Monique Todorovski, a clinical administrator, has a rare condition called lexical-gustatory synaesthesia, which causes her to taste words. She describes the experience as both fascinating and challenging, particularly when it comes to names.
When she met her husband, whose name is Philip, she was conflicted because his name tasted like crunchy green pears, which she dislikes. She compromised by calling him Phil, which tastes like sweeter stewed pear. She estimates the condition affects just 0.2% of the population.
Todorovski recalls first noticing the phenomenon in primary school with a classmate named Kevin, which triggered an image of bacon. She realised she had synaesthesia at age 28 while visiting the Melbourne Museum. She has both forms of lexical-gustatory synaesthesia: some words trigger actual tastes, while others evoke images or textures.
Naming her children was difficult. Her son Lucas's name tastes like mashed ripe banana, which she finds acceptable. Her daughter's name, Alyssa, brings an image of autumn leaves and a crunchy texture, but no taste. Some words, like 'fellow', feel soft and pillowy like marshmallows.
Todorovski has found community through Facebook groups like Synaesthesia World but has yet to meet another person with her form of synaesthesia in person. She hopes to one day have a fascinating conversation with a fellow lexical-gustatory synaesthete, provided they have a nice-tasting name.
