The Effects of Sleep on Phantom Pain

It's not unusual for people who have lost a part of their body to go to sleep, dream about themselves and they have back the missing body part. We form an image of our body in our mind and we have a map of our body superimposed on our brain. And because we have that map and representation of our body on our brains, when you lose a body part, that doesn't suddenly disappear. It does take a little while before your memories begin to rewrite or overwrite with the new representation of your body. The other is a physical absence of a body part having a neurological consequence which leads to a discomfort syndrome.