explain
pain
section
1
page
22
The phantom in the body
The idea of the virtual body
P
hantom limb pain is the experience of
pain in a body part that does not exist.
Seventy percent of people who lose a limb
experience a phantom limb. It’s not all legs
and arms either. Phantom breasts, penises
and tongues have been reported.
eg.44
We
believe that all pain sufferers could benefit
from knowingmore about phantom pain.
The feelings in a phantom limb are
completely real. It can itch, tingle and
hurt. Like other pains, phantom pain
worsens when the person becomes
stressed. The symptoms worsenwhen
someone comes close towhere the body
part would have been, some feel morning
stiffness in phantom joints.
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Others have
reported feeling rings on phantom fingers,
old surgery sites, and hands still clenched
as though on amotorbike handlebar. Some
report phantom legs that ‘can’t stop
walking’.
Pain after amputation is usuallymore
severe if there was pain before
amputation.
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This is a type of pain
memory.
Phantom limb pain tells us about the
representation ormap of the limb (the
‘virtual limb’) inside the brain. In fact, the
brain holdsmany virtual bodies. Our
virtual bodies let us knowwhere our
actual body is in space. Try closing your
eyes and reaching for a cup. You can still
do it because your brain uses the virtual
body to knowwhere the real body is. In
phantoms, although the leg ismissing, the
virtual leg and the relationship of the leg
to the rest of the body is still represented
in the brain.
