What Every Person Should Know About War by Hedges Chris

Author:Hedges, Chris [Hedges, Chris]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Free Press
Published: 2007-10-31T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8

DYING

How will I die?

Most combat wounds result in the loss of too much blood. Had you made it to old age, you might have had enough blood, but a heart too weak to pump it, or arteries too clogged to allow it to travel around your body. The end result is the same: your brain stops functioning because the lack of blood cuts off its only source of oxygen.1

Is blood loss the only way I can die during a war?

No, just the most common. Even if you have enough blood, you may not be able to get enough oxygen into it if your throat is crushed, or your lung is punctured. Additionally, your brain can stop functioning if you are struck or shot in the head. Or you could die slowly from an infected wound.2

How long will it take me to die if I am wounded?

It depends on how long it takes you to lose enough blood. If you are a 170-pound man, the loss of eight pints of blood is enough to stop your heart. If you are a 130-pound woman, six pints is enough. If you tear a major blood vessel, you can lose this much blood in less than one minute. A tear or hole in a blood-filled organ like the liver or spleen may cause you to bleed to death over the course of several hours.3

What does it feel like to die?

You will be conscious for part of it. According to people who have been clinically dead and then resuscitated, you will feel your consciousness swiftly wind down. It will not flip from on to off, like a light, but rather will gradually disappear, like a match burning out.4

Could I be resuscitated?

If you lose a massive amount of blood, your heart will stop beating. Your breathing and brain activity will stop. Your cells will not die immediately. If you are resuscitated and receive a blood transfusion within four minutes you may live.5

Will I feel pain when I die?

Possibly not. When you are wounded, your body may release endorphins to raise your pain threshold. However, the pain may be too great for the endorphins to handle, in which case you will feel the pain of being wounded.6

Will I know I am dying?

Probably not. Or, more accurately, if you are conscious enough to think you might be dying, you will probably survive. Medical support for the American military is very effective. If you do not die within the first hour of being wounded, you will probably live to recover. Terminally ill patients are sometimes uncannily able to predict the hour of their death, but those who die from sudden traumas like gunshot wounds have no such ability.7

What happens to my body and bodily functions as I die?

Your heart will start beating faster to compensate for the blood loss. It will send what blood is left to the body more quickly. You will probably also hyperventilate to get oxygen into your remaining blood.

Eventually, you will go into a coma.

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