Drowning: When a victim submerges, they hold their breath for as long as possible, typically 30 to 90 seconds. After that, they inhale some water, splutter, cough and inhale more. Survivors have said there is a feeling of tearing and a burning sensation in the chest as water enters the airway. Then that moves into a feeling of calmness and tranquility. The calmness represents the beginnings of the loss of consciousness from oxygen deprivation, which eventually results in the heart stopping and brain death.
Heart Attack: The most common symptom is chest pain: a tightness, pressure, or squeezing often described as an “elephant on the chest”, which may stay steady or come and go. This is caused by the heart muscle struggling and dying from oxygen deprivation. Pain can radiate to the jaw, throat, back, belly and arms. Other signs and symptoms include shortness of breath, nausea and cold sweats. Women and men have different heart attack symptoms, so be sure to look into those differences.
Bleeding to Death: Anyone losing 1.5 liters – either through an external wound or internal bleeding – feel weak, tired, thirsty, nauseous, anxious, and would be breathing quickly. By 2 liters, people experience dizziness, confusion, rapid heartbeat, coldness, and then eventual unconsciousness.
Fire: Burns inflict immediate and intense pain through stimulation of the pain nerves in the skin. Burns also trigger a rapid inflammatory response, which boosts sensitivity to pain in the injured tissues and surrounding areas. As burn intensities progress, some feeling is lost but not much. 3rd degree burns don’t hurt as much as 2nd degree burns because 3rd degree burns kill the nerves and pain receptors while 2nd degree burns do not.
Decapitation: Very quick. Consciousness is said to continue for a few seconds after decapitation. It’s thought to be painless, but the separation of the spinal cord and brain may cause severe pain.
Electrocution: Higher currents can cause near immediate unconsciousness. The electric chair, for example, was designed to produce instant loss of consciousness and painless death, but it is debatable. It has been proposed that prisoners could instead be dying from heating of the brain or perhaps from suffocation due to paralysis of the breathing muscles instead of the electrocution itself because the walls of the skull are a thick and powerful insulator.
Falling: Another instantaneous death, depending on the height. Survivors of great falls often report the sensation of time slowing down. The natural reaction is to struggle to maintain a feet-first landing, resulting in fractures to the leg bones, lower spinal column, and pelvis. The impact traveling up through the body can also burst the aorta and heart chambers. From lower heights, damage to the internal organs and brain can often cause death.
Hanging: If the neck is broken, death by hanging can be instantaneous because the force of the rope vs. the weight of the body will sever the brain stem. However, if the rope is incorrectly placed, the brain stem will not be severed and the rope will put pressure on the windpipe/arteries to the brain. This can cause unconsciousness in about 10 seconds, but it can take longer depending on how the rope is placed. Witnesses of public hangings often reported victims “dancing” in pain at the end of the rope, struggling violently as they asphyxiated.
Lethal injection: First comes the anesthetic called thiopental to drive away any feelings of pain, followed by a paralytic agent called pancuronium to stop breathing. Finally potassium chloride is injected, which stops the heart almost instantly. Eyewitnesses have reported inmates convulsing, heaving and attempting to sit up during the procedure, suggesting it’s not always completely effective or instantaneous.
Vacuum (Such as Outer Space): When the external air pressure suddenly drops, the air in the lungs expands, tearing the fragile gas exchange tissues. This is especially damaging if the victim neglects to exhale prior to decompression or tries to hold their breath. Oxygen begins to escape from the blood and lungs. Human survivors from NASA often report an initial pain, like being hit in the chest, and may remember feeling air escape from their lungs and the inability to inhale. Time to the loss of consciousness is generally less than 15 seconds.
-communicating through looks -sharing drinks -singing really loudly, taking turns (the best songs for this is ‘mirrors’) -playing with each other’s hair -scratching each other where we can’t reach -piggyback rides -going to lame concerts, making it fun together -potlucks -laying heads on each other’s stomach -taking things straight from each other’s hands -knowing each other’s phone passwords (and the meaning of them) -buying each other food -knowing each other’s school schedule and which classes the other’s don’t want to miss -meeting up just to play board games -hugging whenever we see each other -cheek kisses -listening to early 2000s music -watching iconic early 2000s shows -reading some of our old facebook posts -caressing half shaved legs
