turning alien

first weird post for 2008.

anarchic hand or Dr. Strangelove syndrome) is an unusual neurological disorder, in which one of the sufferer's hands seems to take on a mind of its own. AHS is best documented in cases where a person has had the two hemispheres of their brain surgically separated, a procedure sometimes used to relieve the symptoms of extreme cases of epilepsy. It also occurs in some cases after other brain surgery, strokes, or infections.

An alien hand sufferer can feel normal sensation in the hand, 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 feel that they have no control over the movements of the 'alien' hand, but that, instead, the hand has the capability of acting independent of their conscious voluntary control. Alien hands can perform complex acts such as undoing buttons, removing clothing, and manipulation of tools. Alien behavior can be distinguished from reflexive behavior in that the former is flexibly purposive while the latter is obligatory. Sometimes the sufferer will not be aware of what the alien hand is doing until it is brought to his or her attention, or until the hand does something that draws their attention to its behavior.

good ol' wikipedia ;-)

i don't have alien hand syndrome; but there are times when i feel like parts of me are turning alien. not my limbs.. nor my eyes/ears/nose/whatever. but oftentimes i feel like i'm not me. like there's some other person/creature living inside me. one that i can talk to. who argues with me. who says things i don't really mean. thinks thoughts i don't want to think. or does things i don't want to.

hmmm. i wonder where my alien is right now.

i feel like reaching out..