This is what happens in your body when you die

Death. Not really a popular subject, is it? Maybe we don't want to read about it because it feels ‘scary’. Like something you don't want to be associated with. Far from your bed. You don't want to die. But precisely because we don't really want to deal with it, we know little about it. While death is actually quite a - and from this point on it suddenly sounds macabre - fascinating thing. Just as you ‘suddenly’ came into the world, so you will also leave it.

What happens in the last hours of someone's life in the body, before he/she dies naturally?

Your appetite disappears
Someone whose last hour has struck has no appetite anymore. Not only for the practical reason that a dying person no longer needs food, but also because your body needs all the energy for the big ‘preparation’ to go. Because the dying person eats less, he or she will lose weight quickly. The desire to drink also decreases in the final phase. This often happens because swallowing becomes more difficult, resulting in choking, which costs extra strength and energy.

You withdraw
Someone who is dying sleeps a lot. The waking periods become increasingly scarce. He or she seems to withdraw more and more and is increasingly difficult to engage with.

Your hands become cold
Your body goes into a kind of energy-saving mode. The warmth and energy are used as long as possible for the vital organs. Therefore, the hands, feet, and nose also become colder.

You breathe irregularly or ‘gurgling’
First, someone breathes a bit deeper from the belly, then it becomes shallower. Often there are intervals: someone takes a breath, then there is a long pause during which loved ones may think that their beloved is no longer there, but then another breath is heard.

Your consciousness takes a step back
Many stimuli no longer get through. Responding to conversations becomes increasingly difficult. Do you want to say things in the last moments? Please do. Because a dying person can often still hear well. Smelling too, by the way. Strong perfume is also discouraged in the last moments for family members.

You might see your life flash before your eyes
There are indications that the electrical charge in the brain peaks just before death. Researchers think that an explanation could be that the brain cells fire their information in all directions. This as a kind of survival reflex due to the increasing oxygen deficiency in the brain. If this happens in areas where memories are stored, it could explain why people with a near-death experience saw their life flash by.

Your pulse stops and you die
After the last breath and final exhalation, the heart may continue to beat for a moment. If the pulse-heartbeat has also disappeared, then someone is officially deceased. What happens to your soul (or whatever you want to call it) remains a mystery, but according to many, you see a clear difference between someone who is still breathing lightly and someone who is really no longer there.

Think about it. We are just tiny ants in an immeasurable universe. Being part of this is already a ride in itself.