"Sudden onset loss of grace"

August 7, 2016 11:12 AM

Is there a name for that phenomenon whereby you briefly lose the ability to act naturally? For example: mid-sip of a glass of water you make unexpected eye contact with an attractive stranger, and then you must take manual control of your arm and hand to set the glass back down instead of by muscle memory / reflex / autopilot, during which you feel awkward and look awkward.
posted by pot suppeck to Health & Fitness (10 answers total)

This may not be exactly what you mean, but there is the Centipede's Dilemma idea.
posted by kewb at 11:18 AM on August 7, 2016 [2 favorites]

Self-consciousness?
posted by penguin pie at 11:26 AM on August 7, 2016 [8 favorites]

discombobulated? Discomfited? Discomposed?

I think the actual feeling is one thing, but then manually taking back composure is a separate thing. Hope that makes sense!
posted by catspajammies at 11:53 AM on August 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

or maybe "disconcert" is better!
posted by catspajammies at 11:54 AM on August 7, 2016

This segment from the Where Am I? episode of Radiolab talks about proprioception, which is how your body and brain communicate with each other so you can move (usually) without thinking about it.

I think you're describing temporary impairment of proprioception. The Radiolab episode I linked to describes temporary and permanent impairment. The permanent cases are pretty fascinating (and terrifying)!
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 11:55 AM on August 7, 2016 [3 favorites]

Flustered or rattled?
posted by SpacemanStix at 12:18 PM on August 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

Self-consciousness, I think, perhaps.

You're talking about an extreme form of self-consciousness. It seems like there should be a word for it.
posted by amtho at 1:46 PM on August 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

discombobulation?
posted by FirstMateKate at 5:28 PM on August 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

Close words: stupefied, dumbstruck.
posted by papayaninja at 5:55 PM on August 7, 2016

I don't have a good word for it, but I used to experience it all the time, usually when I was walking in a public place I'd get all self conscious about if I was walking "right" and suddenly my legs would feel wooden and stilted. If it occurred to me that anyone might be watching and aware of this, the feeling would get exponentially worse.

It passed with time (I call that getting old and not giving a fuck cure-all) but in retrospect, I suppose the best description I could use was Self Reinforcing Consciousness of Awkwardness.

It probably sounds cooler in German.
posted by quin at 6:09 PM on August 7, 2016