stabbed by millions knives but with no pain" sensation all over my legs
Growing up, I thought I had a pretty standard non-regional US accent. I heard no significant difference between how I spoke and how national newscasters spoke. I moved just one state over for college and was shocked to discover that I have a very thick regional accent, to the point that others comment on it and occasionally cannot understand some things I say. My mom, who has always lived in the same place, still has trouble believing this is true.
My only special ability is that I fall asleep usually under a minute. I tried to do meditation where you have to count back from 60. I changed it after many failed attempts to 20. I never reached 0...
My dad can do this. Literally just lie down and fall asleep on command. the rest of my family and myself are the exact opposite
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After multiple concussions as a kid, one of my eyes sees color more intensely than the other. Same colors for both but one eye sees normal and the other is in Technicolor.
Not sure if this is weird, but when I dream I can’t hear anything, but I still know what is being said.
I was born without a stomach valve. Thought it was just a neat trick that I could regurgitate whole food, on command. Had a Nissan fundoplication at 13. I haven't been able to vomit, since. Food poisoning is the worst, and I constantly have the hiccups. Cool scars, though :)
Up until sometime in my teens, I thought everybody's back would hurt if they ate something too hot. I get this weird sensation that travels all the way down my back like lava after I swallow... well one time I ate something that burned my mouth/throat at school and I did this thing where I kind of throw my shoulders back, almost like how you see somebody get hit in the back in movies or something, and my friends were like "....what's going on right now?!" and then I realized that not everybody has lava back burn lol And whenever I clean my ears with a cotton swab, (not all the way in, just near the opening like after a shower to get the water out and any earwax that's building up) it makes my throat tingle and itch.
If I’m walking on a pavement with a close friend and there is a lamppost ahead, I must pass the lamppost the same side as my friend, or I feel anxious like FOMO 😳
ASMR, I spent decades thinking I was a freak because all sorts of stimuli made me numb and tingly and at times stir my gonads. It's a bit confusing when the sound of tearing paper makes you erect
ASMR usually makes me nauseous. Really creeps me out.
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I have this weird thing were my pinky fingers can bend all the way back and touch the back of my hand. I was stretching my hand back and my pinky did “the thing” and my friend asked me if that happened to me normally. I thought it was normal so I was puzzled when she said it wasnt
Honestly, every time i touch a rough surface i stab my nails into my palms at least 2 times.. what is it??
I just learned some people don't... Hear colors? I can't rly describe it, but when you listen to music do you think, crimson, flame orange, beige, ect. I also don't hear blue, I hear cerulean ect.
I have really complicated dreams. Sounds, colors, details such as names of people and prices on items in a store. And they're long, a lot happens in them. I dream whole houses, hotels, malls, or supermarkets into existence, there's a layout and I can walk around and even go back to places I was before.
I thought it was normal to only breathe either through your mouth or your nose. I thought it was impossible and thought anyone saying otherwise was just joking around. Well, after a septoplasty, I realized I haven't been able to breathe normally my entire life. It was a fantastic and eye opening moment to experience smells and taste at the same time.
Wait... People can breath through their nose and mouth at the same time? How exactly does one do that?
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With me it was a fast heart rate and going over every bad thing that could happen. I was shocked when I realized that's not normal and I'm now diagnosed with panic disorder and severe anxiety.
I'm allergic to stress. No joke. Stress makes me break out in hives from top to toe. I take antihistamine daily to be able to do normal everyday tasks.
I have note to color synesthesia… c is green or bluish, d is orange, e is yellow, f is green, g is orange, a is red, b is red orange… the accidentals are all yellow green but I can tell them apart… I don’t exactly see the colors but I end up kind of ascribing perceptions of the colors to do perceptions of the music, like songs I’m f are bright and usually happy, songs in a are really intense, songs in b and e are sharp…
Once every couple of weeks I get an overwhelming sense of deja vu. Heart pounding, nauseated, hot, dizzy, etc but the strongest sensation is deja vu. I have to stop everything I’m doing and get some fresh air. No obvious trigger for it and It passes in just a few minutes but it’s really overwhelming.
