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Non-religious emergency responders/medicos of Lemmy, do you believe that something is 'missing' when looking at a corpse? (self.asklemmy)

submitted 10 months ago by Bluetreefrog to c/asklemmy

46 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Firefighter here. I was reflecting on a fatality I attended recently. My thoughts wandered to how a body looks like it is 'just matter' in a way that a living thing does not, even when sleeping. Previously I assumed this observation was just something to do with traumatic death, but this person seemed to have died peacefully and the same, 'absence' of something was obvious.

I'm not a religious person, but it made me wonder if there actually is something that 'leaves' when someone dies (beyond the obvious breathing, pulse etc).

I'm not looking for a 'my holy book says', kind of discussion here, but rather a reflection on the direct, lived experiences of people who see death regularly.

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[–] NeoNachtwaechter 11 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I seem to recall that animals can sense whether other animals are dead (or rotten/contaminated)?

They smell putrefaction.

It starts immediately when life has ended. It doesn't wait for days, or hours, out of decency or so...

[–] 200ok 3 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (2 children)

TIL the word "purification". Thank you!

Edit: putrification (damn autocorrect, and it's still underlined in red).

Edit: putrefaction (sigh)

[–] Blumpkinhead 4 points 10 months ago

I admire your tenacity.

[–] idiomaddict 2 points 10 months ago

That’s where “putrid,” mostly used ime to describe a rotten smell, but also applicable to the morals of your least favorite politician, comes from