Home / Science / Life Science / Human Biology / Anatomy & Physiology

MORE STUFF LIKE THIS

10 Real Animals That Seem Makebelieve

10 Green Structural Engineering Marvels

Puzzle: Nuclear Power Plant

What happens during the dying process?

by Molly Edmonds 465
Like 1.6k Tw eet 68 29

Page 1 2

Death Im age Gallery

The Scout motto is "be prepared," but it's hard to be prepared for death, be it our own or a loved one's. Too much is unknown about what dying feels like or what, if anything, happens after you die to ever feel truly ready. However, we do know a bit about the process that occurs in the days and hours leading up to a natural death, and knowing what's going on may be helpful in a loved one's last moments. During the dying process, the body's systems shut down. The dying person has less energy and begins to sleep more and more. The body is conserving the little energy it has, and as a result, needs less nourishment and sustenance. In the days (or sometimes weeks) before death, people eat and drink less. They may lose all interest in food and drink, and you shouldn't force them to eat. In fact, pushing food or drink on a dying person could cause him or her to choke -- at this point, it has become difficult to swallow and the mouth is very dry.

Understanding the dying process m ay help ease fear of death. See m ore death pictures. AbleStock.com/Thinkstock

As the person takes in less food and drink, he or she will urinate less frequently and have fewer bowel movements. The person may also experience loss of bladder and bowel control. People who are dying may become confused, agitated or restless, which could be a result of the brain receiving less oxygen. It can be disconcerting and painful to hear a loved one so confused in his or her last days. The skin will also show the effects of slowing circulation and less oxygen -- the extremities, and later, the entire body, may be cool to the touch and may turn blue or light gray. Some skin may exhibit signs of mottling, which is reddish-blue blotchiness. As the person gets closer to death, it

LEARN MORE Is there a worst way to die? 10 Bizarre Ways to Die Curiosity Project: 10 Examples of Natural Selection

will become harder and harder to breathe. Respiration will be noisy and irregular; it will sometimes seem as if the person can't breathe at all. When there's fluid in the lungs, it can cause a sound known as the death rattle . It may be possible to alleviate the gurgling and congestion by raising the person's head. If the dying person is experiencing pain, he or she will usually be given medications to manage it. When we're watching someone die, we may have a preconceived notion of how the person should handle death emotionally and spiritually. It's important to remember that every person experiences dying differently. Some people have the need to say goodbye or to hear from another person before death, some don't. Some people prefer to partake in religious rites, while others may remain silent until the end and pass away when everyone has left the room. Doctors and other professionals who manage end-of-life care advise loved ones to take their cues from the dying and avoid projecting their own desires or needs onto the person. They also urge loved ones to continue speaking comfortingly to a dying person -- hearing may be one of the last things to go. Clinical death occurs when the person's heartbeat, breathing and circulation stop. Four to six minutes later, biological death occurs. That's when brain cells begin to die from lack of oxygen, and resuscitation is impossible.

Launch Video

Print

Citation & Date

465

Feedback
Like 1.6k

Page 1 2
Tw eet 68 29

Ads by Google Publish Your Short Story Trying To Get Published? We'll Find A Publisher For You! Start Now www.findyourpublisher.co.uk Oferte constructii usoare

Structuri metalice si panouri: hale service, spalatorii, case, garduri www.clarisconstruct.ro Constructii Metalice Proiectam, Fabricam si Montam orice tip de Constructie Metalica. www.structurimetalice.ro

MORE TO EXPLORE

Spons ored

5 m arketing 10 People You predictions for 2014 Probably Didnt Know Were Black

How StuffWorks "All About Death"

10 of the Biggest Lies in History

10 Ways to Break Into a House

Spons ored

What w ill the 10 Cool Things You internet be like in 5- Didn't Know About 10 years? Stephen Haw king

10 Worst Ways to Die

10 Am azing Things People's Brains Have Done

8 Fam ous People Who Died in the Bathroom

[?]

ALL THINGS SCIENCE

10 Incredible Wind Pow er Facts

10 Rem arkable Exoplanets

Fact or Fiction: Earthquakes

Top 10 Things That Wom en Invented

Strange, Spooky, Scary: The Supernatural Quiz

Watch 100 Greatest Discoveries videos

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE

10 Old Wives' Tales about Your Health If someone told you sugar makes kids hyper and cats are after your baby's air supply, you've heard some old wives' tales. Is there any truth in them?

Popular Articles
Test Your Knowledge: How Not to Get Pregnant How Fecal Transplants Work How Blood Works

Can scientists make moths gay? Scientists tricked male brown-tailed moths into trying to mate with one another instead of the females. But are sexuality and gender actually fluid concepts in the animal world? Explore animal sexuality, from intersexual clams to homosexual giraffes.

