Our senses of self are tricky things to pin down. We all appear to possess intuitive notions of our own identities. We're all sure there's something — whether it be our personalities, our principles, our abilities or our ambitions — that sets us apart. But our senses of self arise out of an assortment of cognitive processes, which, if altered, can change our perceptions of ourselves and our worlds.
Take your awareness of your own body, for instance. A significant part of your sense of self is physical, with your consciousness being tethered to the inside of your brain. But what happens when your center of consciousness is untethered, triggering what's commonly called an out-of-body experience?
Experts have asked this question since the 1800s, but neuroscientists are only now starting to unravel how these experiences come to bear.
What Are Out-Of-Body Experiences?
People often describe out-of-body experiences as a sense of weightlessness, or drifting, where they might see their body from above.
