Skip to main content

Can you still feel a limb that's gone? - Joshua W. Pate

786,969 Views

6,890 Questions Answered

TEDEd Animation

Let’s Begin…

The vast majority of people who’ve lost a limb can still feel it — not as a memory or vague shape, but in complete lifelike detail. They can flex their phantom fingers and sometimes even feel the chafe of a watch band or the throb of an ingrown toenail. What causes these phantom limb sensations? Joshua W. Pate explains how the brain reacts to a missing limb.

About TED-Ed Animations

TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Educator Joshua W. Pate
  • Director Tolga Yıldız
  • Narrator Addison Anderson
  • Art Director Tolga Yıldız
  • Illustrator İbrahim Hakkı Uslu
  • Producer Serin İnan
  • 3D Animator Önay Günkut
  • Storyboard Artist İbrahim Hakkı Uslu
  • Composer Tolga Yıldız
  • Content Producer Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Producer Alex Rosenthal
  • Associate Producer Bethany Cutmore-Scott
  • Associate Editorial Producer Elizabeth Cox
  • Fact-Checker Francisco Diez

More from Getting Under Our Skin