I don’t have an inner monologue. For years I thought everyone just saw pictures in their head like a movie reel. I honestly never knew people have a voice in their head and that sometimes that voice is what contributes to anxiety and poor self esteem. Sounds great to not have that except I do have a lot of trauma and that trauma often plays in vivid detail and I have to make a conscious effort to turn off the images. It also makes talking hard bc I don’t think before I say, when I talk the words are coming out the moment they come to me. Also reading is hard bc I am visualizing each word to understand them
I have hyperphantasia. That's why I read very little literature because I've scarred and traumatized myself forever. Fortunately, I prefer non-fiction like zoology and psychology. I also hear music as colors and different styles of music create beautiful patterns.
Here's a weird one I doubt many can relate to: being able to urinate without the slightest bit of trouble with an erection. The only delay is from the time it takes for the urine to get out of the bladder, and it's a perfectly normal stream (in fact, it's usually much more powerful than when not erect!). This is but one of the fun side-effects of being born without a prostatic utricle.
Not what I expected... I should have seen it coming. Basically a lot people needing some attention rather than people with super powers or interesting disorders.
I have a CONSTANT inner monologue. It means I can't stop thinking. Yes, I've tried listening to ~calming music~ but it doesn't help. No, it doesn't mean I describe things in third-person. I just CAN'T. STOP. THINKING. Help?
This happens to me too. I didn't know that people could stop thinking!! What?!?
Load More Replies... I dream full length mostly movies with complete dialogue, scenes, and other characters. Sometimes they start right before I fall asleep so I consciously know they are beginning. Seconds before. If you wake me up in the middle of the night I can tell you everything going on and who said what. In the morning I only remember bits and pieces. They are shows I have never seen before anywhere. Sometimes they repeat themselves. There was one inside a dark mansion with lots of hallways upstairs that repeated for months. I walked quickly trying to get out but never finding a way. Another that repeated was a soldier standing at the foot of my bed as if he was guarding me. He wore a WWll uniform. So strange.
Had that occur Wirth some dream about an dystopian anime with an antro-wolf, basically escaping a slave trade, one scene Involved a high class train (fully furnished with velvet seat cushions, wood tables, upholstery the works) one scene involved the wolf being forced to serve nude, leading the wolf stabbing one pug guard in the eye with a shrimp fork. The intro to that "series" was all bright and cheerful. Had its own theme song, the wolf character lounge across title. It was seriously messed up, and bloody as hell. But definitely went a full 360, going from suspense to action in 3 seconds
Load More Replies... I’ve never known how complete strangers can start clapping in synch with each other when music comes on. A television ad came on one day for a Bruno Mars album. There were people in monkey suits moving in time to each other, I commented how much practice it must have taken to synch up their movements so perfectly. My wife said “they are in time to the music”. I had no idea. To me there is no connection between dancing and music. Sometimes called Beat Deafness, I found out I have Amusia, which is sort of like a musical equivalent of dyslexia
Sneezing at the sun! It was only a few years ago (I’m 51) that I found most people don’t sneeze at the sun
Autosomal Dominant Compelling Helioopthalmic Outburst (ACHOO) Syndrome
Load More Replies... I can relate to about 40 of these things. I thought these were normal things.
It's good you found out, isn't it? Some of these problems can be fixed with meds.
Load More Replies... When I was a child, I thought all people could use their toes like fingers because my sister and I could do that. Then I found out that the neighbor kids could not do this. Actually, I still have this ability.
Yeah, that comes in real "handy" when you're pregnant and can't bend down. I can pick up a button or sth. with my toes and "hand" it to my hand.
Load More Replies... I have a serious question to ask. I brought it up to my brother and he completely dismissed it. I get triggered by noises. Chewing, teeth grinding, tapping, snaps, and pen clicks. It’s gotten really bad lately. I have no idea what it is or how to bring it up to my parents.
It could be misophonia. Your triggers sound like pretty common ones: https://misophoniainstitute.org/misophonia-triggers/
Load More Replies... For the longest time, I just assumed that people got headaches all the time. It wasn't until I started getting constant vertigo and a visual aura that I was diagnosed with chronic migraine. Luckily the meds they prescribed work 95% of the time, but I wish my parents would have taken me to the doctor about it when I was little, instead of telling me that I "was reading to much" or playing too many video games.
