The Emotional Reality of Phantom Limbs

October 5th, 2006 Fred McVittie Posted in Emotion, Feeling, Proprioception, Touch |

Non-conscious process utilise models of ‘being in the world’ that are different to the consciously arrived at models articulated by consciousness. An obvious example of this disparity is the case of phantom limbs, in which individuals who have lost an arm or leg (or in some cases who have been born without a limb) still experience the presence of the missing body part. The sense of the existence of the limb is so compelling that such people will, for example, avoid bumping the limb when passing through a doorway, even though they are fully aware that the limb is not there and there is no possibility of bumping it. The existence of the limb is ‘felt’ and emotionally responded to, even though the rational conscious mind is providing irrefutable evidence that the limb is not there. The compelling nature of this illusion, and the fact that this compulsion is so strong that it can significantly influence action, comes from its origins in non-conscious processes. The body image, the shape of the amputee’s ‘being in the world’ contains this limb and informs the behaviour of the person emotionally. For the person passing through the doorway, although it may be obvious that there is no real danger of bumping the phantom limb, to not take evasive action would not ‘feel’ right.