The dreams of those who have lost an arm, leg, or both resemble those of the blind'; that is, the earlier in life the loss occurs the less likely is the absent member to appear in the dreams. As is well known, persons who have suffered the loss of a limb often experience, when awake, sensations coming apparently from the missing member. This holds good for about 75 per cent. The case is recorded of a man of 70 who felt distinctly the leg which he had lost at the age of 13. If the wound healed rapidly the sensation of the amputated limb's presence is apt to be retained; if healing was slow and painful the person is likely to be aware of the amputation, and so he does not feel sensations coming apparently from the absent member; this is because the mass of stimuli from the painful area has made an impression on the brain which has blotted out the memory of the limb or which permanently acquaints the brain with the new condition. In some dreams the absent limb may appear to be growing so short that the toes seem to be joining the stump. As regards pain in a limb that has been removed, such is usually due to an irritation of the nerves in the stump, these nerves containing fibres which once supplied the various portions of the absent limb.

Jastrow1 says:

"Cripples dream of their lost limbs for many years after their loss; in such cases, however, stimulation of the cut nerves may be the suggestive cause of such dreams. A man of forty, who lost his right arm 17 years before, still dreams of having the arm. The earliest age of losing and dreaming about a lost limb, of which I can find a record, is of a boy of 13 years who lost a leg at the age of ten; this boy still dreams of walking on his feet. Those who are born cripples must necessarily have their defects represented in their dream consciousness. Heermann cites the case of a man born without hands, forearms, feet, or lower legs. He always dreamt of walking on his knees; and all the peculiarities of his movements were present in his dream-life."

1 Op. cit., p. 347.