You are lucky meds work. I've been a migraine sufferer since I was 13 years old, (that's 30 years of pain now) I get the so called "suicide" migraines and they are triggered by hormones, being a woman that's impossible to avoid, birth control and hormone therapy makes them worse. Nothing stops it once it has started. They have gotten worse these past few years. Can't wait for menopause to see if they improve because the only time I got zero migraines was during my pregnancy (I have a 16 month old)
Load More Replies... I recently found out that many of the foods I thought I didn't like were in fact because my mum has no truc with expiry dates, food storage or cooking instructions. I've always thought I hated butter, it just isn't that nice when it's gone off. Sausages should not have a thick coating of burned while frozen inside. Making Indian food shouldn't start with burning some spices until the acrid smoke burns your lungs. Thankfully she usually gave us sandwiches and cooked only for my dad (also seems weird now) but no idea how the man hasn't died of food poisoning.
i have double jointed shoulders, thought that was completely normal until about 11 when we had to stretch before my practice. Also i can absolutely not stand the sound of corduroy getting scratched, not a mild dislike, it makes me feel physically uncomfy
I can actually feel strong emotions in colors... like anger, joy, feeling overwhelmed it crowded... But the most fantastic colors I see when I have a really great orga*m, that's like fireworks ;)
I found out while I was in the Navy I could hear better than almost anyone. At 1500 yards, I can hear and understand two people having a conversation. As well, I learned I was an absolute GOD when it came to analyzing other ships courses and speed when ownship was coming into or exiting port. I had only to look at a ship for tens of seconds and could relay its course, speed and closest point of approach, although I had trouble with time. I also do not need a clock or watch. I can go days without seeing a timepiece and know the time to within 15 minutes. But the real kicker: I dream everyday stuff in real time. I have dreams that seem to be taken out of other people’s lives. I have dreamt I was a businessman, an attorney in a rather mundane property dispute, or even a used car salesman. I have never had these kinds of jobs. Also, the locale affects me. If the weather is cold in the dream, I wake up cold. Likewise if I am in the desert at high noon in the dream, I wake sweating. Crazy!!
When I read a book, I don't see words. I see a movie - a virtual reality where I go around, looking over the persons shoulders. It was a big surprise when I realised not everyone experience reading like that.
Me, too. Sometimes I read a book and I swear I'd just seen a movie. What's weird is that I can't picture things in my head. If someone tells me to picture an ice cream cone in my head I don't see it. I describe it with words but never actually see it.
Load More Replies... I used to think everyone had these little movies they made up in their head and spent hours in. Some stories I’ve spent years on. Turns out that isn’t normal
Not abnormal, either. I do, too. It helped à lot when I was an insomniac kid with anxiety. There are
Load More Replies... i always thought i just got startled way way to easy. and i thought when you got startled you threw things from it and stuff like that. nope, i have an incredibly rare disorder called the jumping frenchman of maine. it’s stupid.
I need to know if someone else has this. When I sit on the toilet for too long I stop feeling my legs then they start "tingling" when I try to walk. But then I don't want to move because it's like a "being stabbed by millions knives but with no pain" sensation all over my legs
Growing up, I thought I had a pretty standard non-regional US accent. I heard no significant difference between how I spoke and how national newscasters spoke. I moved just one state over for college and was shocked to discover that I have a very thick regional accent, to the point that others comment on it and occasionally cannot understand some things I say. My mom, who has always lived in the same place, still has trouble believing this is true.
My only special ability is that I fall asleep usually under a minute. I tried to do meditation where you have to count back from 60. I changed it after many failed attempts to 20. I never reached 0...
My dad can do this. Literally just lie down and fall asleep on command. the rest of my family and myself are the exact opposite
Load More Replies... After multiple concussions as a kid, one of my eyes sees color more intensely than the other. Same colors for both but one eye sees normal and the other is in Technicolor.
Not sure if this is weird, but when I dream I can’t hear anything, but I still know what is being said.
