ALIEN HAND SYNDROME

“A person with alien hand syndrome can feel normal sensation in the hand and leg, but believes that the hand, while still being a part of their body, behaves in a manner that is totally distinct from the sufferer’s normal behavior. They lose the “sense of agency” associated with the purposeful movement of the limb while retaining a sense of “ownership” of the limb. They feel that they have no control over the movements of the “alien” hand, but that, instead, the hand has the capability of acting autonomously—i.e., independent of their voluntary control. The hand effectively has ‘a will of its own.'”