Do Blind People Dream? Unraveling the Mystery of Blind Dreams

Do Blind People Actually Dream?

You might have wondered, do blind people dream? It's one of those questions that seems simple at first but, when you think about it, opens up a whole world of intriguing possibilities. Imagine being someone who cannot see, yet still has dreams. How do these dreams differ from yours and mine? Are they visual at all? This topic has fascinated me for a while, and after chatting with a few people about it, I figured it’s time to dig deeper.

What Do We Know About Dreaming in General?

Before diving into the specifics about blind people dreaming, let's first look at dreams in general. Dreaming is a natural part of sleep, occurring most vividly during the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) stage. Scientists have long debated the purpose of dreams—whether they're just random brain activity, or if they serve deeper purposes like emotional processing, memory consolidation, or problem-solving. But what’s certain is that everyone dreams, whether we remember it or not.

The Role of Sensory Experiences in Dreams

Normally, our dreams are filled with visual elements, because sight is our primary sense. You see images, faces, places—things you’ve encountered while awake. But what if sight is something you’ve never had or lost over time? Does that change how dreams happen? This is where things get interesting for blind individuals.

How Do Blind People Dream? The Surprising Truth

Here’s the mind-blowing part: blind people do dream. The content of their dreams, however, can differ based on when they lost their vision.

Blind from Birth vs. Blind Later in Life

I had this conversation just the other day with my friend Rachel, who works with people with visual impairments. She told me something surprising—people who are blind from birth don't have visual dreams. Instead, their dreams rely heavily on their other senses—hearing, touch, smell, and taste. It makes sense, right? Since they’ve never had the ability to see, their brains aren’t accustomed to processing visual imagery. So, their dreams might be full of sounds, sensations, and emotions.

On the other hand, people who lose their sight later in life often still experience visual elements in their dreams, at least for a while. They tend to dream in ways that incorporate both their memories of sight and their current sensory experiences. So, imagine someone who went blind in their 30s—they might dream of walking through a park, but instead of a visual image, their dreams are more about the textures they feel, the sounds they hear, and maybe the smells of the flowers.

How Do Blind People Describe Their Dreams?

Okay, but you might still be thinking, “That sounds cool, but what do they really experience?” To answer that, I turned to some interviews and research. Blind people describe their dreams in incredibly rich ways, even if those dreams lack visual elements.

Dreaming Through Sound and Emotion

Many blind people describe vivid, sensory-rich dreams. They might dream of walking through a crowd, hearing voices, or experiencing deep emotions like joy, fear, or confusion. Some talk about feeling the ground beneath them, the air on their skin, or even the vibrations of sounds around them. It’s fascinating how much the mind compensates for the lack of vision, adapting to the senses that are available.

A friend of mine, Sarah, who lost her vision at 21, shared with me how she experiences her dreams. “I feel like I’m constantly in a story. I’m walking through places, meeting people, and even talking to them. My dreams are alive with sounds—sometimes it's music, sometimes it’s voices. But I never see anything. I don’t even know what colors are.”

Emotional Dreamscapes

Emotion seems to play a huge role in blind dreams. From what I’ve gathered, many blind individuals feel like their dreams are more emotionally intense or connected to their inner feelings. They can dream about scenarios that are deeply emotional, and the dream itself often has an overwhelming sense of realism. It’s like their dreams are more of an emotional landscape than a visual one. In this way, blind people might experience a different, but equally rich, world in their sleep.

Can Blind People Dream Like Sighted People?

That’s the ultimate question, right? Can someone who’s never seen a sunset dream of one? Or can they imagine the color blue? The simple answer is no, at least not in the same way a sighted person would. Since sight is a learned experience, blind people who’ve never seen the world visually lack those visual references in their dreams. Instead, their dreams are deeply tied to what their other senses have learned over the years.

The Brain’s Incredible Adaptability

What’s truly fascinating, though, is the brain’s ability to adapt. Even without sight, the brain is capable of creating incredibly detailed, multi-sensory dreams. This shows just how adaptable our minds are. It makes you wonder how much we really depend on sight in our day-to-day lives, doesn’t it?

Conclusion: Blind People Do Dream, Just Differently

So, do blind people dream? Yes, absolutely. But their dreams are not visual in the way sighted people experience dreams. For those who were born blind, dreams are often full of sounds, emotions, and tactile sensations. For those who lost their sight later in life, the dreams may still include visual elements—at least for a time. What’s clear is that blind people have rich, immersive dreams, just as vibrant as those of sighted individuals, though different in their sensory makeup.

Isn’t it fascinating to think about how the mind works in such unique and adaptive ways? You might not ever see the world the way a blind person dreams it, but it certainly makes you appreciate the depth of human experience in all its forms.

Is 165 cm normal for a 15 year old?

The predicted height for a female, based on your parents heights, is 155 to 165cm. Most 15 year old girls are nearly done growing. I was too. It's a very normal height for a girl.

Is 160 cm too tall for a 12 year old?

How Tall Should a 12 Year Old Be? We can only speak to national average heights here in North America, whereby, a 12 year old girl would be between 137 cm to 162 cm tall (4-1/2 to 5-1/3 feet). A 12 year old boy should be between 137 cm to 160 cm tall (4-1/2 to 5-1/4 feet).

How tall is a average 15 year old?

Average Height to Weight for Teenage Boys - 13 to 20 Years

How to get taller at 18?

Staying physically active is even more essential from childhood to grow and improve overall health. But taking it up even in adulthood can help you add a few inches to your height. Strength-building exercises, yoga, jumping rope, and biking all can help to increase your flexibility and grow a few inches taller.

Is 5.7 a good height for a 15 year old boy?

Generally speaking, the average height for 15 year olds girls is 62.9 inches (or 159.7 cm). On the other hand, teen boys at the age of 15 have a much higher average height, which is 67.0 inches (or 170.1 cm).

Can you grow between 16 and 18?

Most girls stop growing taller by age 14 or 15. However, after their early teenage growth spurt, boys continue gaining height at a gradual pace until around 18. Note that some kids will stop growing earlier and others may keep growing a year or two more.

Can you grow 1 cm after 17?

Even with a healthy diet, most people's height won't increase after age 18 to 20. The graph below shows the rate of growth from birth to age 20. As you can see, the growth lines fall to zero between ages 18 and 20 ( 7 , 8 ). The reason why your height stops increasing is your bones, specifically your growth plates.