I was born without a stomach valve. Thought it was just a neat trick that I could regurgitate whole food, on command. Had a Nissan fundoplication at 13. I haven't been able to vomit, since. Food poisoning is the worst, and I constantly have the hiccups. Cool scars, though :)
Up until sometime in my teens, I thought everybody's back would hurt if they ate something too hot. I get this weird sensation that travels all the way down my back like lava after I swallow... well one time I ate something that burned my mouth/throat at school and I did this thing where I kind of throw my shoulders back, almost like how you see somebody get hit in the back in movies or something, and my friends were like "....what's going on right now?!" and then I realized that not everybody has lava back burn lol And whenever I clean my ears with a cotton swab, (not all the way in, just near the opening like after a shower to get the water out and any earwax that's building up) it makes my throat tingle and itch.
If I’m walking on a pavement with a close friend and there is a lamppost ahead, I must pass the lamppost the same side as my friend, or I feel anxious like FOMO 😳
ASMR, I spent decades thinking I was a freak because all sorts of stimuli made me numb and tingly and at times stir my gonads. It's a bit confusing when the sound of tearing paper makes you erect
ASMR usually makes me nauseous. Really creeps me out.
Load More Replies... I have this weird thing were my pinky fingers can bend all the way back and touch the back of my hand. I was stretching my hand back and my pinky did “the thing” and my friend asked me if that happened to me normally. I thought it was normal so I was puzzled when she said it wasnt
Honestly, every time i touch a rough surface i stab my nails into my palms at least 2 times.. what is it??
I just learned some people don't... Hear colors? I can't rly describe it, but when you listen to music do you think, crimson, flame orange, beige, ect. I also don't hear blue, I hear cerulean ect.
I have really complicated dreams. Sounds, colors, details such as names of people and prices on items in a store. And they're long, a lot happens in them. I dream whole houses, hotels, malls, or supermarkets into existence, there's a layout and I can walk around and even go back to places I was before.
I thought it was normal to only breathe either through your mouth or your nose. I thought it was impossible and thought anyone saying otherwise was just joking around. Well, after a septoplasty, I realized I haven't been able to breathe normally my entire life. It was a fantastic and eye opening moment to experience smells and taste at the same time.
Wait... People can breath through their nose and mouth at the same time? How exactly does one do that?
Load More Replies... With me it was a fast heart rate and going over every bad thing that could happen. I was shocked when I realized that's not normal and I'm now diagnosed with panic disorder and severe anxiety.
I'm allergic to stress. No joke. Stress makes me break out in hives from top to toe. I take antihistamine daily to be able to do normal everyday tasks.
I have note to color synesthesia… c is green or bluish, d is orange, e is yellow, f is green, g is orange, a is red, b is red orange… the accidentals are all yellow green but I can tell them apart… I don’t exactly see the colors but I end up kind of ascribing perceptions of the colors to do perceptions of the music, like songs I’m f are bright and usually happy, songs in a are really intense, songs in b and e are sharp…
Once every couple of weeks I get an overwhelming sense of deja vu. Heart pounding, nauseated, hot, dizzy, etc but the strongest sensation is deja vu. I have to stop everything I’m doing and get some fresh air. No obvious trigger for it and It passes in just a few minutes but it’s really overwhelming.
I don’t have an inner monologue. For years I thought everyone just saw pictures in their head like a movie reel. I honestly never knew people have a voice in their head and that sometimes that voice is what contributes to anxiety and poor self esteem. Sounds great to not have that except I do have a lot of trauma and that trauma often plays in vivid detail and I have to make a conscious effort to turn off the images. It also makes talking hard bc I don’t think before I say, when I talk the words are coming out the moment they come to me. Also reading is hard bc I am visualizing each word to understand them
I have hyperphantasia. That's why I read very little literature because I've scarred and traumatized myself forever. Fortunately, I prefer non-fiction like zoology and psychology. I also hear music as colors and different styles of music create beautiful patterns.
Here's a weird one I doubt many can relate to: being able to urinate without the slightest bit of trouble with an erection. The only delay is from the time it takes for the urine to get out of the bladder, and it's a perfectly normal stream (in fact, it's usually much more powerful than when not erect!). This is but one of the fun side-effects of being born without a prostatic utricle.
Not what I expected... I should have seen it coming. Basically a lot people needing some attention rather than people with super powers or interesting disorders.
