Death, the last frontier; the great beyond; the proverbial bucket we kick and dust we
bite.
It’s no surprise that many of us have quite a morbid fascination towards it.
In fact, most of human history have cultures that revered death have even built ceremonies
and traditions around it; some of these traditions surviving to this very day.
But beyond the glitz and glamor of the cultural and the religious, death is a natural process
in life and the “process” that happens to our physical bodies after dying is, well,
less than glamorous as you would suppose.
Hold on to your dinners, this is not for the faint of heart!
Here are TEN THINGS THAT HAPPENS TO OUR BODIES WHEN WE DIE.
Number Ten: We Turn Cold, Literally.
Within a few hours after kicking the bucket, our body temperature begins to drop and it
is left with a chill to the touch until it cools down to room temperature.
This process is called Algor Mortis.
Basically, what happens is that when the heart stops pumping blood, the body slowly halts
many of its functions such as metabolism.
In life, the blood that is pumped through our veins by our heart also helps regulate
our body temperatures.
Ever notice that you feel a little bit warmer after a strenuous activity like a workout?
This is because of the metabolic process that happens when our hearts pump blood and our
metabolic process is sped up, this is followed right away by breaking sweat: the body’s
signal to cool down and prevent it from overheating.
Without anything to regulate the body’s temperature, it, quite literally, goes cold
turkey after death.
Number Nine: Getting it Hard Next is probably the most obvious and easily
detectable stage – after turning cold – Rigor Mortis.
Once the heart stops pumping our body temperature drops and what follows after is the stiffening
of the muscles.
Because the heart has stopped pumping, blood begins to coagulate in the arteries and blood
vessels.
This coagulation results in the stiffening of the muscles which makes it a bit difficult
to bend the corpse in different ways.
Although why anyone would want to bend a corpse is completely beyond me.
Imagine the body as a car or any kind of engine.
Once you stop using it and turning it on, the fluids will begin to settle and solidify;
preventing it from running properly – if not permanently.
Anyway, Rigor Mortis sets around two to six hours after death.
The body does not stay stiff forever though.
As decomposition sets in, the muscles begin to deteriorate, and basically turns into jelly
once it putrefies.
Number Eight: Flushed for Color We have all heard the phrase “Deathly Pale”
and it has so much to do with what happens to us when we die.
Our bodies, literally, change color once our heart stops beating.
Because our circulatory system is basically shut down, and thanks to gravity, blood and
fluids begin to settle in different parts of the body.
While our bodies will not change a completely different color throughout, there are areas
where there is more blood where it will turn a shade of purple or purplish-red, or a shade
of blue similar to a bruise; while some parts will turn pale because blood being less concentrated
or drained in those specific areas.
Number Seven: Can I Buy a Bowel?
Oftentimes, people joke about how they peed or soiled themselves because they heard a
really funny joke or were scared witless and lost control of their bowels.
This is caused by the momentary relaxation of the sphincter, an organ in the body that,
well, “keeps it all in”.
Essentially, the sphincter is wired directly into our brain and our body takes control
of our bowels so that we avoid accidents while enjoying a walk in the park or relaxing during
Yoga.
When we die, our brain shuts down and muscle control is thrown out the window.
This includes bladder and intestinal control.
There are stories where people soil themselves immediately after dying because this function
of the body is shut down.
In some cases, bowel release happens hours later.
Urine and fecal matter are the most common “items” expelled by the body after drying
but there are also instances where other fluids, such as semen, is expelled as well.
Number Six: That Funny Smell…
The word putrid may have very well been invented for the single purpose of describing a decomposing
dead body.
What is more assuring to the human senses that something is dead than a noxious smell
emanating from the corpse?
Once the body shuts down, the cells also begin to deteriorate and die.
During this process, the cells release enzymes as a chemical signal to local bacteria and
fungi to let them know that they should get to work.
As soon as bacteria takes over the decomposition process, putrefaction begins and intensifies
the smell even further as cells, organs, and other body parts are broken down.
Number Five: …And Those Funny Noises Ask any doctor or any mortician and they will
have stories about a corpse that suddenly moans, sighs, or breaks wind.
It’s funny and morbid at the same time but these things do, in fact, happen once a person
has bitten the dust.
The sounds a corpse makes is not because they’re turning into the undead in order to wreak
havoc on the living but because of the combination of rigor mortis and different gases secreted
by bacteria once the process of decomposition begins.
Muscles may involuntarily twitch or contract, including the vocal chords, therefore creating
sounds that can be mistaken for a supernatural occurrence.
Number Four: Wax on, Wax off.
After the process of putrefaction – a process where our internal organs liquefies and turns
into slosh – an uncommon but not entirely rare occurrence may happen: as a result of
bacteria digesting our tissues, a wax-like, fatty material called adipocere may develop
most especially if the body is exposed to or surrounded by cold soil or water.
The process then allows this wax-like material to coat the body and, in some instances mummify
it.
In the days before our understanding of the medical sciences, the belief that the bodies
of several Saints surviving decomposition is nothing short of a miracle and a sign from
heaven; a sign that a Saint is incorruptible and untouchable even by decay.
However, as our understanding of science and death advanced throughout the centuries, the
instant mummification and preservation of these saints and their bodies have been attributed
to saponification where their bodies have been coated in the waxy material adipocere.
Number Three: Coffin Birth This one is perhaps one of the creepiest things
that could happen after death.
It sounds like a bad horror movie title, Post Mortem Fetal Extrusion, or “Coffin Birth”,
occurs within 48 to 72 hours after a pregnant woman dies.
As the body goes through the natural process of decomposition, the gases expelled by bacteria
may collect in the abdominal area and force pressure on the uterus thereby pushing out
the baby from the body.
However, this can only occur if the baby is positioned in the body with its head down.
This occurrence happens absolutely rarely and there are no recorded cases where the
baby actually survives the birthing even if it happened during the last stages of the
pregnancy.
Number Two: Hello, Sailor!
If a deceased pregnant woman has the possibility to give birth hours after death, then this
one will add more creepiness to this list.
Hours after death, our body stops pumping and blood begins to pool in the lowest parts
of the body as well as some of our extremities.
During the process of the muscles breaking down, the body tends to twitch and contract.
These contractions and blood pooling therefore cause the penis on a male corpse to go erect.
It sounds funny but this - let’s call it “phenomenon”- is not uncommon on any corpse
with a penis; some reports also indicate that there are corpses that ejaculate as this happens.
Number One: Going Out With a Bang!
As gases begin to collect and our tissues decay and turn into sludge, the body bloats
hours after death.
During this process the eyes begin to bulge out of their sockets and the tongue begins
to swell; and is forced out of the mouth.
As decay and putrefaction continues, the body keeps expanding.
While gases may escape through different orifices, there are cases where a corpse may end up
severely bloated and filled up with fluids and slosh that will cause the body to explode
with the slightest prick or jab.