Do We Have More than Five Senses?
Evidence shows we have at least six, with the ability to learn a seventh
Hiya!
During my almost decade-long career as a licensed massage therapist, I studied the human body differently than doctors do. I learned to use other senses besides my sight to ‘see’ what was happening beneath the skin of my clients. For example, I can’t see energy blocks or knots, but I can sense them, and I (and the client) experience a bodily physical sensation when they release.
Similarly, sometimes we’re aware of a sense but don’t totally understand it or have a term for it. Then there are others we’re conscious of, but they happen so naturally, we don’t register them as a sense—like proprioception. But there’s also a sense we’re less aware of, one that’s perhaps atrophied, but it’s likely our ancestors used it thousands of years ago — echolocation.
Humans Have Proprio-what?
Why must science always have hard-to-pronounce terms? Sigh. Thankfully, in this case, proprioception is easier to say than it looks. It’s pronounced “pro-pree-o-ception,” and it’s our ability to know the location of our body within the space around us when our eyes are closed.
In other words, if you can close your eyes and stand up, then touch your finger to your nose with no issues. Congratulations, you’re using proprioception. Okay, okay, I know. Proprioception is a fancy word, but it’s no revelation. We use it literally all the time.
But even though this ability of ours is natural and intuitive, we don’t typically consider how remarkable it actually is. Imagine how disorienting it would be to lose all sense of where your body is when you’re in darkness. If you’re interested, check out this article by Vox. It shares the experiences of people born without proprioception and how it affects their lives.
What I found especially interesting, more than the result of proprioception, is what’s responsible for it. Ten years ago, scientists learned it’s all thanks to a tiny molecule-sized receptor called piezo2. It may be small, but it’s mighty powerful. Piezo2 is a doorway that allows the sensation of physical force to enter the nervous system and into our conscious awareness.
The other piezo receptor is Piezo1. It’s responsible for monitoring our blood pressure and other pressure-dependent internal systems. This means that these itty-bitty receptors — so small we can’t see them with the naked eye — literally keep us alive by monitoring internal pressures, but also allowing us to experience touch and maintain a sense of bodily awareness even in the dark. I mean, that’s some hefty responsibilities.
It’s always interesting to learn how we do the things we do. But recently, scientists confirmed that humans are capable of even more than we realize.
Humans Can Echolocate
You may have seen this in headlines a few weeks ago. After all, it’s pretty big news. You may even know that there are blind people who already use echolocation as a way to get around. But what’s exciting is it’s not just blind people who can do it. According to recent studies, it appears we all have the ability and can learn how to use it.
Echolocation is done by making a noise, like snapping your fingers or making a clicking sound with your mouth, then listening to the sound bounce off of nearby objects. We’ve known for a long time that some animals such as bats and dolphins use echolocation as a way to navigate their surroundings.
Now, a recent study published in July of 2021 in PlosOne, shows humans are included on the list of animals capable of echolocation — regardless of age or how well they can see.
Even more incredible, it only takes ten weeks of training. I know! Pure insanity! The study had 26 participants between the ages of 21 and 79 years old. Of them, 14 people with full vision and 12 people who are blind. They all trained in echolocation twice a week for ten weeks, and by the end, every single participant could do it. Some performed even better than veterans who have used echolocation for at least a decade.
This is exciting for a few reasons. The first is obviously that you and I are capable of this sense. It’s within us, and a natural, albeit underused, skill that seemingly all humans possess. I mean, how freaking cool is that? Imagine if we all knew how to use this ability?
The second reason is related to the first. Knowing, or at least having evidence showing that all people can echolocate, means our previous assumptions about why blind people can do it is wrong. At least partly. See, before the PlosOne study, it was assumed that when someone loses their vision, for whatever reason, the brain simply rewires itself in a way that allows for echolocation to happen.
Now we know it doesn’t take losing our vision for our brains to know how to echolocate. In a way, it seems the pathway is already there, even if we haven’t used it before. It’s just a matter of learning how to use it, no different from our other abilities — like singing or reading.
If you’re curious for more details about what it’s like to use echolocation, you’ll probably like this interview the Smithsonian did with Daniel Kish. He taught himself echolocation as a boy after losing his sight. It’s incredible how much detail echolocation provides about our surroundings.
Kish is also the founder and president of World Access for the Blind, a nonprofit in California teaching echolocation and other tactics to people with limited or no vision to help them navigate throughout life. After using this skill for decades, Kish is convinced our ancient ancestors probably used it regularly. After all, we haven’t always had electricity. Kish explains,
"I believe that early humans were highly auditory and probably did use echolocation. Most of human existence occurred without artificial light, so we spent a lot of time in the dark. We spent time in caves, and we had to know what was around us to avoid threats and predators. And you can hear around corners much easier than you can see around them, and you can hear through foliage much easier than you can see through it."
Perspective Shift
You know, we spend an awful lot of time learning about our world, society, and our place within it. We’re taught to focus on what we can see and learn about the physical world. Yet we spend far less attention learning about or mastering our internal skills.
But what if we were also taught about ourselves? What if we learned how to utilize and master our senses and sharpen our intuitions from a young age. Imagine learning echolocation in school or having a class on emotional intelligence. What sort of society might we become if we stop negating our own potential by favoring only a few of our attributes?
Sometimes, I think, it’s too easy to feel disillusioned by life and everything going on. Like we’re not good enough, or that life happens to us, and we’re no more impressive than specks in the wind.
That’s why when the outside world becomes too much, I turn inward. Learning that I know my bodily position and location even in the dark and that I can do this because of a molecule size receptor in my brain reminds me of just how phenomenal I am — how phenomenal we all are. We have abilities we’ve yet to tap into or understand, meaning we’re just as complex as life is, and we’re anything but powerless.
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