 Hey, have you ever thought a certain song sounded orange? Do you feel like you can see music? If so, you may have synesthesia, a neurological condition that scientists are still trying to learn more about. The word means to blend the five senses. People with synesthesia, known as synesthetes, experience the world differently. Where their senses are hooked up to each other in ways where one sensory source produces another result, such as tasting sounds or hearing colors. With that said, here are six interesting things about synesthesia. 1. Most are born with it and it runs in families. According to Dukobi Bankraft on rancor.com, researchers think everyone is born with synesthesia but grows out of it in time, with some developing it later on in life. Both of these are called developmental synesthesia. There are some cases where people suddenly gain these abilities due to medical issues like strokes, tumors, or brain injury, known as acquired synesthesia. The condition can also be inherited, with around 40% of synesthetes having another close family member with it. Scientists have even discovered a specific gene on chromosome 16 that causes grapheme color synesthesia, though they have yet to figure out why. 2. Left-handed people and women are more likely to have it. Did you know that there are certain members of the population more likely to have synesthesia than others? Again, scientists don't know why, but studies in the US have shown that women are 3 times more likely to have synesthesia, while in the UK, 8 times more likely to have it. And strangely enough, more synesthetes are left-handed compared to the rest. 3. When sick, their abilities can change. When a synesthete comes down with a cold, flu, or something like an ear infection, it can affect how they experience their condition. They're strengthening or weakening it, or making them feel out of whack and not right. For example, a sound color synesthete with a blocked ear may not only lose their hearing, but the colors they usually experience may be different. Similarly, if you have synesthesia and are diagnosed with depression, you might find that it temporarily leaves altogether. 4. There are over 80 different kinds of it. Your senses can be linked to each other and with other things like personality in a large combination of ways. While most people with a condition only have two senses, like sight and sound, linked. Some can have three or more linked together. According to BetterHelp, there's been at least one case where someone had connections between all five. In general, there are two major groups of synesthetes, projective and associative. The first one is when you hear, smell, taste, or feel the second sense. Like tasting blueberries when you hear a specific piano note. Synesthesia means that you can connect a stimulus with a sense in your mind, but not experience it. Instead of tasting blueberries, the piano note will only remind you of blueberries. 5. You can teach yourself synesthesia. There are many benefits to synesthesia, such as boosting your memory and creativity. According to psychology professor Barrett Brogarde, who has the condition herself, you can teach yourself some tricks to learn it, such as by associating two different things together. It takes practice and patience, but once you start associating two things together, you can build new neural pathways in the brain. We remember colors more easily than other things, so it may be helpful to associate a color with something to remember it. You can also use meditation or the practice of mindfulness to help. Since mindfulness is about shifting your attention to your senses, learning to become aware of your senses may help you to better perceive synesthesia. 6. Ideasthesia is an offshoot of synesthesia. While synesthesia is when a sensory experience is associated with another sense, like seeing colors when you listen to music, ideasthesia is when a concept like a letter or number which aren't real things but abstract concepts trigger a sensory experience, like seeing a certain color. Concepts can also trigger other concepts, like a letter or number can have a gender or personality. They aren't senses, but they are ideas. Do you think you have synesthesia? Let us know in the comments below. If you found this video helpful or interesting, be sure to like, subscribe, and share this video with those who might benefit from it. And don't forget to hit the notification bell icon to get notified whenever Psych2Go posts a new video. As always, the references and studies used in this video are added in the description below. Thanks for watching and we'll see you in the next video.