113 comments

Add a com m ent

Muhamet H. Bahtiri Mitrovica, Kosovo Thank God I AM MUSLIM :)! Reply 10 Like October 20, 2013 at 10:01pm Pip Drummond Sales at TelAmeriCorp In short, thank god you don't have to think about any of this? Reply 3 Like December 22, 2013 at 7:55pm

Muhamet H. Bahtiri Mitrovica, Kosovo Pip Drummond i do think about this and i've read about this even before! Thats what happens to our bodies after we die! The question is what happens to our soul! Watch this video and u'll understand more! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6td5BSodo&feature=youtu.be Reply 6 Like December 22, 2013 at 8:03pm Top Commenter

Chris Jay

Yea, can't wait for those 72 virgins... However, for the sake of argument, suppose you chose the wrong god? What then? Reply View 8 more Tony Smith CEO & Founder at Self employed painter and decorator Your born, you live, you die. Make the most of it, keep it simple. Do't fear death, it's all over for your. So be true to yourself and achieve your full potential. Oh and a little bit of love makes life worthwhile.100 BILLION PEOPLE HAVE DIED since man first walked this earth. Reply 2 Like January 28 at 10:36am 6 Like December 26, 2013 at 10:14pm

Pamela Barnard Modesto Junior College Perhaps we are just energy in motion. Energy does not stop or die. It must and will change in

Perhaps we are just energy in motion. Energy does not stop or die. It must and will change in whatever way it can to keep moving. Our bodies and minds as humans are always changing, evolving like a light bulb that has caught a current of electricity. When this circuit is worn out, after living in and changing in this body and mind, the energy changes again, moves on. And I think those of us who would like to keep some sense of self in the next existence would want to stay in touch with their nature and remain close to their spiritual center, which may just be a small point of light within a greater light, the collective of energy we may choose to join if we can master the current of our own energy. It's a theory that feels right to me. Reply 1 Like February 24 at 7:15am Top Commenter Universidad Autnoma de Quertaro Ingenieria en

David Muoz Gonzlez Software Reply

Remember that the death is not the end, it's only a transition. 1 Like February 10 at 11:26pm Douglas McCown University of Madrid So then, you've done this of course, as you know it to be true. Reply Like February 13 at 10:35am Sage Tellew Works at Converting Oxygen to Carbon Dioxide Life isn't about death or what comes after life. What life is about what happens when you're alive. It's about cherishing and enjoying each beautiful moment and making the most out of the time with your loved ones. Live a fulfilled life so you can greet death with a smile. Life isn't made so that we can wait for it to be over. We were given life so that we can live and be alive. Reply 5 Like October 24, 2013 at 9:16pm

Steve Toom 139 subscribers I was an atheist until I encountered enlightenment and one thing is for sure scientists never explain spirituality. During the process my eyes were shut off but i could see my self and had the feeling of peace and oneness with the universe. I was revealed everything i had ever experienced and learned in less than ten minutes and everything in my life made sense.I have been working to achieve experience and I hope to find answers soon. It might be the same experience people go through when dying because someone told me it takes pain and suffering to attain the state of consciousness and I was not doing so well at that moment. I found piece with my self and that was the best thing that ever happened to me. Many people fail to give an explanation to such occurrences because most of what you may hear might not be understood. Ask me any questions if you are interested in knowing more about the experience. Reply Like February 10 at 4:16pm Rob Murillo Classified at Shhhh it's a secret!! When dying, life will feel like a dream.. like waking up. In the 3-6 minutes of the process you will have no pain.. so, if pain is what you fear then fear not! Your vision will be 360 degrees and not what you see only in front of you (only while dying). Yes, there is a life after death.. you will see people that have passed over.. they will look different than they did in their earthly bodies but nonetheless you will recognize them because you will remember them by feeling.. not by sight.. no one will see with sight.. we will see with feelings.. Time is non existent when you cross.. you will hardly remember what "time" is.. Those who believed that there was no such thing as life after death will feel so betrayed.. by their own themselves and no one else. If you lived an honest and good life you will experience Harmony... Like a comfortable dream that you never want to wake up from.. If you lived a dishonest life, again betrayal within is what is felt. Like winning a Brand new car but not having the Taxes to be able to claim your prize..(Best way I can describe it) . How do I know this? no need to explain.. you non believers already don't believe so its pointless to try and explain. Reply 5 Like September 27, 2013 at 10:35pm Douglas McCown University of Madrid It's so reassuring, that you know the absolute truth. Thank you God, for pointing the way for us ignorant ones. You are the One. Reply Like February 13 at 10:36am Mim Skilk Anybody know the name of this doctor speaking? Reply Like February 10 at 8:41pm Justin Kitchin Cornerback at New England Patriots Well if people do not believe in God, then I want them to tell us the science of where we come from. Reply 4 Like September 29, 2013 at 5:16pm Albert Diaz It's not that people don't believe in god,it's that we look to religion for answers,but if u honestly look at the facts can u tell me if god was alive when dinosaurs were roaming the planet? Nope I honestly think 1day maybe not in r life time but r grand kids we will find out that we were created by Extraterrestria Reply Like December 23, 2013 at 7:55pm Chris Jay Top Commenter

Well, "we" as in you the individual, are a product of biological reproduction... if your biological parents hadn't did the hanky panky, you wouldn't be here, simple as that, it's their genetic material that produced you. As for "we" as in our species, we're the product of evolution by natural selection... the same process that brought forth all the variation of life we see now... and continue to see emerging every day. In fact, all domestic dogs are descendants of the gray wolf... known as artificial selection... humans guided the process toward certain desirable traits over thousands of years... be it, bigger, faster, etc. Reply Like December 26, 2013 at 10:19pm Louis Miah Elliott School south London one word..... Evolution..! Reply Like January 1 at 7:21am

Ilde Brand Furtado

Top Commenter

The only thing worse than old religious nuts are young atheists. The two most obnoxious category of people. Reply 5 Like September 5, 2013 at 1:55am Daniel Sullivan Reply Top Commenter

Oh man I am so with you on that one. 1 Like February 10 at 11:19pm

Phil Mehr Works at Freelance Character Artist Pretty sure young atheists have never molested choir boys. Just saying. Reply Like February 16 at 1:12pm
View 18 more
Facebook social plugin