A hospice nurse has revealed the three things that shocked her most about death when she first started her career: from people’s ability to hear even when unconscious to dehydration, which makes less painful process.
Julie McFadden, 41 — a registered nurse based in Los Angeles, California, specializing in end-of-life care — has accumulated hundreds of thousands of followers while sharing her insights into people’s final moments in hopes of destigmatize death..
More recently, she uploaded a video to her YouTube channel in which she detailed the three most surprising things. that she learned what happens to the body before someone dies.
“Here are the most surprising things I’ve learned about the end of life,” she began in the clip, which has been viewed more than 23,000 times.
Julie explained that the first thing that surprised her about death was that it is believed that people who are about to die can still hear, even when they are unconscious.
Hospice nurse revealed three things that shocked her most about death when she first started her career
Julie McFadden, 41 — a Los Angeles-based registered nurse who specializes in end-of-life care — shares her perspective on people’s final moments in hopes of destigmatizing death
“When someone is unconscious and doesn’t respond to us, we think they can hear us,” she said.
“There have been studies done where people died and had an EKGS on the brain, which showed that the hearing sensor was the last to go out.”
She suggested always “talking to your loved one as if they were there,” rather than talking about them as if they had already passed away.
“Say the things you need and want to say,” she added. “And don’t talk about your loved one like they’re not there.
“As a palliative care nurse, I always try to talk to the patient as if they could talk back to me.
“And I will speak to loved ones at the bedside as if the person was still there, because studies have shown they can or have the ability to still hear.”
Julie, who previously worked as an intensive care nurse, added that she had seen many people come out of comas and tell her they “could feel” what was happening in their sleep.
“They were telling us they could hear certain things, they could feel people in the room,” she said.
Most recently, she uploaded a video to her YouTube channel in which she detailed the three most surprising things she’s learned about what happens to the body before death.
His list included people being able to hear even when unconscious and the fact that dehydration makes the process less painful.
“They kind of knew what was going on. We believe it is the same for the dying person.
“So at the end of life, it’s just about being present, it’s about creating an atmosphere and an environment that comforts them.”
The second thing that surprised her when she started working as a hospice nurse was the “deathbed phenomenon.”
The term is used to describe a series of experiences that occur to a person moments before death.
Sometimes patients describe seeing deceased loved ones or tell their caregivers that they are about to go on a trip.
Julie said she has seen some people feel a “rush of energy” just before they die, while she has seen others “wait” to cross over until their loved ones come “into the room.” “.
“(These things) were mind-blowing to me as a new hospice nurse, it’s still mind-blowing to me when I see them now, eight years later,” Julie said.
While describing the phenomenon as “shocking” and “incredible”, she also said it was “heartwarming”.
“That’s why I’m still doing education on this,” she continued. “I think it’s important for me as a hospice nurse to educate the general public that these are things that actually happen. We don’t know why, but they know.
Finally, the third and final thing that amazed her about death was that dehydration “helps people die more peacefully.”
“Dehydration at the end of life will help you die more peacefully. For what? Because a dying body can’t handle the hydration that a living body can handle,” she explained.
“If we try to hydrate a dying body at the end of its life, it will be overloaded with fluid.”
“The body can’t handle the fluid, it doesn’t stay in the person’s veins or arteries, it seeps out and causes swelling and then eventually respiratory distress.”
“The more I saw this as a new hospice nurse, the more amazed I was at how much our bodies actually help us die.”
“Our body will start to help us be more dehydrated, because the body knows that the more dehydrated you are, the better you will feel.”
Julie previously posted a video detailing what’s known as the ‘death stare’ – a blank look that appears on a person’s face and usually indicates they are about to die.
She also posted a video about how the body is “built to die,” explaining that everyone has built-in mechanisms that “turn off” when you’re close to death.
“You’ll go into ketosis (if you’re dehydrated) and your body will release endorphins that will give you a feeling of euphoria and help you ease the pain and actually feel good.”
Julie explained that being honest about her experiences would help people be less “afraid” of death.
“There are a lot of unknowns about the end of life and I think that’s what scares people,” she concluded.
“But the more I’ve been around people at the end of life, the less afraid I’ve become because I’ve seen firsthand how our bodies help us prepare for that and the different things that comfort us. it happens at the end of life.
“Witnessing death regularly made me less afraid. That’s why I’m bringing you this information. I hope this will also lessen your fear.
Julie, who used her expertise to write a book called Nothing to Fear, previously released a video detailing what is known as the ‘death stare’ – a blank stare that appears on a person’s face and which usually indicates that She’s about to die.
“It’s when someone is really obsessed with a certain part of the room, and no matter what you do – you can snap your finger right in front of their face – and they won’t move their gaze,” he said. she declared.
“Sometimes they just watch. Sometimes they talk to someone you don’t see. Sometimes they will have a big smile on their face, as if they saw something that obviously made them very happy. This is called the “death stare.”
She added that the “death gaze” is often accompanied by “end-of-life visions”, which is when the dying person claims to see someone they “love and know” and who has “already” evolved.
“They sometimes have conversations right in front of us with these people that we don’t see,” she added of the strange event.
Julie also posted a video about how the body is “built to die,” explaining that everyone has built-in mechanisms that “turn off” when you’re close to death to make passing feel more “natural.” and “peaceful”. ‘
She explained that this is why someone near death often begins to “eat and drink less, while sleeping more.”
“Why is this happening? Because calcium levels in the body increase and because calcium levels increase, the person becomes more sleepy,” Julie said.
“Our brain has integrated mechanisms that make us hungry and thirsty. Biologically, when the body knows it is nearing the end of its life, these mechanisms turn off, so the person usually does not feel hungry or thirsty, which helps the body slowly shut down.