Eyes Opening and the Nearing of Death Relaxation of the muscles occurs right before someone passes away, which is then followed by rigor mortis, or the stiffening of the body. This relaxation impacts the muscles in the eyes and can cause some to open their eyes right before passing, and remain open after passing.
Open eyes at death may be interpreted as an indication that the deceased is fearful of the future, presumably because of past behaviors. Such an interpretation is invited in the newspaper headline 'Bomber McVeigh dies, eyes wide open,' referring to the execution of the Oklahoma City bomber.
When you die, your muscles cease to function. It would involve contraction and release of different muscles for your eyes to roll back. Rigor mortis (Latin: rigor "stiffness", mortis "of death") is the stiffening of the muscles after death.
Visions and Hallucinations
Visual or auditory hallucinations are often part of the dying experience. The appearance of family members or loved ones who have died is common. These visions are considered normal. The dying may turn their focus to “another world” and talk to people or see things that others do not see.
In time, the heart stops and they stop breathing. Within a few minutes, their brain stops functioning entirely and their skin starts to cool. At this point, they have died.
For the first few minutes of the postmortem period, brain cells may survive. The heart can keep beating without its blood supply. A healthy liver continues breaking down alcohol. And if a technician strikes your thigh above the kneecap, your leg likely kicks, just as it did at your last reflex test with a physician.
Although death has historically been medically defined as the moment when the heart irreversibly stops beating, recent studies have suggested brain activity in many animals and humans can continue for seconds to hours.
Research suggests that even as your body transitions into unconsciousness, it's possible that you'll still be able to feel comforting touches from your loved ones and hear them speaking. Touch and hearing are the last senses to go when we die.
Hospice has a program that says that no one should have to die alone, and yet this hospice nurse is telling me to take a break? Some patients want to die when no one else is there. Hospice professionals know that companionship while dying is a personal preference.
ES, also coined as premortem surge, terminal lucidity, or terminal rally, is a deathbed experience reported as a sudden, inexplicable period of increased energy and enhanced mental clarity that can occur hours to days before death, varying in intensity and duration (Schreiber and Bennett Reference Schreiber and Bennett ...
Between a half hour to three hours after death, the eyelid loses its elasticity, the pupil dilates and there is a distinct change in the cornea, which is normally transparent.
Unlike some newborns, whose eyes are blue due to the amount of melanin present at birth, a deceased individual's eyes will look blue or grayish because of corneal opacity. While the actual color of the iris does not change colors, a hazy film forms over the eyeball which can give it a blue or gray appearance.
After death, there is are no reflexes of the pupils to light and the cornea also loses its reflex. The cornea of the deceased also become cloudy after two hours of death. Besides that, the pressure in the eyes start to decrease and the eyeballs become flaccid before it they sink into the orbits of the eyes.
The expert previously said that the death stare was a key sign that your loved one was about to die. The term, which she coined herself, refers to when a "loved ones seemingly stares beyond you, or stares into the corner of the room or up to the ceiling".
So with simple bedside observations, a clinician can predict what is going to happen to the patient by detecting the signs, such as respiration with mandibular movement, which essentially means the jaw drops during breathing. This is a telltale sign that the patient will die in the next few days.
You can hold your loved one's hand or offer very gentle massage as long as that seems to be soothing to her. In the last few hours of life it is sometimes better to stop touching the patient so that she can keep her awareness on the dying process rather than on the physical realm she is trying to leave behind.
When your loved one is nearing death, it is important to end each conversation in a way that will be okay if it is the last time you speak. Casual goodbyes like “See you around,” or “I've got to run, so bye for now,” may leave you wishing you had said something different. Your goodbyes don't need to be mushy.
Feeling very sad and crying often is a very normal part of the dying process. However, feeling down or depressed most of the time is not normal. Thinking a lot about death or suicide and feeling guilty or worthless are often signs of depression. Depression is common in people who are dying and should be treated.
They might close their eyes frequently or they might be half-open. Facial muscles may relax and the jaw can drop. Skin can become very pale. Breathing can alternate between loud rasping breaths and quiet breathing.
The brain and nerve cells require a constant supply of oxygen and will die within a few minutes, once you stop breathing. The next to go will be the heart, followed by the liver, then the kidneys and pancreas, which can last for about an hour. Skin, tendons, heart valves and corneas will still be alive after a day.
Within hours, blood is pulled downwards, causing splotches on the skin. Because the heart is no longer pumping blood around the body, it starts being pulled down by gravity. As the blood pools, patches appear on the skin within 30 minutes of death.