We’ve all been there: the movie ends; the lights come up; you shift in your seat, only to find your entire left calf is missing. Or at least, it feels that way – it’s still there when you check, but you can’t feel it, and it’s certainly not doing what you’re telling it. What’s going on? Are you dying?

Worry not. A “dead” or “asleep” arm or leg is completely normal – and it’s all down to a traffic jam in your nervous system.

Why do limbs “fall asleep”?

The reason your arms, legs, hands, or feet go numb every so often is simple: it’s your nerves.

That makes sense, right? You’ve lost feeling; it’s caused by something going wrong with your feeling organs. But you may have heard something else as the cause: “Some people mistakenly think a lack of blood flow causes this feeling,” wrote Zacha

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